Culture house and library in Karlskrona | Dorte Mandrup Arkitekter

Dorte Mandrup states her position as a leading expert in world heritage architecture with the fifth competition win related to UNESCO-protected cities and landscapes in seven years. The Danish architecture studio will design a new culture house and library in the heart of Swedish baroque city Karlskrona.  

Danish architecture studio Dorte Mandrup, together with Marianne Levinsen Landskab and Torbjörn Nilsson, have been announced winner of the competition to design a new culture house with library, art hall and café in the center of Karlskrona, Sweden. Due to its unique architectural character and naval past, central parts of the city have been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site making the culture house Dorte Mandrup’s fifth World Heritage related building. 

”We are thrilled about the opportunity to put our mark on yet a historical and UNESCO-protected context,” Founder and Creative Director, Dorte Mandrup, explains. 

“The task demands that we act with humility and respect for the existing and at the same time add a new character and identity to the place. This is our preferred way of working, and projects like this is what makes working as an architect meaningful,” Mandrup adds.

Respect for the past, courage for the future

The culture house is meant to become a modern meeting place and hub for several cultural activities. Situated at the corner of ”Stortorget”, Karlskrona’s central square, the building will house a library and room for different activities such as dance, music, and exhibitions.

Dorte Mandrup conveys the diverse program with a design that respectfully plays together with the unique buildings of the city and the square. On the outside, the architects interpret the three-part façade division of the baroque and thus scale down the building's length. Inside, a large, sculptural staircase creates a natural movement through the various levels of the building and connects Stortorget with the city's new viewing platform on the roof of the culture house.

With both theater hall, art hall, library, tourist information, maker space, study space and café, Karlskrona's new culture house will provide the setting for inspiring meetings between people, culture and science. Dorte Mandrup's winning proposal will form the basis for the forthcoming detailing and construction of the culture house, which is expected to be ready by the end of 2021.