World of Volvo nominated for the 2024 Kasper Salin Prize

Each year, Architects Sweden awards the Kasper Salin Prize to a Swedish building, or a group of buildings, of high architectural quality. This year, World of Volvo has the great honour of being one of four nominees for Sweden’s most prestigious architecture award. The winner will be announced at the Architecture Gala on April 3 in Stockholm.

“The common theme among all nominees is the building’s relationship with its location and how Swedish nature is represented in the architecture in various ways. Of course, we have also discussed sustainability, and we have chosen four nominees that each demonstrate sustainable building practices in different ways,” says the jury for the Kasper Salin Prize.

In the jury’s statement, they highlight the guiding principle behind World of Volvo’s architecture: the Swedish Right of Public Access (Allemansrätten). This concept has been interpreted as a public, accessible space that invites free movement – just like the city’s streets and squares.

“From Mölndalsån, the building’s floor rises through terraces, staircases, and ramps 14 metres up to the level where the traffic on the E6 highway rushes past. Above this topography, a green roof hovers, creating the illusion of being in nature rather than beside a bustling motorway. The roof is supported by colossal yet softly and sensually designed wooden structures, standing like a cluster of trees in the centre of the circular building. The upper side of the roof, with its stylised and interconnected tree canopies, forms a unique landscape that surprises visitors and offers a completely different experience of the building from what they first encounter at the entrance,” the jury writes in their statement.

World of Volvo is a place for experiences, a concept reflected in the many events and exhibitions held in the building, as well as in its unique architecture.

“Being nominated for the Kasper Salin Prize is a great recognition for World of Volvo and the architectural vision behind the building. With the ambition to create an experience-rich and accessible meeting place, the building reflects Volvo’s values and the presence of Swedish nature in the urban environment,” says Paul Welander, CEO of World of Volvo.

Read more at: https://www.arkitekt.se/arkitekturpriser/kasper-salin-priset/