The evening begins with an in-depth conversation about the new book The Architecture of Peter Celsing (Park Books), whose material is currently on display in an exhibition at gallery SPARK. Peter Celsing’s architecture balances raw functionality with artistic precision. Artist and photographer John Håkansson documented Celsing’s buildings in a series of black-and-white photographs taken in the mid-1990s. Today, these images constitute an invaluable historical record of environments that, in many cases, have changed dramatically since they were photographed.
Through 103 photographs and essays by architect Staffan Henriksson and artist Maria Lantz, the book reveals Peter Celsing’s working methods. We discuss how he maintained his craftsmanship and artistic integrity during a period when the construction industry was shifting towards large-scale production and prefabrication — regardless of whether the commission concerned a metro station, a church, or the Swedish Riksbank.
Following the conversation, we move out to Hedmanska gården to toast the arrival of summer. Expect wine, music, and collegial mingling under the open sky as part of the Swedish Association of Architects Skåne’s summer gathering.
EVENING PROGRAM
17:00–18:00 | Book Talk & Exhibition (Indoors)
John Håkansson and Staffan Henriksson in an in-depth conversation about the making of the book and Celsing’s architecture. Moderated by Max Gerthel and Anna Lavén from SPARK.
18:00–21:00 | Summer Gathering at Hedmanska gården
We move outdoors to toast the arrival of summer with wine, music, and collegial mingling. Together with Angelica Åkerman (Form/Design Center), the local chapter will briefly present the upcoming autumn programme and highlight some of the season’s exciting themes.
PARTICIPANTS
John Håkansson is an artist and photographer based in Stockholm. His work often operates at the intersection of architecture, urbanism, and documentary photography, with a particular focus on how built environments change over time. Håkansson’s images of Celsing’s works capture the weight of materiality and the play of light in buildings that today form part of the most significant legacy of Swedish modernism.
Staffan Henriksson is an architect. He has worked with industrial architecture both at Berg Arkitektkontor and independently. He has also served as editor of the architecture journal MAMA, professor and dean at the KTH School of Architecture, and rector of the Aarhus School of Architecture in Denmark.
SPARK is a platform and gallery in Malmö focused on the intersection of architecture, art, and design. Through exhibitions, talks, and publications, SPARK creates spaces for critical reflection and in-depth dialogue on the built environment and its artistic values.