Knut Hamsun, Norway’s most inventive twentieth-century writer, fabricated new forms of expression in his first novel Hunger. He went on to found a truly modern school of fiction with his works Pan, Mysteries, and Growth of Hamarøy near the farm where writer grew up. The 1500 sf center includes exhibition areas, a library and reading room, a café, and an auditorium equipped with the latest film projection equipment. Hamsun’s writings have been particularly inspiring to filmmakers, which is evident in the more than 17 films based on his work.

KNUT HAMSUN CENTER
Hamarøy, Norway, 1994 -Aug 4, 2009

PROGRAM: Historical museum for writer Knut Hamsun including exhibition areas, library, reading room, cafe and 230 seat auditorium
Architect:Steven Holl Architects
CLIENT: Nordland Fylkeskommune (County)
SIZE: 24445 sf

The building is conceived as an archetypal and intensified compression of spirit in space and light, concretizing a Hamsun character in architectonic terms. The concept for the museum, “Building as a Body: Battleground of Invisible Forces” is realized from inside out. Here the wood exterior is punctuated by hidden impulses piercing through the surface: An “empty violin case” balcony has phenomenal sound properties, while a viewing balcony is like the “girl with sleeves rolled up polishing yellow panes.”

Many other aspects of the building use the vernacular style as inspiration for reinterpretation. The tarred black wood exterior skin is characteristic of the great wooden stave Norse churches. On the roof garden, long grass refers to traditional Norwegian sod roofs in a modern way. The rough white-painted concrete interiors are characterized by diagonal rays of light calculated to ricochet through the section on certain days of the year. These strange, surprising, and phenomenal experiences in space, perspective and light provide an inspiring frame for exhibition.

Model

Exterior

Interior

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