Webinar now on YouTube
Our online talk ‘What are we afraid of?’, involving an AI specialist, a priest and a film maker, raised a multitude of fascinating, terrifying, liberating topics.
Using Tor Lindstrand’s images of a possible future Råängen we spoke about opportunities to consider a future we don’t know; the importance of visualising spaces that involve dirt, disfunction and diversity as well as dynamics that are part of life; we considered the risks involved in thinking that we can handle and control reality; and we made a plea for more gaps, darkness and open space for reflection, resonance and creativity.
‘What are we afraid of? Longing, anxiety and hope in the age of AI’
Mia Engberg, film director and screenwriter
Lena Sjöstrand, Chaplain, Lund Cathedral
Tor Lindstrand, architect, lecturer and AI specialist
Jes Fernie, curator, Råängen
Watch here
19 September 2024
webinar: What are we afraid of?
Longing, anxiety and hope in the age of AI
19 september, 12–13.15 CET
Speakers:
Tor Lindstrand, architect, lecturer and AI specialist
Lena Sjöstrand, Chaplain, Lund Cathedral
Mia Engberg, film director and screenwriter
Chair:
Jes Fernie, curator, Råängen
What do we want the future to look like?
How does this differ from potential realities?
Can we use technology to create alternative narratives for what is probable, plausible and possible?
Join us for a wide-ranging, urgent discussion between an architect, a priest, and a film director. We’ll be talking about how architecture is represented; the agency of imagery; longing, anxiety and hope.
We are using AI images of Råängen, generated from conversations, as a tool to discuss what our neighbourhood could become. The image above is one of thousands produced under the guidance of Tor Lindstrand. For this event, we will be using a selection of these unsettling images to kickstart our conversation.
Register here
MARCH 2024
MIES VAN DER ROHE AWARD
The European Commission and the Fundació van der Rohe have announced the finalists for the 2024 European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture – Mies van der Rohe Award. We are extremely proud that Hage, the walled garden at Råängen, is one of five finalists. Congratulations to Geir and Olav at Brendeland Kristoffersen and to Tim Lucas and Ian Sheppard at Price & Myers. The winners will be revealed on 25 April. Read more here.
Hage won the 2023 Skåne Architecture Prize and the 2021 Lund Urban Design Award. It was also a finalist of the 2023 Kasper Salin Prize, and the 2022 European Prize for Urban Public Space.
JUNE 2023
BYGGSTUDIO TEXT
March 2023
Cathedral thinking
The exhibition Cathedral Thinking is currently on display at Form/Design Center in Malmö. The exhibition poses the question: how can the church’s resources, including buildings and land, become a catalyst for conversations around continuity and transformation?
Råängen is presented as an example of the ways that church land can be transformed to house a new community, whilst Johannes Brattgård investigates how church buildings can provide new types of public space.
A public seminar will be held at Form/Design Center on 16 March. Speakers to be announced. See Form/Design Center for details of all events, including children’s workshops.
February 2023
The Kasper Salin Prize
Hage, our public garden, has been shortlisted for the Kasper Salin Prize, the Architects Sweden Award for best building of the year. We are honoured to be part of the shortlist which also includes an office building – Merkurhuset in Göteborg; a renovated church – Mötesplats Mariatorget, Stockholm; and twelve townhouses in Malmö.
The winner of this year’s award will be announced at the Architecture Awards Ceremony on 13 March 2023, at the Liseberg Theatre in Göteborg.
More information about the nominated projects is available here.
January 2023
Ways of living workshops
In January 2023, Eva Prats and Ricardo Flores, architects of the Tower and Corner Houses at Råängen, held a series of workshops with students at the LTH Architecture school in Lund.
Over one intensive week, the students investigated six neighbourhoods in Lund to understand how the relationships between home and neighbourhood differ. The results of the project will help inform the development of the first buildings at Råängen.
September 2022
SUN, WATER, POWER – PLAY DAY AT HAGE 25 SEPT, 14–17
We invite children and adults of all ages to come along and experiment with water fountains and solar panels at Hage, our public garden in Råängen. Hanna Nilsson and Sofia Østerhus from Byggstudio will be on hand to make water mirrors and clay gutters with you, and you’re free to play with sprinklers, and water pumps. Solar-powered fountains and clay channels, designed by local school children, will be on display, ready for you to test and adapt.
This is the second in our series of public events at Hage, organised by design practice Byggstudio around the theme of PLAY & RESEARCH. For this event, we are delighted to be collaborating with local school Östratorns and pre-school Solbjers, as well as engineering students from Lund University.
This event is free and refreshments will be offered throughout. Please wear suitable clothes for messy work and all types of weather (including rain!). Toilets are available on site.
Book your place: info@raangen.se
July 2022
Hage shortlisted for European prize
‘Hage’ has been shortlisted for the 2022 European Prize for Urban Public Space. ‘Hage’ is one of five finalists for this award, which aims to highlight projects that create, recover, and improve public spaces in European cities. The award is run by the Centre for Culture in Barcelona. The winner will be announced in November 2022.
May 2022
DIG, SPLASH, DIG! HAGE 7TH MAY, 14–17
This is an invitation to get really dirty and a little bit feral. Together, we’ll be digging, playing, jumping and making in Hage, the new walled garden at Råängen. We’ll have activities for all age groups – come and join us!
- Dig in the mud pit, make mounds, and splash about.
- Soil/Clay/Sand-lab – find out about the soil at Råängen with Mats Persson from Lund Cathedral.
- Excavate clay with ceramicist Pernilla Norrman.
- Make your own soil – bring along biodegradable objects that can become soil.
The event is free and suitable for all play enthusiasts 0–100 years! Wear old cloths and wellies and prepare to get muddy. We will go ahead if it rains! A toilet will be available, and refreshments will be provided. See you in Hage!
Book your place: info@raangen.se
Find us: Hage is located south of Odarslövsvägen opposite Max IV, at Brunnshög in Lund. The nearest tram stop is Max IV and parking for cars and bicycles is available on site.
PARTNERSHIP WITH LUNDS KONSTHALL AND WANÅS KONST
To kick-start the PLAY & RESEARCH programme we have joined up with Lunds konsthall and Wanås Konst on a series of events that link to the current exhibition at Lunds konsthall: ‘The Playground Project’.
Interactive Sculptures in Lund, 2 April, 1–2.30pm
Meet at Lunds konsthall
A guided bike tour around artworks designed for play in Lund.
Sculpture & Play, 9 April, 2–3.30pm
Wanås Konst
A guided walk and discussion about art, memory, and play, based on the exhibition ‘We Go To The Park’ by Beatrice Alemagna, and the works of art in the sculpture park.
Tour is included in the entrance fee.
Art & Play, 28 April, 5–8pm
Lunds Konsthall
Seminar about places for children and play in today’s society.
Speakers:
Gabriela Burkhalter, Curator of the Playground Project; Luca Frei, artist; Lena Sjöstrand, Chaplain, Lund Cathedral; Åsa Nacking, Director, Lunds konsthall; Elisabeth Millqvist, Artistic Director, Wanås Konst; Jake Ford, White Arkitekter/Råängen. Moderator: Hans Carlsson, artist and curator.
Dig, Splash, Dig! 7 May, 2–5pm
Hage, Råängen
The first of Byggstudio’s events is an invitation to dig holes, look for treasure, and play in muddy puddles. Be prepared for a bit of anarchy.
March 2022
BYGSTUDIO
We are delighted to be working with Byggstudio on a programme of events and activities that will take place in Hage throughout 2022. The theme for the programme is PLAY & RESEARCH and will involve local community groups and residents. Together, we’ll be testing ideas and developing networks for long-term partnerships in Råängen.
Mars 2022
Råängen talk
If you missed our online talk with the artists and architects involved in our commissioning programme, chaired by Kieran Long of ArkDes, you can watch it here.
March 2022
HAGE ARCHITECTURE PRIZE AND BOOKLET
We are very happy that Hage has been awarded the Lund Architecture Prize 2021. We’ve made a booklet about the project which includes an essay by UK-based writer Gillian Darley. Read it here.
January 2022
råängen talk
‘Working with Nothing – Artists and Architects Building a New Neighbourhood’
January 18th, 2022, 12.00–13.15 CET, via Zoom
Chair:
Kieran Long, Director, ArkDes
Speakers:
Eva Prats and Ricardo Flores, Flores & Prats Architects
Nathan Coley, artist
Geir Brendeland, Brendeland & Kristoffersen Arkitekter
The Råängen programme of art and architecture commissions in Lund is at once very strange and very straight forward. Join us for a discussion about its character, with three artists and architects from Barcelona, Glasgow, and Trondheim who are involved in the programme. We’ll be considering the following questions:
– How can artists and architects respond to a place that doesn’t yet exist?
– How does it feel to work without a brief?
– Does it matter that we are all from elsewhere?
Watch the talk here
Oktober 2021
LUND ARCHITECTURE FILM FESTIVAL
We have made a short film of the building of ‘Hage’ which will be screened at the Lund Architecture Film Festival (15 to 17 October). The film will be shown on the 16th when Lena Sjöstrand and Linda Holster will also take part in a panel discussion. Check the website for details. The programme is available online this year.
September 2021
Hage is open!
Many thanks to everyone who joined us to celebrate the completion of ‘Hage’. We had a wonderful afternoon with drinks, speeches, dances, songs, dogs and babies. Performances by local choir, Klockorna, under the direction of Makiko Nakamura-Ottosson, and the contemporary dance group Miscellaneous AB, led by choreographer Maria Naidu, took place throughout the party.
April 2021
The Råängen Experiment
Researchers at Lund University and Utrecht University have been following the Råängen programme over the last couple of years. We are delighted that their paper ‘Planning for 1000 Years: The Råängen Experiment’ has been published in the latest issue of ‘Urban Planning’.
A team of academics in the Department of Political Science at Lund University, and the Department of Human Geography and Spatial Planning at Utrecht University, have been exploring experimental approaches to urban planning involving long-term projects. They take Råängen as an example of an urban expansion programme that establishes a conversation with the future, through its 1,000 year time-frame.
Read the paper here
4 March 2021
Flores & Prats
We are delighted to announce that architects Flores & Prats have been commissioned to design the first building for Råängen. The residential building will sit close to ‘Hage’, the walled garden designed by Brendeland & Kristoffersen, which is currently under construction.
‘It is fantastically exciting that we are now entering the next phase of the work at Råängen, and I am especially pleased to welcome Eva and Ricardo to the project. Their experience will be invaluable in the work to come. Flores & Prats combine aesthetic quality and craftsmanship with a focus on creating spaces that promote exchange, respect and community. Sustainable building and wider environmental issues are important to them. This, together with a playful and experimental attitude, bodes well for the work!’
Lena Sjöstrand, Lund Cathedral’s Chaplain and project co-director
16 November 2020
Hage at Domkyrkoforum
Photographer Peter Westrup has been documenting Hage during construction and a selection of his photographs are now on display at Domkyrkoforum in Lund. The exhibition is open until 7 December 2020. Please follow advice on social distancing.
23 May 2020
RÅÄNGEN DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME
The project has moved into a new phase as the formal planning process has now begun. We are working together with the Lund city planning department to develop the Outline Plan which will define the structure of the area, including principles for public space, streets, schools and mix of development. The intention is for the first homes to be built around ‘Hage’, beginning the slow shift from field to neighbourhood. We will share material from this process as it develops.
23 May 2020
Hage – digital talks due to Covid-19
We’ve had to move the launch of our public garden, ‘Hage’, from September 2020 to spring 2021, because of the impact of Covid-19. However, we are continuing our public programme in virtual channels. Members of the Råängen and Hage team have taken part in various talks with the Architecture Foundation and Art & Christianity in the UK in recent weeks. Watch them here:
Geir Brendeland and Olav Kristoffersen present an overview of three projects, including Hage. They have built an international reputation for their modest architecture that combines an interest in vernacular tradition with technical rigour.
Jes Fernie and Gillian Darley talk about public space, individual freedom, collective engagement, places of refuge and breathing spaces, within the context of Hage.
Jes Fernie presents the Råängen programme, focusing on the role of the Swedish church in the development of Råängen.
13 October 2019
Hage talk with Geir Brendeland
We got a lot of really interesting, useful feedback at our Hage event last month, held at the Skissernas Museum. Many thanks to all of you who contributed! Here’s a synopsis of Geir Brendeland’s presentation and the discussion with Råängen team and audience members.
13 June 2019
Brendeland & Kristoffersen talk at Skissernas Museum
5 September at 7pm
You are warmly invited to an evening talk by Geir Brendeland at Skissernas Museum on 5 September 2019.
Geir will present ‘Hage’, a new public garden for Brunnshög in Lund, due to be completed next spring. The walled garden will be open to all and will provide a space for local people to congregate, cook, talk and exchange ideas.
Norwegian architects Brendeland & Kristoffersen have developed an international reputation for their body of projects including innovative housing, exhibitions, and public interventions.
‘Hage’ is part of the Råängen programme of art and architecture commissions, organised by Lund Cathedral.
Thursday 5 September, 19.00–20.00.
Skissernas Museum, Lund.
Cost: admission to the Skissernas Museum.
Free admission for students and those under 25.
No booking necessary.
13 June 2019
Intervene/Shift/Compel
We have posted a precis of our booked-out event at Moderna Museet Malmö ‘Intervene/Shift/Compel’ on our website, read it here.
A broad range of people joined us from all over Sweden and Denmark including artists, curators, planners, architects, priests and designers.
We had fantastic discussions about the artist’s role in public realm projects (to disrupt, nudge, create a framework, magnify unheard voices, bring disparate groups together, to make art); censorship by inaction; the decision-making process (who gets to make the rules?); bringing diversity to the table; failure and what it looks like; bodily interactions in public space; church values and how they can connect with the planning system; urgent situations; carving out space and time. All of this will feed into the ongoing Råängen development plans.
22 March 2019
AWAE – Last chance
There are only a few more days left to see Nathan Coley’s sculpture ‘And We Are Everywhere’! We’re de-installing the work on 27 March.
We will be recycling much of the material that the sculpture is made from. Nathan has asked that the three hand-made crosses be kept by Lund Cathedral, perhaps to be used in some shape or form in the future Råängen.
We are in conversation with Skissernas Museum about gifting the model made by Nathan to their collection.
7 December 2018
The artist’s role in public life
panel discussion 28 February
We are delighted to welcome you to ‘Intervene/Shift/Compel’– a panel discussion involving speakers from Göteborg, Oslo, Malmö, Glasgow and London, to be held at Moderna Museet Malmö on 28 Feb 2019.
We will be grappling with the following issues: How can artists contribute to a discussion about the way we live in the 21st century? What are the mechanisms that artists, curators and commissioners use to make democratic, active public spaces that address urgent, political and social issues? Can such projects bring about societal change or just a shift in perception?
The discussion will inform the Cathedral’s long-term urban development programme.
Speakers:
Kerstin Bergendal, Artist and Senior Lecturer, Valand Academy, Göteborg
Nathan Coley, Artist, Glasgow
Eleanor Pinfield, Director, Art on the Underground, London
Emma Ribbing, Artist and choreographer, Malmö
Apolonija Šušteršič, Artist and Head of Program Art & Public Space, Oslo National Academy of the Arts
The event will be conducted in English. All welcome, but places are limited.
28 February, 2–6.30pm at Moderna Museet Malmö.
RSVP to info@raangen.se
31 October 2018
Public talk with Johan Wester
Lena Sjöstrand (Chaplain, Lund Cathedral) has invited Johan Wester to discuss Nathan Coley’s artwork ‘And We Are Everywhere’ with members of the audience and Cathedral staff. We look forward to a lively debate!
Please join us 16 November at 4.30–5.30pm in Domkyrkoforum.
RSVP to info@raangen.se (free, but limited number of seats)
12 October 2018
Pilgrimage
Please join us for a pilgrimage from Lund Cathedral steps to Råängen on 12 October, 16.00–18.30. This is a wonderful opportunity to walk from the town centre to Brunnshög to see Nathan Coley’s sculpture ’And We Are Everywhere’, and to discuss the Råängen programme. The pilgrimage will be lead by Magnus Malmgren, the pilgrim priest at Lund Cathedral, with Lena Sjöstrand, Chaplain of the Cathedral/Co-director of Råangen.
11 October 2018
Film festival launch
Our film about Nathan Coley’s sculpture ‘And We Are Everywhere’ is opening the Lund International Architecture Film Festival on 11 October. The theme for this year’s festival is ‘What makes a home?’ and continues until 14 October. More information on the programme and how to buy tickets here.
11 September 2018
Kulturnatten & Arkitekturdagar
Råängen is part of a panel discussion held by Lunds Kommun for Kulturnatten on Saturday 15 September. Join us! It’s a great opportunity to come to Brunnshög, to see Nathan Coley’s sculpture ‘And We Are Everywhere’ and to find out more about the city’s development plans for the area.
We’re also taking part in the forthcoming Arkitekturdagar at Form Design Centre in Malmö on 12 September. We’ll be joining a panel organised by Lunds kommun at 14.00–15.00 discussing the role of art and culture in urban developments. All welcome.
3 July 2018
And We Are Everywhere film
Reflections and thoughts about Nathan Coley’s sculpture ‘And We Are Everywhere’. In the film we hear the Bishop of Lund – Johan Tyrberg, artist Nathan Coley, curator Jes Fernie and Jake Ford from White Architects.
4 June 2018
And We Are Everywhere
Nathan Coley’s major new commission ‘And We Are Everywhere’ has been installed and will remain on site until March 2019. Many thanks to all those who came to the launch! More information on the artwork here.
2 June 2018
And We Are Everywhere
We are delighted to announce that Nathan Coley’s major new commission for Brunnshög will be launched on Saturday 2 June. This is the first artwork to be installed on Lund Cathedral’s land as part of the Råängen programme. Please join us.
Meet at the steps of Lund Cathedral at 14.00 where Nathan Coley will give a short talk. We’ll walk together to Brunnshög (4.5 km) to see the sculpture, where Lena Sjöstrand (Chaplain, Lund Cathedral) and Jes Fernie (curator) will introduce the work.
Refreshments will be served in Brunnshög. Transport will be provided for the return journey. For those wishing to make their own way to Brunnshög, please arrive by 15.30. Parking is available at Utmarksvägen, a five minute walk from the sculpture.
RSVP to info@raangen.se
Please feel free to bring friends and family.
28 April 2018
Seminar – book now!
We are delighted to announce details of our seminar in Lund on 28 April. Speakers from London, New York, Berlin and Lund will be discussing the theme of time.
CATHY HAYNES, writer, curator and artist
ANNA LAGERGREN, archaeologist
FIONA RABY (Dunne & Raby), academic, architect and designer
LISA ROSENDAHL, curator
LENA SJÖSTRAND, Chaplain, Lund Cathedral
Chaired by Jes Fernie, curator, Råängen.
Domkyrkoforum, Lund, 13.30–18.30.
Places are limited so please sign up here.
Download the programme here (PDF).
9 February 2018
Heaven on film
We’ve caught some of the responses to Nathan Coley’s artwork ‘Heaven Is A Place Where Nothing Ever Happens’ on film. Film made by FEW Agency.
27 January 2018
What is Heaven?
Over the last couple of months, Nathan Coley’s artwork ‘Heaven Is A Place Where Nothing Ever Happens’ has been the focus of much discussion in Lund. ‘Why is it here, next to the Cathedral?’, ‘What is Heaven?’, ‘Is this a critique of the Church?’
Join us for a public discussion about the work, its position, its meaning and the Råängen programme. Elisabeth Gerle, Professor of Ethics at Lund University will moderate the event, which we hope will create lively debate amongst audience members.
Meet underneath the artwork at 3pm. Hot drinks will be served at Domkyrkoforum where we shall also be showing a short film documenting local people’s responses to the work.
28 November 2017
Architecture commission
We are delighted to announce that Norwegian architects Brendeland & Kristoffersen will be working with us to design a series of structures in Brunnshög over the next couple of years. Ranging from viewing stations, picnic areas and shelters, these structures will encourage people to explore the area.
17 November 2017
Nathan Coley artwork installed
A text piece by internationally renowned British artist Nathan Coley has been installed adjacent to Lund Cathedral. ‘Heaven Is A Place Where Nothing Ever Happens’ marks the beginning of our conversation with Lund residents about what happens on the Church’s land in Brunnshög.
Read more21 October–9 November 2017
Domkyrkoforum display
A selection of photographs of Brunnshög by Petra Bindel were on display at Domkyrkoforum in Lund from 21 October to 9 November 2017. Commissioned by Lund Cathedral to document the Brunnshög landscape for the Råängen programme, Bindel has spent many hours exploring the area over the last year, documenting the character of the site and changes marked by the seasons.
21 October 2017
Konstkväll talk
Lena Sjöstrand, Chaplain of Lund Cathedral, and Jes Fernie, Råängen curator, gave a talk at Domkyrkoforum in Lund for Konstkväll on 21 Oct 2017. They introduced the Råängen programme, discussed the connection between contemporary art and Lund Cathedral, and talked about ambition, internationalism, the future, fear and honey. Petra Bindel’s photographs of Brunnshög formed a backdrop to the discussion.
16 September 2017
Nathan Coley Lecture at Skissernas Museum
There was a wonderful turnout for our first event, at Skissernas Museum in Lund. Artist Nathan Coley presented a selection of past projects, outlining his interest in belief systems and how the values of a society are articulated in the architecture and public spaces it produces. Curator Jes Fernie introduced the Råängen programme and Coley’s involvement and chaired a discussion with audience members after the talk.
We are delighted that the director of the Skissernas Museum, Patrick Amsellem, has agreed to become a member of our Advisory Group.
31 October 2016
Commemoration of the Reformation
Pope Francis and representatives from Lutheran World Federation signed a joint declaration at an ecumenical prayer service held at Lund Cathedral on 31 October 2016, to commemorate the Reformation.
1996
Brunnshög land
The Cathedral took ownership of the land at Brunnshög from the diocese of Lund.
1880
Lund Cathedral refurbished
Lund Cathedral reopened after a long period of refurbishment overseen by architect Helgo Zetterwall.
1780
Finn the Giant
The sculptures in the crypt of Finn the Giant and his wife Gerda, were restored. According to legend, Finn built the church but claimed that it would never be finished. In the same way, the Råängen programme and the Church’s development in Brunnshög will never be completed; they will exist in a state of constant change.
1424
Astronomical clock installed
The world famous astronomical clock (Horologium mirabile Lundense) was installed in the west end of the south aisle of Lund Cathedral in 1424. It consists of two halves; the upper half is the astronomical clock which tracks the passage of time across the heavens; the lower part is a calendar that measures human time, notifying the congregation of important religious events. At the centre of the clock, Maria sits with Jesus on her lap, linking heaven and earth, time and eternity.
Time is a key element in the Råängen programme; we will hold events in 2018 on the subject, involving artists, architects, farmers, academics and writers.
1145
High Altar consecrated
Lund Cathedral’s High Altar was consecrated to the Virgin Mary and Saint Lawrence. Craftspeople, artists, architects and clergy travelled to Lund from across Europe to be involved in the building of the Cathedral. This internationalism is a hallmark of the Råängen programme.
1123
East-Altar consecrated
The oldest altar in Lund Cathedral, the east-altar located in the crypt, was consecrated in 1123. The Church’s commitment to the land in Lund stretches back almost 900 years and 1,000 years into the future. We are mid-way through the journey.
700
Viking settlement
Brunnshög was the site of a Viking settlement which became a centre for rituals and feasts. Our programme of events will re-kindle this history of social gatherings.
225
St Lawrence
St Lawrence, the Patron Saint of Lund Cathedral, was born in Aragon, Spain. He became an archdeacon in Rome and was martyred in the persecution of the Christians ordered by the Roman Emperor Valerian in 258. When he was summoned by the Emperor to display the Church’s treasures he presented the poor people to whom he had distributed the treasure as alms. The Prefect was so angry he ordered a great gridiron to be prepared with hot coals beneath it, hence St Lawrence’s association with the grid. He is the protector of humour, the poor, the Cathedral and the diocese of Lund.