The development of Råängen takes another step forward. The second plot within the project’s initial zoning plan has now been sold to the residential developer Sundprojekt, who together with Esencial (architect) and NBI Bygg (contractor) is planning a housing block of approximately 5,000 square metres of gross floor area. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2027, with first occupancy in 2029.
Thursday, 22 January 2026, 17:00–20:00, Stadsparkscaféet, Stadsparksgatan 1 in Lund
A new publication by Lena Sjöstrand explores the theological ideas that inspire the work with Råängen. From the very beginning, theology has shaped the project’s tone and direction. New perspectives develop and take form in dialogue with each step of Råängen’s process. Theology is in motion. Biblical narratives, ritual and liturgy meet urban development, giving rise to challenge, friction and affirmation. The publication includes reflections on themes such as In-between Spaces, Failure, the Meal, the Trees and the Seventh Day. Closely linked to Råängen’s vision, the text is intended to support future choices and decisions within the project.
At the threshold between summer and autumn, Råängen hosted its first meal – a new annual tradition that will evolve alongside the neighbourhood itself. It is a site-specific, sensory experience, and a way of working through the questions that shape the project right now
A significant milestone has been reached in the development of Råängen: the first plot of land has now been sold. Residential developer Kudu, in collaboration with architect Petra Gipp, will now bring to life one of the area’s first housing projects. This step marks the next phase in our long‑term effort to form a neighbourhood where agricultural landscape and city life meet.
The zoning plan for the first phase of Råängen has now gained legal force – marking a significant step toward realising the vision for Råängen: a new neighbourhood on the northeastern edge of Lund, where architecture, landscape and everyday life converge in dialogue with both history and the future.
Lena & Åsa participated in Sveriges Radio's program series ‘2.5 degrees’. The series explores what it will be like to live in a climate-changed Sweden in the year 2100 and aims, based on what we know today, to picture a future climate-altered world. The episode is called ‘Building for the next century – planning the cities of the future’. Råängen serves as an example of some of the questions and priorities that become important when taking a thousand-year perspective on planning a new urban neighbourhood. The program is available here.
Our first building projects are now underway. Five architects have been commissioned to develop residential buildings at Råängen.
They join Flores & Prats who have been developing Tower and Corner House, two buildings that will establish a relationship with our garden Hage, and a public square. Johan Celsing Arkitekt, Esencial, General Architecture, Gipp Arkitektur, and Lundvall Payne are working together to establish potential approaches that will define the relationship between buildings, scale, materiality and programme.
Our online talk ‘What are we afraid of? – Longing, anxiety and hope in the age of AI’, 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. Watch it here
Longing, anxiety and hope in the age of AI
Webinar 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
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.
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.
We’ve written a text about Byggstudio’s wonderful programme of activities for Hage – available to read here. It’s about the importance of providing strange, unfinished and unruly places for children to play in, to allow for risk, imagination and freedom.
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.
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.
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.
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. On September 25th, 14–17, 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.
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.
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 on the 7th May 14–17!
The event is free and suitable for all play enthusiasts 0–100 years. Wear old clothes 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!
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
Sculpture & Play, 9 April, 2–3.30pm
Art & Play, 28 April, 5–8pm
Dig, Splash, Dig! 7 May, 2–5pm
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.
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.
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.
Online talk: ‘Working with Nothing – Artists and Architects Building a New Neighbourhood’
January 18th, 2022, 12.00–13.15 CET, via Zoom
Speakers:
Eva Prats and Ricardo Flores, Flores & Prats Architects
Nathan Coley, artist
Geir Brendeland, Brendeland & Kristoffersen Arkitekter
Chair: Kieran Long, Director, ArkDes
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.
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.
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’.
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.
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.
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.
We’ve had to move the launch of our public garden, Hage, from September 2020 to spring 2021, because of the impact of Covid. 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.
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.
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.
We have posted a precis of our booked-out event at Moderna Museet Malmö ‘Intervene/Shift/Compel’ on our website, read it here.
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.
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?
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)
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Download the programme here (PDF).
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.
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?’
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.
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.
A selection of photographs of Brunnshög by Petra Bindel were on display at Domkyrkoforum in Lund from 21 October to 9 November. 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.
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.
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.
The Cathedral took ownership of the land at Brunnshög from the diocese of Lund.
Lund Cathedral reopened after a long period of refurbishment overseen by architect Helgo Zetterwall.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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