Stortorget (''Grand Square'') is the main square in the historic centre of the Swedish city of

Kalmar Kalmar (, , ) is a city in the southeast of Sweden, situated by the Baltic Sea. It had 36,392 inhabitants in 2010 and is the seat of Kalmar Municipality. It is also the capital of Kalmar County, which comprises 12 municipalities with a total of ...

History

Situated on the island Kvarnholmen, it was built during the mid 17th century around

Kalmar Cathedral Kalmar Cathedral ( sv, Kalmar domkyrka) is in the city of Kalmar in Småland in southeast Sweden. History The new city of Kalmar was built on Kvarnholmen island in the mid-17th century. The transfer from the old town was largely completed by 1 ...

and became the centre of religious life, justice, education, commerce and municipal management. It also contained a municipal well until the redevelopment in the early 21st century.

Redesign

In 1999, an extensive regeneration program for Kvarnholmen was launched, including Larmtorget and Västerport Bridge and North and South streets. The resulting architectural competition was won by British architects

Caruso St John Caruso St John is a London-based architectural firm established in 1990 by Adam Caruso and Peter St John. Practice Caruso St John gained international recognition for its designs of public spaces. The practice came to public attention with Th ...

in a joint proposal with Eva Löfdahl called ''Field of stones/Ett stengolv''. The Grand Square was redefined as an open space within the dense urban core, providing respite from the busy shopping streets. As a gathering space, it is now used for various activities and events. Stortorget was declared a historic monument in 2002. Following its completion in 2003, the project received several awards in 2004 and 2005, including the 2004 Siena Prize of the Association of Swedish architects ('' Sveriges Arkitekter'').Stortorget
Website Caruso St John.

Design

In the square a number of water chambers have been constructed in which water is pumped around. From the five wells, fitted with barred concrete lid, you hear water gurgle and splash of an association with the former city well. The Square, dominated by former and freshly laid cobblestones and paving stones in walkways, has been designed to provide a large uniform surface to form a cohesive impression without sticking events. Above the square surface is mounted a few narrow master with little red lights on top. Also on some of the surrounding buildings roof is such lanterns.

Literature

*Helena Mattsson (redaktör): ''Kalmar stortorg - konst/arkitektur i stadsrummet'', Statens konstråd, Stockholm 2005,

Sources

läst 2011-02-04

References

External links

Gravyr av Ernst Hällgren från 1924 på Kalmar lä'ns museums webbplatsvideofil på Ljudplanerings webbplatsBilder på Caruso St John Architects webbplatsProjektbeskrivning på Caruso St Johns webbplats i pdf-format
{{coord missing, Sweden Buildings and structures in Kalmar County