Curator: Michal Škoda

http://dumumenicb.cz/en/vystava/tham-videgard-architects-en/

Our first exhibition of architecture this year is by Sweden’s Tham & Videgård studio.

This progressive studio creates works characterized by a highly sensitive approach that takes into account the context of the place and the specific conditions of each project. Tham & Videgård typically become actively involved in the entire process, all the way from developing the first proposals to supervising the actual building process on-site.

In their approach to architecture, the architects aim for as broad a scope as possible, analyzing and integrating all practical, theoretical, and social questions, as well as environmental concerns. If necessary and if the given situation calls for it, Tham and Videgård work with a full network of external advisors from a variety of fields. This use of additional resources ensures that all their projects will be able to overcome true challenges and thus make optimum use of the opportunities arising as a result.

The architectural studio of Tham & Videgård is headquartered in Stockholm and is run by its founders and main architects Bolle Tham (born 1970) and Martin Videgård (born 1968). Since founding the studio in 1999, their work has attracted attention through their experimental approach and innovative designs. Tham & Videgård’s projects have won numerous national and international awards, including two Kasper Salin Awards for best new architecture in Sweden. Some of their best known works include the new School of Architecture at the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), the Kalmar Museum of Art, the Malmö Museum of Modern Art (Moderna Museet Malmö), the Västra Kajen residential complex in Jönköping, a department store in Uppsala, the Creek House, and the Mirrorcube for the Tree Hotel in Harads.

Bolle Tham and Martin Videgård are members of the Royal Swedish Academy of Arts and lecture or teach at architecture schools in Sweden and abroad. In 2014/15, they were both guest professors at the Peter Behrens School of Architecture in Düsseldorf. In 2017, the prestigious architecture magazine El Croquis published a fifth monograph on the work of Tham & Videgård. Also that year, the gallery was the only representative from a Nordic country to exhibit at the Chicago Architecture Biennial’s Make New History exhibition.

For their first exhibition in the Czech Republic, the architects have put together a new exhibition project representing their recent work, with a focus on the importance of “detail” in contemporary architecture.

In discussing their exhibition, the architects say, “Architecture is about the future. A building remains in place for centuries, so it’s not just about the present but it is also a way of transcending history into the future. From this point of view, all ordinary circumstances influencing the design of a new building or new urban environment are secondary to the building’s impact and quality – i.e., its influence on the living environment, its architectural integrity and function, and its ability to express the ideas and ideals of society. And the only thing that matters is the final outcome. From this perspective, the exhibition tries to present a discussion that we are constantly returning to in our studio’s everyday work. In this discussion, we seek the primary characteristics of a building and explore how a building is influenced by its visual aspects and details.”

House of Art - Modern Art Gallery in České Budějovice