Public Sculpture

Folding – Unfolding

Ekerö beach promenade, Ekerö, SE
2024

public commission for the Ekerö municipality
in collaboration with Andreas Piontkowitz

client: Ekerö kommun
project manager: Ann Magnusson, AM Public
architect: Markus Aerni, HAPPYSPACE
builder: Ekerö Rederi AB

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The main focus of the art commission were the two piers. They were to be functional and usable and at the same time independent works of art that serve as clear markers for the area.

An unfolded, two-dimensional floor plan of a simple small house (floor, roof and four walls) forms the basis of the design. Both piers consist of exactly the same surface – but exist in two different states. While one bridge remains more or less in its flat, expanded state, certain parts of the other are folded up, transforming it into more of a pavilion, creating spatial functions such as wind protection, seating and a protective roof.

The principle of folding flat „packages“ into spatial volumes can be recognized from, for example, moving boxes. Here the transformation is used in a playful and unorthodox way to create unique bathing piers that are both functional and serve as clear sculptural markers, giving the promenade a strong artistic identity.

The “folding – unfolding” proposal has a clear connection to Ralph Erskine’s architecture. The piers relate to an intimate scale found in Ekerö Centrum’s urban plan and buildings but also in its materiality and colors. In Erskine’s famous building “Lådan (The Box)”, erected on nearby Lovön, one finds functional details such as a folding table or a bed, which can be hoisted up under the roof and is related to the principle of folding/unfolding.

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