About Artipelag
Artipelag is an international destination for art, exquisite dining, events, and activities – beautifully located in the Stockholm Archipelago at Artipelagstigen 1, just 30 minutes from central Stockholm.
Art, Activities, Archipelago
The name Artipelag combines Art, Activities and Archipelago. It says a lot about what we can offer but does not tell it all. We intend to create a destination of high international quality – with boundary-crossing art exhibitions, inspiring activities, and exquisite food.
Across more than 10,000 square metres, you will find a spacious art gallery and a shop offering our own design products. At the heart of the venue stands our Artbox – an impressive space for events, concerts, and performances, complete with dedicated artist facilities. There are also activity areas for children and families, conference rooms in various sizes, and two restaurants featuring outdoor seating and stunning sea views.
The Background
As early as 2000, Björn Jakobson, founder of the renowned company BabyBjörn, envisioned creating a beautiful venue for art and cultural experiences in the Stockholm Archipelago. Perhaps Björn saw this as a way to combine his deep appreciation for nature with his wife Lillemor’s background in art and design after many successful years in Swedish business.
Perhaps Lillemor and Björn also wished to give back something of the countless experiences they had cherished over a lifetime in the archipelago, with its many sailing adventures and ice-skating journeys. Whatever the case, everyone can now enjoy the result of their vision at the stunning Hålludden on the shores of Baggensfjärden on Värmdö.
"Artipelag cannot truly be described in words. It must be experienced in person."
Björn Jakobson, founder of Artipelag
The Nature
The location was chosen with great care. “We were looking for somewhere close to Stockholm, but that still embodied everything unique about the Swedish archipelago – fresh air, glistening water, cliffs, beaches, and abundant flora and fauna. Here at Hålludden, about 20 km east of Stockholm, we found our dream site,” Björn explains.
For those who wish to explore freely, there is ample space along the nature trails – the property spans an area equivalent to 36 football fields, totalling 22 hectares. A long coastal boardwalk stretches from the parking area through the diverse landscape and up to the main building, ensuring that even individuals with accessibility needs can experience the untouched archipelago nature.
The Architecture
The building is comparable to Sweden’s most prominent state-owned museums and art exhibition institutions in size. Yet architect Johan Nyrén has successfully designed a structure that blends harmoniously with its natural surroundings, dressed in bevelled pitched-pine planks and carefully located between the pine trees and the cliffs with a stunning view of Baggensfjärden. A core idea was to greet visitors in the entrance hall with the four elements: fire crackling in the large open fireplace, earth and rock upon which the building rests, and the crisp air and shimmering water surrounding and framing the space.
Artipelag offers much to those interested in nature and architecture – from the walkway leading to the sedum-covered roof to the massive rock face in the restaurant and the beautifully slanted walls of the smaller art rooms. Many believe that Johan Nyrén, with this final masterpiece, will etch his name in the annals of international architectural history.
"Artipelag is a magnificent invitation to the public."
Johan Nyrén, Architect
The Art Museum
With its 3,000 square metres, Artipelag is one of Stockholm’s most prominent art museums.
The main exhibition hall spans over 1,000 square metres and features a 65-metre-long wall facing Baggensfjärden. Additionally, there are four exhibition rooms with distinctive architecture and beautifully crafted walls designed to evoke the senses.
The “Johan Nyrén Rooms” are located on the northern side, providing a stunning natural light ideal for displaying art. These rooms also meet the latest standards for climate control, security, and functionality required for exhibiting art.
The Artbox
This extraordinary multifunctional event hall is suitable for various activities, including conferences, presentations, product launches, trade fairs, concerts, galas, TV and film productions, and other grand events. The hall offers a floor area of 1,200 square metres, a ceiling height of 12 metres, and, like the rest of the building, meticulously designed acoustics.
Adjacent to the Artbox are artist facilities covering approximately 390 square metres. These include 11 dressing rooms, makeup stations, a costume room, and a relaxation area with a terrace overlooking the water. Naturally, the facilities also include a kitchen, showers, and toilets.
The Coastal Boardwalk
Artipelag is a truly unique destination, renowned in part for its stunning coastal boardwalk. These wide walkways, constructed from larch wood, stretch approximately 1 kilometre from the lower car parks, past the jetties, and up to the building’s western entrance. The boardwalk allows everyone, including wheelchair users and families with strollers, to comfortably navigate through the forest, across cliffs, and alongside open, glistening water.
In autumn 2023, the boardwalk was extended with a branch leading down to Bigert & Bergström’s sculpture Solar Egg.
Bådan
Rising from the floor of Bådan Café & Pâtisserie is a large rock formation – referred to in the archipelago tradition as a båda. This formation consists of gneiss, a rock that dates back approximately 2 billion years. When the last ice age retreated around 11,000 years ago, the båda was polished into its current softly rounded shape. At the same time, the land began to rise, and this natural masterpiece emerged from the sea sometime around 1,000 BCE.
We are proud to feature it as a permanent work of art. The candleholders, ”Nature’s Power” are made by Siri Seger.
Facts About Artipelag
Property: 22 hectares of forest, meadow, and rocky terrain
Building: Approximately 10,400 m² across three floors
Art Gallery: 1,800 m²
Event Hall: The Artbox, 1,200 m² (30×40 m) with a ceiling height of 12 m
Artist Facilities: 390 m² including 11 dressing rooms, makeup area, lobby with kitchenette, and a private terrace
Dining: Bådan Café & Pâtisserie and Artipelag Restaurant, both with outdoor seating
Conference Rooms: 8
Toilets: 47
Car Parking: Approximately 350 spaces
Jetties: A steamboat jetty and a guest harbour for leisure boats
Additional Features:
Nearly a kilometre-long, wheelchair-accessible coastal boardwalk connecting the car park, jetties, and the building’s western entrance. Several woodchip nature trails of varying lengths. A walkway leading to the rooftop terrace
Ownership
Since 2022, Artipelag has been owned by the Artipelag Foundation. The foundation’s memorandum of association includes detailed instructions on how Artipelag is to be preserved for the future and the range of art and other experiences it should offer. Below, you can read the foundation’s memorandum of association in its entirety.
Memorandum of Association
We desire that the Artipelag Foundation should primarily implement the concepts we share, that Artipelag will continue as an arts institution where the general public can enjoy art and other cultural experiences of good quality. Activities should take place in the art museum, with a consistent high international standard, but also outdoors in the art museum’s surroundings, in harmony with the unique archipelago nature.
Our desire, furthermore, is that the Artipelag Foundation shall set a good example and contribute to a sustainable future by promoting environmental and nature preservation, democracy and freedom of expression. Artipelag shall be a fixed point in Sweden, where representatives of various sciences can hold symposia, lectures and discussions with politicians, industry, schools, etc. A guideline in this regard shall be: “It is pointless to preserve a nice place on an earth that is collapsing. Better to save our planet and preserve the good things we have.”
Artipelag shall, in every respect, be characterised by a humble and inclusive approach.
The art shown in the art museum and outside, and all other activities at Artipelag, shall always be of high quality. Exhibitions should have a theme (a meaning), guided by words such as sustainability, alternative lifestyles, relinquish and frustration. Exhibitions shall consistently excel in artistic contents and execution, and be of high quality and progressive. The art presentations shall be accessible and inspirational to everyone.
Operations shall include activities for children and youths. Products designed or developed by us can be part of our operations.
The restaurants at Artipelag should strive to serve healthy food in terms of nourishment and calories, made with local produce, preferably matching the theme of current exhibitions.
The Artbox is intended primarily for major international and national conferences, music or stage performances and exhibitions.
The Artipelag Foundation shall actively seek to obtain donations, sponsorships and other funding
The art museum shall be maintained as it is today, and be managed and preserved in the best condition. Great consideration shall be shown to the design by the architect Johan Nyrén, and any extensions shall be in keeping with Johan Nyrén’s vision.
The surroundings shall be managed carefully and in such a way that the unique, natural archipelago environment around the building today is not transformed into a park