Architect from KTH exhibits at ArkDes

It was during his final year of the architecture programme at KTH that Nicholas Niemen took a walk in Frihamnen. He came to a large gate that opened by chance, or perhaps by magic. Curious as he was, Nicholas went in, whereupon the gate immediately closed. 

“I was stuck there for about two hours and had to call Securitas,” Niemen says. 

While the aspiring architect waited for help, he was struck by how much construction waste there is in Stockholm and felt compelled to do something about it. So, with a little help from his friends (with driving licences), a van (and after asking Stockholm City Council for permission), a large amount of concrete, sheet metal and other debris was transported to the workshop Nicholas shared with a group of other students. 

“It was a large house that was scheduled for demolition. There were 30–40 of us students, a bunch of power tools and lots of construction waste – and we got to do whatever we wanted for an entire spring. The work was supervised by teachers at the architecture school and resulted in the construction of several public structures in Tibro Municipality and, in my case, in Frihamnen,” Niemen says. 

Temporary public space 

Nicholas Niemen's thesis project did not only result in furniture. He also took on a vacant lot in Frihamnen and created a social space with furniture he built himself, based on requests from residents. 

“It was a building that was demolished a few years ago, and now it was just an empty lot where they store snow during the winter. I wanted to create some kind of temporary public space to give the people of Frihamnen somewhere to be.”  

In the end, it became a table, a few stools, a planter and a seating area made from old fencing and local stone. The space slowly began to be used by people in the area, which makes Nicholas Niemen very happy. If you want to see the table in question, you can go to ArkDes on Skeppsholmen. Niemen took the opportunity to apply to Young Swedish Design 2026. 

“It's a great honour to be able to exhibit. I wanted some kind of confirmation that what I was doing was good and that I was on the right track. I've applied before and not been accepted, so this is a bit like redemption, perhaps,” Niemen says. 

The table that weighed too much 

The exhibition runs until 8 March at ArkDes, followed by an exhibition tour where all participating projects will travel around Sweden. Everyone except Nicholas, because the table is too heavy. However, he seems to be taking it all in his stride. Perhaps the table will go back to Frihamnen, unless someone else wants it. The designer doesn't have room for it at home.  

“I've built a small model of the table that's about 50 cm long. Some kind of strange sculptural copy.”