Biologiska by day and by night

Biological museums are normally not very high on my must see-list. I am usually a bit disappointed when I visit one. However, at the teachers’ fair the director of Biologiska museet convinced me that I would not regret visiting his museum. He was right.

Biologiska museet features large dioramas filled with stuffed animals, depicting the Nordic wildlife. There is more though – and this is what got me hooked. Established in 1893 the museum itself is an illustration of a time long gone and it has quite an interesting history. You don’t like stuffed animals and you couldn’t care less about history? The backgrounds of the dioramas, painted by Swedish artist Bruno Liljefors, are stunning. So is the building itself: architect Agi Lindegren got his inspiration from medieval Norwegian stave churches. Stockholm has many beautiful buildings, but you won’t find any that look even remotely like Biologiska.

It's this specific combination of biology, history, art and architecture that gives Biologiska its identity, and luckily it's run by people who are very aware of this. Biologiska regularly invites contemporary artists and designers to exhibit in the museum, which makes for great . My first visit was on an evening after work, when the museum opened its doors for great lectures by artists Katja Aglert and Dominic Redfern. We could also go see the dioramas. However, the exhibition area has no electrical lighting so we were given torchlight to go and explore! There is something very special about wandering through a museum in the pitch dark. It makes you feel like a proper wilderness explorer in no time. Biologiska by night looks a bit like this (but less blurry. I am sorry for the horrible picture quality).

And by day, you ask? Good question, I say.

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Cathy

There and back again

The days are getting longer, but my time here is growing shorter and shorter. I am starting to worry about my return to Belgium. I am not all that happy about it, in fact. I might be going home, but I am also leaving a home behind.

I think only keeping up to date about Belgium through newspapers has painted the bleakest picture possible of the country in my head. However, I did find things here that I was really missing back in Belgium and I am not at all looking forward to parting with them again. No, I am not just referring to semlor; I am talking about a more caring and social society where there is time and space to raise children, where culture still seems to be considered valuable, where drinking water is offered for free in public places, where nature and urban life can coexist and where coffee refills are often free of charge.

There are some things I can take with me. For example, my newly found self confidence, a portion of love for own person, some self reliance, tons of inspiration, some networking skills and a more kaleidoscopic view on life, which, all combined together make for a rather different Cathy than the one who left Belgium this winter. And that has got me worrying. How will "new me" fit in in the old setting? Or will I fall back into before-Sweden mode once I hit Belgian ground?


Whatever will be, will be, I guess. For now I am going to enjoy my Swedish home and Swedish self (or Cathy-Pippi, as one of my friends says) as much as possible for as long as I still can.

Vi ses

Cathy

L is for Lava

It seems in Belgium more and more libraries are closing because they don't have many visitors anymore. What if, instead of closing them down, you would actually make them worth visiting again?

For my second excursion I visited Tomas who works in Lava bibliotek & verkstad at Kulturhuset. Kulturhuset holds, amongst many other things, six different libraries. We started the day going up and down elevators and stairs exploring the building.

There is so much going on at Kulturhuset; it's like a tiny city. One of my favourite places was one I usually would not be allowed in: a library just for 10 to 13 year olds. That's right - No parents allowed! And then there are cinemas, puppet theatres, restaurants, conference rooms, exhibition spaces, and much much more.

The city theatre is also housed in the building, along with all their backstage facilities: wig designing offices, costume sewing rooms, laundry facilities, wood shops to make theatre backgrounds, prop rooms, rehearsal rooms... and apartment sized elevators to move everything around. Tomas gave an extensive explanation of everything, which was wonderful; but he could also just have opened every door while loudly proclaiming: "And this is where the magic happens!"

In the afternoon Lava bibliotek & verkstad opened its doors to the public. People were already waiting to get in before opening time! Lava bibliotek is targeted at 14 to 25 year olds and it's a place where you can come and relax amongst books. But there is more. If you have books that hold knowledge about sewing, why not provide a sewing machine so you can actually use the books? And a button machine and a 3D printer and a recording studio and drawing material and sticker paper and... well, if you can imagine it, they probably have it. If they don't, just send in a suggestion and they will make it happen.

Usually Lava bibliotek also has a wide range of workshops and activities going on. Some are organised by the employees, but a lot of them spring from ideas of visitors. I attended a drop in-book circle, and even though talking about books is probably the last thing teenagers are thinking about on Friday afternoon, there was quite the show up and the conversations were really interesting.

I think I was supposed to go home by 5 o'clock but I stayed until closing time without even realising time was passing by so fast. It was really nice to talk to all the visitors, to find out what they think about the library and to help them with their ideas and projects. I could tell they really feel at home, and I am sure if you ever visit Lava yourself it won't take you long to feel the same.




Vi ses

Cathy

Misty morning in Stockholm

Belgian fashion at Liljevalchs Konsthall

   

Utopian Bodies – Fashion Looks Forward: The title alone was enough to convince me to visit this exposition at Liljevalchs Konsthall. Liljevalchs used contemporary fashion to sketch possible future scenarios. Eleven galleries explore eleven different themes: Sustainability, change, technology, craft & form, craft & colour, resistance & society, resistance & beauty, solidarity, memory, gender identity and love.

Walking into the exhibition was like walking into a theme park. Every room looked like a tiny universe in itself. I was pleasantly surprised to encounter many Belgian designs amongst the exhibits. It was very refreshing to see a rather positive view on the future compared to the doom scenarios we usually get confronted with. Leave it to the art world to keep optimism alive - and to do it in the most fashionable way possible.

       

Lina Michal // Francis Bitonti Studio

Walter van Beirendonck & Erwin Wurn // Maison Martin Margiela for H&M 

Hideki Seo // Viktor & Rolf

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Cathy

Like a Swede?

I didn't choose Stockholm by throwing darts at a world map while blindfolded. (Considering my motor skills I should actually never be allowed near darts, especially not blindfolded.) I chose Sweden because it is the land of Pippi, Ronja and Madicken. I heard rumours about great work ethics and I was attracted to the combination of an active cultural scene and beautiful nature. Plus, spoken Swedish sounds like a cheerful song.

Belgium and Sweden (or at least Stockholm) seem quite alike on the surface. When you dig a little deeper though, the differences start to show. It causes confusion, but it also offends people sometimes without you even noticing. I didn't fully realise this until I got Belgian visitors and was a bit annoyed by certain things they said and did which would not have bothered me a few months ago.

Most comments I get from Belgian people about Sweden are quite stereotypical:

"Jeutegreut smeurrebreud."
"Meatballs."
"Oh, your toes will freeze and fall off."
"Ah, Sweden, where everyone is blond, beautiful, and very tall!"

Well, nobody here says things like "Jeutegreut smeurrebreud." Furthermore, smeurrebreud, which is actually spelled smørrebrød, is Danish. Meatballs are indeed a traditional Swedish dish, but certainly not the only thing they eat. So far I still have all my toes and I don't think I will lose any to frostbite. I brought plenty of socks.

Yes, everyone here is beautiful. (So is everyone everywhere else, though.) Perhaps the far less polluted air has something to do with it. It gives Swedish people's skins that natural healthy glow you normally need three layers of make up for in Belgium. I guess protecting forests and cutting back on cars is good for something, ey.

In general people here are indeed a lot taller than in Belgium. Rumour has it this is caused by a teeny tiny bit of Neanderthal gene. There is an entire row of cupboards in my kitchen I can't reach, not even when I stand on the little stool. And that time I went shopping for a skirt I felt like a gnome with unnaturally short legs after three shops.

Tall, taller and tallest.

So what exactly is a Swede, then, according to Swedes themselves, and what sets them apart from other nationalities? Most Swedes apparently don't like to talk about the differences. When I ask, the answers are usually a bit evasive or they find a way around answering by talking about the things others claim about Sweden. A friend from Peru has had the same experience.

I did manage to have a conversation with my mentors about work ethics. Even though not every Swede enjoys a six hour workday like the media would like us to believe, the work atmosphere is different here and I have had some trouble adjusting to that mindset. My mentors don't understand why people in so many countries are forced to sit out the time until the clock strikes five, even when they are just sitting on facebook to kill time. If you're not going to work, then you might as well go home.

The same goes for being ill - into bed you go, and don't come back until you are completely better. They also have a lot more meetings than I am used to. I didn't understand at first. What can there possibly be to discuss all the time? But when you actually value everyone's input, no matter their function, it does make sense. It also ensures everyone is on the same level and everybody knows what's going on. It avoids so much unnecessary stress and frustration. 

There are a few exceptions when it comes to talking about dissimilarities. Everyone is quite comfortable talking about how Danes are different from Swedes. According to my mentor, all Danes own an item of clothing that is completely made from leather. I have yet to find a Dane to confirm this. Comparing different regions of Sweden is also safe. There is, for example, an ongoing healthy dispute between Gothenburg and Stockholm.

The weather usually comes up as well, and Swedes don't seem to like their own country that much when it comes to the long, cold winters. They say I have come here at the worst time of year. I cannot agree though. Yes, it's cold; but that means you can dress cosily warm and see little kids run around in their adorable ski suits. The changing weather conditions also mean that I wake up in a completely new city every day. The lighting here changes so fast. It is no surprise that so many landscape artists travelled north.

Swedish winter scene at the Armé museum
and a live winter scene at Kungsträdgården

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Cathy