- a Centre for Fine Art Printmaking

 

 

Grafikens Hus was inaugurated on May 8th, 1996, by His Majesty King Carl XVI Gustaf as a quite new national and international centre for fine art printmaking.

Grafikens Hus is housed in an old barn-cum-stables called Kungsladugården (Royal Barn) dating back to the days of King Gustav Vasa in the sixteenth century, close to Gripsholm Castle in the town of Mariefred, sixty-five kilometres from Stockholm. 
Like many similar buildings still found all over the Nordic countries, the barn served many purposes, and apart from the usual hayloft and storage spaces, also housed the livestock of the farm or estate, including stables for both working and carriage horses. Today Kungsladugården is listed and classed as a historic building. The renovation of the southern part of the building and converting it into Grafikens Hus was carried out by Jan Lisinski, Palace Architect and Professor of Architectural Restoration with the architectural firm of Arksam in Stockholm.

The surface area of 2000 square metres provides space for several large exhibition 
halls and workshops for the various techniques of printmaking. There is also a large print collection and an art library, as well as a shop and a café. Activities in the centre also include seminars, courses and musical events.

Grafikens Hus was created by a group of enthusiastic artists and others interested in art, among the latter those with knowledge of marketing, museum management, business and law.

As Nils G.Stenqvist, one of the initiators, put it:
"We wanted to collect everything into one place: workshops, exhibition premises, collections, library, archives, space for the exchange of experiences at many levels. And, not least, a place pleasant to be in."

From the Main Hall, the exhibition of Philip von Schantz in 1998

The artistic core of Grafikens Hus are 400 living Swedish printmaking artists whose active participation and part-ownership are the basis of all the activities, in both the centre workshops and the exhibition halls. The artists became part-owners and shareholders in Grafikens Hus in that each one of them acquired what is called a "Konstnärsaktie" (Artist's share or a "K-share"). They paid for the share with their own prints, and this increased the Grafikens Hus Collection by 1,200 prints. Recently, 200 more K-shares have been offered to artists in the Nordic countries, Russia, the Baltic States, Poland and Germany.

The artists have access to the workshops, which are largely intended for the work of artists, but which are also used as demonstration areas for the visiting public, as well as for a certain amount of teaching.

The workshops have resources for the four main printmaking disciplines: relief, intaglio, lithography and screen printing. Also for photomechanical techniques and computer printing. The centre also has a workshop for the making of hand-made paper and for book printing. Various grants for artists can be applied for, usually including access to the workshops for a longer period of time.

The workshops

The specialized library includes Swedish and foreign literature on fine art printmaking, reference works, periodicals, exhibition catalogues and archival print collection.

The interior of the library was designed by Åke Axelsson, the furniture designer, who was also responsible for the design of the café. The library collection of art books with its emphasis on books on printmaking, together with the major collection of fine art prints, are used for teaching, individual studies, lectures and research.
Apart from the aforementioned 1,200 prints, some artists and collectors have also donated a large number of prints. This means that the Grafikens Hus Collection is already one of the largest Swedish collections of contemporary fine art prints.
Grafikens Hus library is also the library responsible in Sweden for a Scandinavian Artists' Books project.
The library and the collections are also to cover the development of printmaking from the Middle Ages until today, from the simplest printed book to experimental computer-based printmaking. The collections will also be digitally recorded and available on the Internet.

Exhibitions in the large exhibition halls are based on the extensive Grafikens Hus Collection, but other interesting works by the artists may also be included, whether sculpture, oil paintings or water colours, but with some connection with the artists' prints. Two major and about twelve minor exhibitions are mounted annually.

Home-made bread and regional produce are the hallmarks of the café.

The café is already widely known for its homemade bread, lunch dishes and confectionary, particularly its fruktbullar (fruit buns) and cinnamon buns.

Grafikens Hus works closely together with the business world to create and develop new opportunities and to strengthen collaboration and ties between the arts and business.

Employees on a course in traditional book printing.

1997. Grafikens Hus catalogue "Palle Nielsen" chosen as one of "25 most beautiful books in Sweden 1997".

1999. Exhibition catalogue of "111+1, a hundred and twelve years of Swedish fine art printing" awarded the "Excellent Swedish Design" prize.
Both the latter two designed by Hans Cogne.

»The Enchanted City«, from the exhibition of the Danish artist Palle Nielsen.

Birgitta Lindh Lewin »Human landscape«, collograph, 97 x 52 cm

Six essays at university level have been written on Grafikens Hus.

Art is always the central focus at Grafikens Hus, uniting the different activities. Art that dares to state, question, entertain and alarm. Art which unites and reduces the distance between the viewer and the artist.

New trends in art develop rapidly these days. Innovative technology brings with it quite new approaches to artistic communication - technology that makes printmaking as an artistic medium even more important than before. So Grafikens Hus, the Swedish Fine Art Printmaking Centre, is an active centre which will continuously exhibit current artistic and technical processes within fine art printmaking. The idea behind Grafikens Hus is to inspire the generations of artists and the public of both today and tomorrow.

After only a few years, Grafikens Hus is completed. But ideas and plans for the future are always taking shape, a sculpture park, international exchanges of exhibitions and knowledge, continued research and education, regional and local development, continued major and minor exhibitions - the venerable Kungsladugården has indeed the prerequisites and resources to become a cultural barn of impressive dimensions.

Kristina Anshelm »Cousins«, 1996, wood-cut

Göran Modeer working on a linocut.

This is an overall view of Grafikens Hus. Our website contains further details and some sections of it will in the future be presented in English.
Although most texts are in Swedish, we hope the visitor will find much of interest.

A selection of good Swedish fine art prints is also presented on our webshop. You are welcome to take a look.