Sollentuna, north of Stockholm, is expanding to enhance the urban nature of the centre, lending the town new character. One element of this is the Ungdomens Hus (House of Youth), called the Satellite. An arena to make young people more interested in sports and culture. A place where shining new stars can be born.
We have created a space and an arena for - and together with - the young people. Traditionally, sports halls tend to have been located more in the outskirts, but the Satellite with its theatre, sports, music and library facilities, is located right in the middle of the town centre.
The concept involved creating a building that would actually show off the activities it accommodates. Many views out of and through the building contribute to the sense of transparency and integration of the various activities. The building links the two adjacent street levels and can be accessed from more than one direction. It is filled with rooms of various sizes and functions - the large sports halls illuminated with daylight and the numerous darker rooms in the other part. None of the rooms has a “typical” format.
The theatre, music studio and rooms for meetings is placed in a cube, almost devoid of windows and full of secrets, whose wall surfaces form an exciting pattern which changes its appearance as the daylight changes.
Like an iridescent beetle, the large enclosed volume is in exciting interplay with its surroundings, lending character to the entire facility.
