The Norra Djurgårdsstaden gas plant district

The Norra Djurgårdsstadens first gas plant was built in 1893 by the prominent architect Ferdinand Boberg, he created the buildings and was well known and productive at a time when Sweden and Europe had an industrial bloom. The gas plant provided the people of Stockholm with gas for lighting, heating and cooking for over a hundred years. When it was closed in 2011, the entire industrial area was put on hold for decisions to be made about its possible use in the future. In less than a decade, though, the area changed from being closed and outdated to being a prospering centre with spaces for cultural activities and socializing in a regenerated and refurbished industrial environment.

The square, for example, is dominated by the grey and rusted steel of a parkour structure which is part of a park that promotes physical exercise amongst both young and old, and includes three basketball courts. 

Sweco lighting designers defined a lighting system that would blend in with these various elements. The basketball courts are lit by 153 mm diameter Palco InOut projectors fitted with wide flood optics and mounted on 10-metre-high poles that flood the courts with warm light (3000 K). The luminaries were supplied with a special finish (RAL7012) in compliance with a specific request from the city of Stockholm. 

A ground-installed, base-mounted version of the Palco inOut was used in another part of the Norra Djurgårdsstaden district, just a stone’s throw from the gas plant. This time to illuminate the artwork “108 källor” (108 sources) by Eva Löfdahl. The sculpture consists of a 10-metre-high cylinder weighing 12 tonnes and six pillars, each made up of 18 rods, joined at the top and bottom by circular plates. The rods are made of different materials with various thicknesses and they interact with the light produced by the Palco in constantly changing patterns.