Architecture in Malmö

Say 'hello' to a new experience, a bit out-of-the-ordinary, because today Europe will display its dazzling musical talents onstage, in the 58th edition of Eurovision Song Contest! The promising show of today's first semifinal has been eagerly anticipated by all Eurovision fans since the last year's spectacular show housed by Azerbaijani capital, Baku. My suggestion for today is casting an eye over the host city from this year, because the Swedish city, Malmö, apart from the song contest, offers awe-inspiring touristic attractions, worth being in the limelight!

Malmö, in the southernmost province of Scania, is Sweden's third largest city by population after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and is one of the largest cities in Scandinavia. Malmö was one of the earliest and most industrialized towns of Scandinavia, but it struggled with the adaptation to post-industrialism. Since the construction of the Öresund bridge, Malmö has undergone a major transformation with impressive architectural developments, attracting new biotech and IT companies, and particularly students through Malmö University. The city contains many historic buildings and parks, and is also a commercial centre for the western part of Scania. During the last few years a university has been established and the city is now trying to focus on education, arts and culture.

Founded in 1272 as a fortified port 20 km from Lund. For centuries, while Scania was under Danish rule, Malmö was for centuries the second largest Danish city as well as a very lucrative trade area. Malmö dominated the south as the largest market hub until Copenhagen grew larger during the 16th century. In 1658, as a result of many years of war, Denmark ceded the city to Sweden in the Treaty of Roskilde. After an industrial revolution, Malmö grew rapidly and served as one of the earliest and most industrialized cities of Scandinavia but, until the turn of the millennium it was regarded more as a dull worker's city in the backdrop of more cultural cities in Sweden. The decline took place due to the recession experienced by Swedenby the 1970s.The opening of the Oresund bridge in 2000 reignited the soul of a bustling hanseatic port that had lay dormant for so many centuries. 

Malmö is a cosmopolitan city, with the highest proportion of individuals with migrant background in Sweden. 41% have a foreign background. 30% of the population has been born abroad and another 11% of the population was Swedish-born with foreign-born parents. Furthermore, it has the highest percentage of Muslims in Scandinavia with around 25% or 75,000 people with Islamic cultural background.

Now it's time to look over Malmö's architectural attractions. The mixture of past and present styles best reflects the cultural richness of the Swedish city. Regarded as one of the eco-friendly cities around the world, Malmö is undoubtedly a top tourist destination in the country. Let's take a virtual tour of it!

The oldest parts of Malmö were built between 1300-1600 during its first major period of expansion. The central city's layout as well as some of its oldest buildings are from this time. Many of the smaller buildings from this time are typical Scanian: two story urban houses that show a strong Danish influence.

 

The Church of Saint Peter is the oldest building in Malmö. Construction was started in 1319. It is built in the Baltic Gothic style, with a nave, two aisles, a transept and a 105-metre tower. Its exterior is characterized above all by the flying buttresses spanning its airy arches over the aisles and ambulatory. The tower, which fell down twice during the 15th century, got its current look in 1890.

Malmö Castle (Swedish: Malmöhus, Danish: Malmøhus) is a fortress located in Malmö, Scania.The first castle was founded in 1434 by King Eric of Pomerania. This structure was demolished in early 16th century, and a new one was built in its place in the 1530s by King Christian III of Denmark. Historically, this fortress was one of the most important strongholds of Denmark. 

Belonging to the renaissance style, the castle houses the Malmo City Museum, the Natural History Museum, Konstmuseet ( the art museum), and Aquarium & Tropicarium.

The next expansion period was in the mid 19th century and led to the modern stone and brick city. This expansion lasted into the 20th century and can be seen by a number of Art Nouveau buildings for which the city is known, including the Malmö synagogue. Malmö was relatively late to be influenced by modern ideas of functionalist tenement architecture in the 1930s.

 

The Malmö Synagogue, designed by the architect John Smedberg, was built in 1903.

Recent years have seen a modern, cosmopolitan architecture. Among the new buildings towers the Turning Torso, a spectacular twisting skyscraper, 190 metres (620 ft) tall, the majority of which is residential. It quickly became Malmö's new landmark within Sweden.

 HSB Turning Torso is the tallest skyscraper in Sweden and the Nordic countries, situated in Malmö. It is presently the third tallest residential building in Europe, after the 264‑metre (866 ft) Triumph Palace in Moscow and the 212‑metre Sky Tower in Wrocław. 

The vision of HSB Turning Torso is based on a sculpture called Twisting Torso. The sculpture is a white marble piece based on the form of a twisting human being, created by Santiago Calatrava, a trained sculptor, architect and engineer. The building is constructed in nine segments of five-storey pentagons that twist as it rises; the topmost segment is twisted 90 degrees clockwise with respect to the ground floor. Each floor consists of an irregular pentagonal shape rotating around the vertical core, which is supported by an exterior steel framework.

Construction started in the summer of 2001. One reason for building Turning Torso was to establish a recognizable skyline for Malmö.

This is where the great show will take place tonight! Malmö Arena is a multi-use indoor arena, the fourth-largest indoor arena in Sweden. It has an overall capacity of 13,000 for sporting events; for concerts and other events, the capacity can be as low as 500 or as high as 15,500, depending on where the stage is placed.

The lucky ones who happen to be in Malmö at the moment will not only enjoy a spellbinding show, but also a city with captivating architecture. However, from all corners of Europe, the public's eye will be on Malmö for the next 6 days! Good luck to all contestants and may all of us enjoy a spectacular Eurovision edition!

Resources:
http://wikitravel.org/en/Malm%C3%B6
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malm%C3%B6
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turning_Torso