Scandic Vulkan Oslo

New Oslo hotel provides a unique canvass for upcoming creative talent. 

How do you fit a square peg in a round hole?  In philosophical terms, this was the design conundrum that Stylt Trampoli faced in its latest project, the new Scandic Vulcan hotel in Oslo.

Swedish chain Scandic, arguably Scandinavia’s most dependable midscale business hotel brand, was chosen by top Norwegian developer Aspelin Ramm to manage the first hotel to open at its famous Vulcan project beside the Aker River in central Oslo.  Following a design competition, Scandic in turn picked Stylt to work its magic on the hotel’s interiors, by once again utilizing its patented ‘storytelling’ approach to design. 

“Honestly, we were puzzled that Scandic were chosen to run the hotel at Vulcan, which is a leading centre for creative art education, when the chain is principally known as a corporate brand and really has no track record of support or involvement in this sector,” says Stylt creative director and founder, Erik Nissen Johansen.  “Our challenge was to shoe-horn a relatively staid business brand into a super creative environment.”

The environment in question is Vulcan, an innovative 16,000 square metre contemporary creative campus formed from a former industrial area in the Grünerløkka district of Oslo.  “Aspelin Ramm had the fantastic vision of moving all the creative universities to this location,” comments Nissen Johansen.  “The result is that where once were decaying factories, there are now such institutions as the Norwegian national schools of art, architecture, graphic design, dance, film and business, as well as multiple performance venues, restaurants, shops, apartments and offices.”
“There was in a way, too much of a contrast between Scandic and this über-creative backdrop,” continues Nissen Johansen.  “We scratched our heads and tried to picture Scandic as a person, taking into account the ‘personality’ traits of the chain.  By doing this, we realized that even if Scandic was a business person and not an artist itself, there was no reason why he/she should not be interested in - and thus a patron of - the arts.” 

This realization made total sense of the decision to put a Scandic hotel in the midst of the upcoming creative talent at Vulcan – even if it took Stylt an entire day to convince the operator of their specific vision for the project.  “We envisaged the hotel as a venue in which we would effectively leave the walls to the students, one in which they would have free rein to demonstrate their creative talents, as well as a shop window in which the creative brains of the future could experience their first interactions with ‘grown-up’ business people.” 

The corresponding hotel interiors by Stylt create a bright and airy loft-style open-plan studio environment, featuring an eclectic and wildly colourful mix of furniture like a super-chic student residence, complete with long dining hall benches offset by whimsically dangling, giant light blubs.  These elements serve to frame the works of local students, who are encouraged to contribute their latest outpourings through monthly competitions with a top prize of NOK 10,000 (about Euros 1,300). 

The Vulcan district itself offers a fascinating history to inspire artistic creativity, which began a millennium ago when silver was first mined to line Oslo’s coffers.  Legend has it that a silver dragon prowled the mines at night, devouring foolhardy trespassers.  Norway’s first industrial sawmills operated there subsequently, reputedly kick-starting the country’s Renaissance by facilitating sophisticated new building techniques.  Then in 1873 the Vulcan Jernstøberi steel foundry began production, creating some of Norway’s most beautiful railway and road bridges, among other large projects.  At the time of writing, the monthly hotel art competition challenges students to recreate that fearsome silver dragon out of scrap metal. 

“We envisage Vulcan as the new birthplace of Norway’s future creative stars, and the Scandic Vulcan as an exciting canvass on which they can express themselves,” says Nissen Johansen.  “Through becoming a showcase for the students’ works, the hotel has claimed a unique emotional niche in Norway’s accommodation sector.  We are sure that in a couple of years’ time, the hotel will be a really vital outlet for the creative arts.  That’s why our slogan for the property is:  ‘The hotel that explores the creative forces of the past, the present and the future.’”