Skibnes arkitekter: reviving Trondheim’s cultural heart

By Celina Tran

For four decades, Trondheim-based architecture studio Skibnes Arkitekter has helped shape the city’s identity through projects ranging from housing, student housing and kindergartens, to cinemas and cultural venues. At the heart of its philosophy lies a commitment to balancing preservation with renewal, an approach that is embodied in its latest cultural landmark: the spectacular Nye Hjorten Teater.

Founded in 1984, Skibnes Arkitekter has consistently championed architecture that strengthens communities. The studio’s portfolio includes the Dokkhuset jazz club, Rosendal Teater and Nova Kino, projects that, like Nye Hjorten Teater, enrich Trondheim’s urban fabric. “We’ve always liked working with buildings that people enjoy together, houses that strengthen the city’s cultural life,” says head of design and principle shareholder Svein Skibnes

Trondheim itself provides fertile ground for this vision. A historic yet modern city, it thrives on its student population and young families. Skibnes credits the youth with bringing the city to life, but also stresses that the aim is to create public spaces accessible to people of all ages.

Photo: Skibnes Arkitekter/Wittrup

When they were tasked with creating a new 600-seat theatre on the site of a parking lot behind the listed Postbygget, the challenge was clear: respect history while giving the city something fresh. “We wanted to lift the auditorium while preserving much of the old post building. The theatre expresses itself boldly towards the Apoteker (pharmacy) mews, a side street where we could allow a more playful, expressive architecture,” Skibnes explains.

The resulting building combines history and innovation through materials and form. A specially designed tile creates a meaningful contrast with the post office’s stone facade. “The tiling pattern resembles a stage curtain so that when you’re inside, it feels as if you’re looking out onto the city from the stage,” says Skibnes.

The venue’s name pays homage to the original Hjorten Teater, a cultural hub in Trondheim and beyond before its demolition in the 1960s. True to that spirit, the new venue is designed as more than just a performance space. “The client, Ole Robert Reitan and E.C. Dahls Eiendom, wanted the space’s public passages, in combination with the new café and PoMo art Museum in Postbygget, to be somewhere where it would feel like Saturday every day, a house open to everyone, not only theatregoers,” Skibnes adds.

By opening up a previously closed-off area, the project reactivates a central part of the city. Skibnes concludes: “The expression is challenging and fun. Along with the interior design by Anemone Studio, it aims to create something functional and useful, while also adding something fresh in the historic surroundings.”