Location: Sundbyberg, Sweden.

Architect: Wingårdh Arkitektkontor.

The Sundbyberg Cemetery Administration needed more space for their offices, meeting rooms, staff locker rooms, and contemplation areas. They wanted a building that would blend in with the garden-like cemetery and chose wood as the primary construction material. The building is made from cross-laminated timber (CLT), a stable sheet material made by gluing together many layers of wood with fibers oriented in different directions. The prefabricated wall panels were manufactured in Lithuania and assembled quickly on-site. The building is wrapped in green glass that reflects the surrounding vegetation and integrates the building into the garden spaces. The interior walls are also made of solid wood, and the ceilings and floors are predominantly wood. The building also features buff-colored leather, rust-resistant steel, and concrete. The wood is treated with hard wax oil, and the exterior glass panels are equipped with hooks that fit into a track in the rake of the roof. The building’s simplicity is a response to the dual demands of remaining reserved and yet welcoming for those seeking comfort and counsel in their grief. The building is sited to follow the orthogonal pattern of hedges on the site, and the height is limited to allow the trees to dominate the landscape. The modern wood construction technique allowed for simple solutions that in the past would have required expensive hand craftsmanship. The attachment of the windows directly to the wall panels is an example of this. Overall, the building is a sophisticated wood-framed building that blends in with the cemetery’s garden character and provides a welcoming space for visitors.

Photo credit: André Pihl/Wingårdhs.