Project details
Architects/Developer/Contractor
AART, Statsbygg, AF Gruppen
Location
Oslo, Norway
Opening
2027
Solution
12,500 Soft Cells Broadline panels —11,000 of which feature distinct shapes—cover walls and ceilings. All the panels are covered in a custom version of Casa and are mounted using a specially developed three-layered installation system that aligns their varied geometries with the different geometries of the architecture.
The expanded and remodelled Museum of the Viking Age in Oslo, Norway is home to the world’s oldest and best-preserved Viking Ships. It wraps around an original museum building designed by Arnstein Arneberg in 1926 into new exhibition areas, and integrates an expansive Kvadrat Acoustics solution.
The solution supports the architectural vision of extending the spatial qualities and geometry of the existing building into the new exhibition spaces. It comprises Soft Cells Broadline acoustic panels covered in Casa.
Together, panels are implemented so that visitors are met by a continuous space that evolves within circular geometry and recalls the hull of a ship. Simultaneously, they elevate acoustic quality while providing a surface for impactful media.
Thomas Pedersen, Associate Partner & Architect at AART: “The overall acoustic solution and its expression, geometry, and materiality, I believe, fulfil our architectural vision, both in terms of materiality and spatial experience. The interaction between textile, site-cast concrete, and hot-rolled steel surfaces supports and enhances the circular design of the exhibition space. Overall, this brings together our architectural vision for a successful museum design based on the preservation of our Viking heritage.”
During installation, complex geometries, from the form of each panel to how they would attach to the irregular building geometries, provided a fundamental challenge. To meet this, the Kvadrat Acoustics team developed a unique modular substructure system - based on the standard torsion spring system - to accommodate the non-planar and concave faceted trapezium panels, which vary in dimensions and angles.
The three-layer substructure consists of a primary Unistrut grid affixed to slanted beams, a secondary system providing intermediate mounting surfaces, and a custom three-axis tertiary bracket. The bracket adjusts pitch, roll, and yaw for precise panel alignment. In practice, the system ensures precision and provides accessibility for easy, long-term maintenance.
Erik Lima Müller, Architect at Kvadrat Acoustics: “We grouped panels into categories: wall panels, slanted ceiling panels, concave ceiling panels, and so on. These were treated not as isolated units but as interconnected parts of a larger puzzle. Each group was developed and tested as a system, then linked seamlessly to form a coherent substructure that ultimately evokes the hull of a ship.”
In addition, a digital installation system was created to ensure installation teams could achieve ±3mm precision. It used a unique naming method tied to each panel’s exact position, relying on extracted coordinates and a total station.
The Museum of the Viking Age is recognised as one of the world’s most important museums and plays an important role in Norway’s cultural heritage. It was conceived and built as the original museum could no longer protect its cargo of precious vessels in an optimal way.