Evolutionsparken – a future, new oasis along a major cycling route

“It all started with a review of the campus outdoor environment that we carried out. Then we started to think about the large lawns outside the museum facing Villavägen and what we could do to make it a more attractive place,” says Cilla Karlsson, property manager at Akademiska Hus.

A work of art was also planned in the park, so a collaboration was started with the Public Art Agency Sweden. It then evolved to encompass the entire outdoor environment and not just one, but two, works of art. The artworks will be positioned opposite each other by the entrance to the Museum, and a paved area is also planned outside the entrance.

Strengthening one of Uppsala’s major cycling routes

Before the summer, only some sampling of soil and checking for cables and piping was done. After the summer, the area will be fenced off and the earthworks will begin to create the slight differences in elevation that are planned along with the artworks.

“It’s also about strengthening one of the already popular cycling routes in Uppsala. We want places along this route that might entice even more people to choose to cycle here, maybe even stop to take a break,” says Cilla Karlsson.

Everything will be complete by summer 2027. After that, the artworks themselves will be erected in situ.

“The artists are currently working on their artworks and they will then be cast in bronze. The opening of Evolutionsparken is planned for autumn 2027, in connection with Uppsala University’s 550th anniversary,” she says.

Prestigious artists chosen

Almost one hundred artists applied for the assignment. A consultation group consisting of representatives from Uppsala University and Akademiska Hus, together with the Public Art Agency Sweden (Statens Konstråd), selected one of the entries. This resulted in prestigious artists Hans Berg and Nathalie Djurberg being awarded the assignment.

The Public Art Agency Sweden writes that “the artistic concept is to make the fundamental idea of evolution physical and present: a picture of the common origins of life, and of the constant dynamism that shapes all living things. The artworks unite myth and science, body and matter, the visible and the hidden.”

Nathalie Djurberg and Hans Berg have been a strong presence in the international art scene for several decades, with exhibitions at Moderna Museet, the Venice Biennale, the New Museum in New York and the 21st Century Minsheng Art Museum in Shanghai.

Johan Ahlenius