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New Feskekôrka celebrates 150 years!
Since 1874, Feskekôrka in Gothenburg has been at the heart of the city’s fish trade. However, to meet the changing demands of modern times, the building has undergone numerous transformations over the years.
Since 2013, Feskekôrka has been listed as a historical building. Before this designation, a care and maintenance plan revealed a significant need for renovation. Most importantly, the building’s foundation required reinforcement and a new floor foundation to prevent it from sliding towards the Rosenlund Canal. In the fall of 2020, Feskekôrka closed for a complete renovation and reopened in May 2024 – just in time to celebrate its 150th anniversary!
In this newsletter, we invite you to tour this newly renovated iconic building.
Enjoy!
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It wasn’t the good old days
From 1849, fish were sold at the fish market by Rosenlundskanalen in Gothenburg. The fish trade took place in the open air, where sunshine and rain, as well as dirt and dust from nearby streets, caused significant hygiene problems.
This led to a decision in 1871 to build a fish hall, which was inaugurated three years later. Initially, many fishermen could not afford to move indoors. Around the turn of the century, fish trade was also conducted along the entire quay from Rosenlund to Hvitfeldtsplatsen. It wasn’t until 1923 that it was decided that freshwater fish and shellfish could no longer be sold “out in the open” and fishermen were forced to move into Feskekôrka. |
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Bold architecture
Feskekörka was designed by Gothenburg’s city architect, Victor von Gegerfelt (1817-1915). The architecture is a blend of National Romanticism and bold formal experimentation. The roof trusses are reinforced by transverse tie beams that relieve the pressure from the sides according to the principle of buttresses in Gothic churches.
This construction allowed for the creation of a large, open hall without any load-bearing central or side columns. It also made it possible to equip the building with many windows in a neo-Gothic pointed arch shape with small spires. The steep tin roof also contributes to the pointed impression.
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Returning to the original
Over the years, counters, refrigerators, and commercial kitchen equipment had blocked the building’s access to natural light, and little remained of the open spaces. One goal of the renovation was to restore Feskekôrka to its fundamental concepts, with all the natural light and space the building once offered.
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Reconnecting with the canal
The important connection to the canal, where fishing boats unloaded their catches, was also lost. This was where they loaded the fish through two smaller doors. In the middle of the long side, a new passage has been opened towards the canal, which is perhaps the best place in the city. A terrace has been added in the shape of a “pråm” (barge) jokingly named “Pråmenaden” (Barge Promenade). Here food and drinks are served along with live music.
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Feskekôrka is Gothenburg’s new meeting place
Then as now, everything revolves around fish and seafood. In Feskekôrka, the fish trade is still at the heart, with a 28-meter-long fish counter on one long side. The other long side consists of restaurants and a bar.
Now, fish counters are open all day, while the restaurant and bar don’t close until late evening. With expanded operations and longer opening hours, Feskekôrka has become accessible to customers, visitors, and tourists every day.
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The biggest change is invisible
The biggest challenge during the renovation was how to add all the technical installations without disfiguring the old building. The solution was a new basement where the technology was hidden under the new floor slab. From the basement (picture below), the installations go up along eight free-standing, tile-clad hubs that collect all the necessary technology for the restaurant kitchen, cold room, and fish hall ventilation. In this way, no technology had to be drawn out in the ceiling or along the walls.
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Technology has turned into art
On the short side facing the eastern gable, a ventilation drum protrudes from the basement. Clad in a fish scale pattern, it resembles the gable of the church.
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New parts are older than Feskekôrka itself
Large parts of the frame supporting the walls and roof have been replaced. For the new beams, carpenters have chosen slow-growing pine, which is strong even in the slender dimensions of Feskekôrka’s framework. When the trees were felled, they had reached an age of 180 years, making them older than the building itself.
Two mezzanine floors were built in the 1950s and 1980s. In the updated version of Feskekôrka, more space is needed for guests, so the mezzanines have been rebuilt. The material in the floors, columns, and steps is recycled from the frame beams.
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Schnapps on tap
In addition to local beer, aquavit goes very well with fish, so there is also schnapps on tap here. Those who like Feskekôrka’s own fish and seafood wine from Alsace can order it (product no. 56681) at Systembolaget (Sweden’s government-owned chain of liquor stores) where it is described as “aromatic with notes of pear, peach, herbs, gooseberry, and lime.”
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Future as a fisherman or shipowner?
At the eastern entrance towards Stena Fastigheter headquarters, there is a group of bronze sculptures, created by the sculptor Svenrobert Lundquist. The work “Skärgårdsfiskare” (Archipelago Fishermen) was commissioned by Stena Fastigheter, one of Sweden’s largest private real estate companies, and inaugurated in the summer of 2004.
The little boy is said to represent ferry operator Stena Line’s founder Sten A Olsson whose father Gustaf Olsson was a skipper. According to the artist, the sculpture shows a “Young boy contemplating what he will do as an adult. Become a fisherman or a shipowner?”
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Boka bord, event & läs mer
Arkitekt
Fastighetsägare
Totalenteprenad
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Lasse Olsson Photo photographing and filming architecture, interior design, and lighting. My newsletter is published 4-6 times a year and presents photographed projects.
You can read my previous newsletter om my website - Click Here!
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