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Disruptive Atmospheres: the experience of modernist architecture within Swedish architectural resistance movements

Falk, Simon LU (2025) SANK03 20251
Social Anthropology
Abstract
This study explores how individuals engaged within the Swedish architectural resistance association ‘Arkitekturupproret’ experience modernist architecture. Through 12 interviews with people active within the association and a participant observation conducted during the 2025 Arkitekturupproret gala, the study investigates how architecture affects human actors through the lenses of atmosphere, material culture and practical aesthetics. The findings suggest that critiques of modernist buildings stem not merely from aesthetic opinion, but from the sensing of disruption within the anticipated continuity of urban space. Modernist buildings are frequently described as unreadable, “constructed,” or even aggressive, failing to resonate with the... (More)
This study explores how individuals engaged within the Swedish architectural resistance association ‘Arkitekturupproret’ experience modernist architecture. Through 12 interviews with people active within the association and a participant observation conducted during the 2025 Arkitekturupproret gala, the study investigates how architecture affects human actors through the lenses of atmosphere, material culture and practical aesthetics. The findings suggest that critiques of modernist buildings stem not merely from aesthetic opinion, but from the sensing of disruption within the anticipated continuity of urban space. Modernist buildings are frequently described as unreadable, “constructed,” or even aggressive, failing to resonate with the historical and emotional expectations embedded in the urban landscape. This disruptive experience is shaped by culturally conditioned ‘skilled visions’, the visible staging of architectural atmosphere, and a dissonance between historically grounded identification of place and the modernist form. The study concludes that for architecture to generate atmospheres which resonate with the public, it must embrace more democratic and dialogical processes — ones that actively involve the experiences of people who dwell in the built environment. (Less)
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author
Falk, Simon LU
supervisor
organization
course
SANK03 20251
year
type
M2 - Bachelor Degree
subject
keywords
social anthropology, architecture, arkitekturupproret, atmosphere, material culture
language
English
id
9194626
date added to LUP
2025-06-07 20:40:38
date last changed
2025-06-07 20:40:38
@misc{9194626,
  abstract     = {{This study explores how individuals engaged within the Swedish architectural resistance association ‘Arkitekturupproret’ experience modernist architecture. Through 12 interviews with people active within the association and a participant observation conducted during the 2025 Arkitekturupproret gala, the study investigates how architecture affects human actors through the lenses of atmosphere, material culture and practical aesthetics. The findings suggest that critiques of modernist buildings stem not merely from aesthetic opinion, but from the sensing of disruption within the anticipated continuity of urban space. Modernist buildings are frequently described as unreadable, “constructed,” or even aggressive, failing to resonate with the historical and emotional expectations embedded in the urban landscape. This disruptive experience is shaped by culturally conditioned ‘skilled visions’, the visible staging of architectural atmosphere, and a dissonance between historically grounded identification of place and the modernist form. The study concludes that for architecture to generate atmospheres which resonate with the public, it must embrace more democratic and dialogical processes — ones that actively involve the experiences of people who dwell in the built environment.}},
  author       = {{Falk, Simon}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Disruptive Atmospheres: the experience of modernist architecture within Swedish architectural resistance movements}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}