Riksbyggen is commemorating the start of Kiruna’s urban transformation project by opening Solar Egg, a public sauna art installation by prizewinning artistic duo Bigert & Bergström, to the city and its inhabitants. Solar Egg is an oval sauna created by the internationally renowned artists Mats Bigert and Lars Bergström. It draws inspiration from Kiruna’s Arctic climate, where light conditions change with the seasons from 24-hour winter darkness to round-the- clock midsummer sun. The egg shape seeks to symbolize rebirth and new opportunities at the start of Kiruna’s urban transformation, a project that involves the relocation of entire city districts in response to ground subsidence caused by decades of iron ore mining.
Standing five meters high and four meters wide, the Solar Egg has a shell of gold-plated stainless steel that reflects the city and surrounding countryside. Consisting of 69 separate pieces, the installation can be taken down and moved to different locations within the city. Inside, heat is provided by a heart-shaped wood-fired burner. The exhibition explores human attempts to control the planet’s weather and temperature. Solar Egg shifts that focus to practical use. Riksbyggen’s residential apartments at Luossabacken will be one of the first construction projects of Kiruna’s city transformation and will have views of the Arctic fells.