Sound meets sculpture at Stockholm City Station

How an artist turned a bustling metro into a calm, fabric-like space using Rockfon Mono Acoustic

Station City, Stockholm Transport Hub | Case Studies

Stockholm City station, connecting all metro lines to the city above. Karin Lindh’s ceiling design is visible from the moment you step inside.

Transforming a metro hub

Every day, 125,000 people pass through Stockholm City station. It's one of the busiest transit hubs in Sweden. Connecting all metro lines, the central station, and the city above. When in 20217, the station underwent major refurbishment, the ambition went beyond infrastructure.

Stockholm has a long tradition of public art in its metro stations. This one would be no different. Through an open competition, artist Karin Lindh was selected to create a ceiling installation for the 200m² mezzanine.

Her vision was clear. But pulling it off was another matter entirely.

A vision without a fitting material

The mezzanine, the open intermediate floor connecting the station entrance to the platforms below, needed a striking installation. With so many daily commuters, the acoustic performance of the space was non-negotiable. Hard underground surfaces (concrete, stone, glass), reflect and amplify sound. In a busy transit hub, that generates noise which makes an already stressful environment feel worse.

Lindh drew inspiration from Bernini, the Italian baroque sculptor known for bringing movement and light into stone, and the way he worked with architecture and form. She wanted something similar, but crisper and less baroque: A rippling, pleated surface that drapes across the ceiling like fabric caught mid-movement.

Beautiful in theory. Technically demanding in practice. Because the project’s material had to do two things at once: hold a sculptural form, and perform well acoustically. Finding something that could do both wasn't straightforward. So what material could actually deliver that?

Project info

Project name

Stockholm City Station

Location

Stockholm, Sweden

Architecture

Ahlqvist & Almqvist architects

Installation

TS Akustik

Photography

Ola Österling

Building Owner

MTR Nordic AB

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Products used

Rockfon® Mono Acoustic

View

Rockfon Mono Acoustic showing how it can be bent into sharp, seamless folds. Exactly what Lindh's design asked for.

The full 200m² installation. A fully bespoke application of Rockfon Mono Acoustic offering high light reflection and light diffusion.

Where the precise, custom folds of the installation meet the rough underground walls of the station.

Lighting, air conditioning, and ventilation are easily integrated.

“Bernini skillfully worked with daylight, architecture and sculpture. I wanted to play with daylight in a similar way, but perhaps a little crisper and less baroque.”

Karin Lindh

— Artist

Delivering a space that moves people

Stockholm City Station shows what's possible when art, architecture and acoustic performance are treated as one brief rather than three separate problems. Beyond looking remarkable, the ceiling actively improves the experience of being in the space.

A complex vision, which was realised without compromise.

Also want to turn an acoustic challenge into a design opportunity? Get in touch, and together we'll find a solution that sounds as good as it looks.