The Nobel Prize Museum in Stockholm Opens a Striking Mini Cinema for the Public

Due to COVID-19, it’s been quite some time since we’ve been able to properly enjoy seeing a film at a movie theater. But for those who are lucky enough to be in Sweden, a mini outdoor cinema by the Nobel Prize Museum has just popped up on the Sergels Torg in Stockholm. Coinciding with the announcements of the 2020 Nobel Prize winners—they’ll be honored virtually this week—the pop-up will screen documentaries by director Orlando von Einsiedel about Noble Peace Prize laureates.

“Just like the Nobel Prize itself, these films are about human beings’ capacity to find solutions to the challenges we face again and again,” Erika Lanner, director of the Nobel Prize Museum, said in a statement. “This year it feels particularly important to highlight achievements that give us hope for the future, and these films do just that.”

The cinema will screen documentaries about Nobel Peace Prize laureates.

The cinema is the work of artist and designer Fredrik Paulsen, known for his love of combining color and texture to produce rather fun, personality-driven works. It’s designed on a personal scale—no large crowds here due to COVID-19—with five screens nestled into individual compartments within a circular structure made from transparent yellow plastic.

But the most impressive view of the cinema is actually from above. Paulsen painted the roof in with a mesmerizing blend of bright colors that melt into one another—a striking juxtaposition against the black-and-white geometry of the plaza around it.

Artist and designer Fredrik Paulsen crafted the prismatic structure.

“It feels important to do something that signals something positive,” Paulsen said in a statement. “You could say that the design follows a modernist architectural tradition with the addition of contemporary colors and COVID-19.” The cinema will be open 24 hours a day through October 12, and viewing the programs is completely free and open to the public—there are no tickets required.