We believed that we were radical. Innovative. Employed an environmental and integrated approach. Then we kicked in open doors. We were startled and happily surprised. We saw that our ideas were around back in the 1970s. Good, we thought. We don’t need to reinvent the wheel. Just make it better and more beautiful. And that is what we did, together with the experiences from the 1970s. The result is called Katsan. Our new office. A fantastic environment and place to work.

But let’s go back to the beginning.
In 2000 we decided to move to new premises. Five groups competed with various proposals for how our new offices could be designed and executed. Time was short and the rules were simple. We should dare to think along new lines, think of the office of the future. We – Linda Mattson, Jenny Mathiasson and Marja Lundgren – won the competition.

“We were fairly inexperienced. I was 28 years old and this was my first new build. It was fantastic – we felt radical and innovative. We had ground-breaking ideas about how we could integrate technical systems into the architecture and get everything to blend together to form a whole. It became apparent that this was a little like breaking down open doors – our experienced colleague, Bengt Svensson, who judged the proposals, had himself tackled these issues back in the 1970s. The experiences of Bengt and other older colleagues were now a great help. We were able to merge our new ideas with theirs,” explains Linda Mattsson.

“Environmental commitment is very important. Buildings are responsible for 40% of all energy consumption. It is easy to create energy-efficient yet ugly buildings, but the challenge is to move developments forward by combining new technology with other needs, such as aesthetics, user-friendliness and the building’s relationship with its surroundings. At the start of my professional career, I was extremely frustrated at how slowly this went. After all, it takes several years from drawing to finished product. But I have come to the realisation that this is still a very short time in relation to the overall lifetime of a building, which may stand for hundreds of years. There is now a different long-term approach and an understanding of sustainability issues. We are no longer producing buildings that will last for 30 years. We are building for the future,” says Linda

In addition, Katsan has a fifth façade. The roof, which is visible from Skansbron bridge, required exciting aesthetics. The solution is a beautiful, grass-covered roof in the heart of Stockholm’s inner city.

“I saw the beautiful grass in Berzelii Park. Unfortunately, we didn’t realise that Larus canus, the common gull, was so partial to the plant. However, we have solved the problem with a fear-inspiring plastic owl on the roof. This may not be entirely in harmony with the building’s aesthetics in general, but when faced with seagull droppings, even landscape architects struggle in vain,” laughs Jenny Mathiasson.

Linda Mattsson, the architect behind White’s office Katsan, why did you become an architect?

“I was very creative when I was small, I loved drawing and painting. But my grandfather, who was in the building trade, also played a major role in my decision. He had his own company, and used to drive around with me in Linköping, where I grew up, pointing out different buildings and saying: “I built that one”. I wanted to be able to do that when I grew up.”

When are you most creative? When do you get your ideas?

“Before I used to worry from time to time whether I would really find inspiration when faced with a new project. But now I know that it will come. And it can come at the most unexpected times. One important source of inspiration is all the heartening discussions we have at the workplace – and I don’t mean about projects in themselves, but about everything else that interests us.”