Projects / Dwelling
Amerikalinjen Hotel, Oslo
Amerikalinjen is a magnificent building with a location, quality and organization that seems perfectly suited to beeing a hotel. With props and décor, the hotel will tell the story of travelers on The Norwegian America Line. But how interested have the owners really been in the building's history?
Architect: Kritt Arkitekter AS, interior architect: Puroplan
Published 01 Nov, 2019
Within the hotel genre to which it belongs, the Amerikalinjen hotel has certainly become both successful and beautiful. And yet, one is left with the impression that the architect has been demoted to the role of facilitator, while the interior architects were allowed to splurge.
Perhaps more old structures, details and materials could have been brought to light, in contrast with the trendy, contemporary interiors? Such questions were probably not central to the original clientele of the Amerikalinjen building, most of whom were poor emigrants leaving Norway for a better life in the US. Today, its clientele might as well be affluent American tourists visiting Norway.
The facades have been beautifully restored, and the ground floor is perfectly programmed. But there are disappointingly few remnants of the original details and materials of the building to be found throughout the project. Instead, the interiors are smooth and shiny, and lacking any connection to the history of the building.