Oslo says » Culture

Welcome to Oslo, Renzo Piano!

admin — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 06:24:02 +0000

New kid is coming to town: The world famous architect Renzo Piano is the man behind the new museum for modern art at Tjuvholmen in Oslo. The spectacular building, which is the new home for the Astrup-Fearnley Museum, will open in 2012, and will be the jewel in the crown in the new residential area now being built in the ultimate waterfront a few hundred meters from the City Hall.

Tjuvholmen is an important element in the ongoing process of dockland-to-city which is now the main prerequisite for every debate on the development of Oslo. Not one cultural institution or governmental office is located without discussing the possibility of placing it in the new Fjordbyen – at the waterfront. The new opera is already there, in Bjørvika – a new musem for Edvard Munch’s paintings and a new main library is soon to follow.

The Tjuvholmen area is already half way to conclusion, and has become very popular both among new residents and people using it for recreation. Renzo Piano’s building will be accompanied by a new park from where you can take a swim during summer – from 2012. Piano has made many spectacular buildings, among them the Pompidou Centre (Beaubourg) in Paris.

A piece of Dublin in Oslo

admin — Sat, 17 Apr 2010 09:14:23 +0000

Oslo says: One thing you can be pretty sure about in any city of a certain magnitude: You will find an Italian restaurant and an Irish pub. This posting is about the Irish pub.

There are more than one, of course – but the place to go is The Dubliner in Rådhusgata 28. Since it started up in 1996, The Dubliner has established itself as the most authentic Irish pub in Oslo, serving beer and coffee from the green island to an ever growing audience of Norwegian and Irish/British expats. The people behind the bar are generally both friendly and native English speakers. Live music most weekdays (and Irish dance classes on Mondays!), and you can have a decent meal, too.

Vis større kart

Opera at the Underwater Pub

admin — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 12:55:23 +0000

You’re a fan of dramatic opera arias, but you can’t stand the stiff atmosphere among the public? In Oslo you can have your beer as you listen to a great soprano voice. At the Underwater Pub, professional singers is on stage every Tuesday and Thursday.

The entrance is free, but you are of course expected to buy a drink or two. And don’t talk when they sing! Wait till they have finished singing…
Click for map

A toast to classical music

admin — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 17:53:07 +0000

Some people are unstoppable when something have gotten into their heads. Aksel Kolstad are one of them; he has worked for years to establish a permanent restaurant concert scene for classical music in Oslo. At Cafe de Concert you can enjoy classical music every night at 20.00, and the repertoire covers the lot.

Dinner and smaller dishes are served on request, or you can stick to a beer or a glass of wine at the bar.

Click for map

Culture night Friday!

admin — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 18:07:38 +0000

If you are so lucky to be in Oslo on Friday 18th, don’t hesitate to join in with the crowd for the Culture Night, an annual festival comprising theatres, galleries, libraries, music pubs and street art. Even the ministry of culture opens up its doors for guests.
The general idea is that all kinds of cultural activitities are open for public until midnight, and its free for all. The programme is very impressing, indeed.

1624: The pointing glove

admin — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 19:18:37 +0000

- You shall build it exactly here!

That’s what the Danish king Christian IV supposingly said back in 1624 when he decided where the new town of Christiania should be located. Eagerly waving his glove, he couldn’t wait to rebuild the old town of Oslo, which had burnt down a few months earlier. While the old town was situated to the east of the river, the king wanted to settle the new town close to the fortress of Akershus. People disagreed, but nothing could stop the king, still in his most dynamic age.

So during the next few years, Christiania (not Oslo) was built as a new city after modern priciples, with squares and straight streets. At the Christiania Torv (square), you will find some of the oldest standing buildings in the city (which was renamed Oslo in 1925), including the old city hall. This square would have been a major tourist attraction, if it hadn’t been for the car traffic which destroys it completely. Citizens of Oslo apologize to our guests.

The king’s glove is sculptured in the middle of the square. It is made by the artist Wenche Gulbransen.

One place – all about jazz

admin — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 17:01:26 +0000

Oslo says: You would probably never find it, if you didn’t know it was there. The CD-shop and cafe in Grensen 8 gives you jazz all day long, and sometimes late night live concerts, too. Bare Jazz – means Only Jazz – is run by the saxofonist Bodil Niska and her enthusiastic friends. You will find all the jazz CDs you long for, lots of knowhow behind the desk, and a decent range of drinks and sandwiches. It’s a real treat.

Vis større kart

Walking on a roof

admin — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 10:42:17 +0000

So walking on the roof of a white building by the sea shore is the hottest thing you can do in Oslo these days?
Yep. When the much discussed new opera was opened in 2008, very few could have guessed that the building would be a lot more crowded on the outside than on the inside. On a daily basis, you will always find dozens of people walking around on the roof, and on a sunny Saturday you can count your company by the hundreds. The building, designed by the Snøhetta architecture company, is really quite spectacular, located in the old harbour area which is now subject to an enormous development project.

Not that there isn’t any opera lovers inside the building, though. Tickets are hard to get. The safest bet for a visitor is to show up at the entrance the same day for unclaimed tickets.

The pictures are from a concert this week, arranged by Oslo Jazz Festival, with Antony and the Johnsons.