The Architecture of Landeskogen

Landeskogen Kunstsanatorium is a historic environment where architecture, function, and landscape are closely interconnected. The complex was built between 1912 and 1916 as Norway’s first state-funded tuberculosis sanatorium and was designed according to the ideals of the time, with an emphasis on light, fresh air, hygiene, and good living conditions.

The architecture was intended not only to provide space for treatment and daily operations, but also to create surroundings that supported patients’ rest and recovery. The main building, staff residences, service buildings, and technical installations were planned as parts of a unified community.

Today, the historic buildings are used for art, exhibitions, workshops, and artist residencies. At the same time, the architecture remains an essential part of the Landeskogen experience.

The centre of the sanatorium from 1916, preserving traces of Biong’s original architecture, the changes following the fire in 1942, and later alterations.

→ Read about the main building...

Colours, surfaces, and details that tell the story of the buildings through more than a century.

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Landeskogen was planned as a comprehensive institutional complex. To function as a modern sanatorium, it required far more than patient rooms and treatment areas.

The complex included the main building, staff residences, kitchen, storage facilities, technical rooms, and other support functions that created the necessary framework for patients’ stay and the daily operation of the institution.

The buildings and surrounding grounds were organised so that the different parts of the complex supported one another. The main building was the centre for treatment and communal activities, while the residences, service buildings, and technical installations formed part of a unified structure.

A distinctive feature of Landeskogen is that the infrastructure was also considered part of the overall design. Its own power station, water supply system, and other technical solutions were important elements in establishing a modern sanatorium at the beginning of the 20th century.

The main building is the centrepiece of the Landeskogen complex and the clearest expression of Kristian Hjalmar Biong’s original architecture. Completed in 1916, it was designed as the sanatorium’s most important building, bringing together patient rooms, treatment areas, dining halls, communal spaces, and administrative functions under one roof.

The design clearly reflects the ideals of sanatorium architecture of the period, with an emphasis on light, fresh air, views, and good living conditions. Large windows, spacious communal areas, and close proximity to the surrounding outdoor areas were intended to support the patients’ rest and recovery. The architecture was not merely a setting for treatment, but an active part of the sanatorium’s medical concept.

Throughout its history, the main building has been adapted to new needs and functions. The first major change came after the fire in 1942, when parts of the building had to be rebuilt. The redesigned north wing was drawn by the Office of the State Architect and acquired a different and more restrained architectural expression than the original part of the building.

During the reconstruction, the tower was not rebuilt, and the roof form was changed to a lower and more functional solution. At the same time, the floor plan was adapted to changing needs in sanatorium operations. As part of this reorganisation, a separate dormitory building for nurses was also constructed. Before the fire, nurses and other staff had lived in apartments on the third floor of the north wing.

The fire and reconstruction marked a clear architectural turning point. The new design maintained the building’s function as a sanatorium, but gave the main building a different character from the original complex of 1916.

In 1961–62, the main building was converted once again, this time to accommodate a new function as an institution for people with intellectual disabilities. The transition from a sanatorium to a new type of care institution involved different requirements for rooms, organisation, and use of the building.

This conversion represents another historical layer in the main building. The rooms were adapted to a different type of institutional operation, and several of the original sanatorium functions disappeared. At the same time, the main structure of Biong’s design was preserved.

The main building therefore tells the story of several periods in Landeskogen’s development. The original sanatorium architecture from 1916, the reconstruction after the fire, and the conversion in the 1960s have all shaped the building as it appears today.

Landeskogen was not only a place of treatment, but also a place of work and residence for many of the people connected to the sanatorium. The residences were an integrated part of the complex and were located and designed according to the different roles required for the institution to function.

The various residences therefore had different forms and functions. The chief physician had his own residence, while the resident physician and the administrator, together with their families, shared a semi-detached house divided vertically into separate family apartments. The staff residence was a multi-family building with four family apartments for technical staff and other employees. The attic contained two small residential rooms, and the basement housed a bakery.

After the fire in 1942, this part of the main building was not rebuilt as staff accommodation. As part of the reconstruction, a separate dormitory building for the nurses was constructed in 1946/47 instead. This created a clearer division of functions between the main building, which could be focused on patient care and treatment, and the housing needs of the staff.

The change illustrates how Landeskogen was adapted to new needs over time. From being a complex where employees partly lived integrated into the main building, the site developed towards a clearer separation between treatment facilities and staff residences.

Today, the residences are an important part of the continued development of Landeskogen. One of the residential buildings is still habitable and is used as part of the artist residency, while the two other historic residences are planned for renovation and adaptation to new uses.

Through preservation and further development, the residences are being given a new role within the complex, while continuing to tell the story of the people who lived and worked at the sanatorium.

At the same time, the different periods have left clear traces. New functions, technical requirements, and practical needs have resulted in alterations and additions. Some of these changes continue or adapt to the original expression, while others represent a different period and a different approach to materials and architecture.

This is part of the building’s history. Landeskogen should therefore not be understood as an unchanged complex from 1916, but as a cultural heritage site where several periods exist as layers on top of one another – from Biong’s original architecture, through post-war alterations, to later adaptations.

Restoration and further development are based on an understanding of these historical layers. The aim is to preserve the original qualities while also acknowledging the changes that have taken place through more than a century of use.

The materials and details therefore do more than preserve an old appearance – they tell the story of how Landeskogen has developed from a sanatorium into today’s art centre.

Today, Landeskogen has taken on a new role as an art centre. The former treatment rooms are once again filled with activity through exhibitions, the printmaking studio, artist residencies, and events.

Just as the architecture was originally intended to create supportive surroundings for people in a vulnerable situation, the buildings are now used as places for concentration, creativity, and encounters between people.

The architecture is not merely a setting for the activities taking place here. It is an active part of Landeskogen’s identity – a complex where several historical layers, from the sanatorium period to today’s art centre, remain visible and continue to evolve.

→ Read more about the transformation...