Vesterheim, the National Norwegian-American Museum and Folk Art School in Decorah, Iowa, has gradually been modernized by the Norwegian architect studio Snøhetta, overhauling the Norwegian-American experience.
The American Midwest has strong links with the Nordics: about three million Scandinavians immigrated to the region between 1825 and 1925. A significant gift of historical objects from Norwegian museums for “the Norwegian people in America” came in 1925 to mark the 100th anniversary of Norwegian emigration. The gift, which took two years to assemble, ultimately filled 23 crates when it crossed over the ocean to the United States in 1927.
A new 8,000 square-foot building, known as The Commons, and a collection of outdoor spaces, now establish a dynamic new entry point and gathering space for a cultural campus containing a museum, folk art school, and other community-oriented facilities.
First opening as a museum dedicated to Norwegian-American history in 1877, Snøhetta was tapped to develop a masterplan for Vesterheim (which means ‘western home’) in Norwegian) in 2019. The first fruits of their labor appeared in late 2023 with the opening of a new building called The Commons.
Snøhetta also designed the Oslo Opera House which opened in 2008 to international acclaim.
This national treasure Vesterheim features a world-class collection of 33,000 artifacts and a Heritage Park of 12 historic buildings, as well as a Folk Art School. Aside from anchoring the site, the new Vesterheim Commons project threads together Vesterheim’s Heritage Park with Water Street, the city’s main thoroughfare.
“The canopy projects out over the sidewalk, evoking some of the geometry and profiles of traditional Norwegian sailing vessels,” says Chad Carpenter, the project’s head architect.
Ties between Norwegians and Norwegian Americans have always remained close, so it would be natural for Norway and its cultural institutions to maintain a close connection to Vesterheim throughout the museum’s history. Norway has been generous with its gifts of artifacts. Many folk artists have come to Vesterheim to teach traditional techniques. Norwegian organizations and artists host visits and events during Vesterheim tours to their country. Norway’s Royal Family and government officials have visited the museum many times, and His Majesty King Harald V is the museum’s Honorary Board Chair.
The new building’s public reception lobby mirrors the cozy and sheltered outdoor rooms of the surrounding park. Flexible upper-level galleries, including state-of-the-art digital facilities and a new production studio, create spaces where visitors can explore a rich collection of artifacts and artworks. The project allows Vesterheim to draw in local residents and visiting groups from around the country so that new stories can be told through multicultural experiences bridging time and place.
American-built traditions are also incorporated into the project, with the exterior masonry locally sourced from the Iowan town of Adel, the brickworks of which date to the 1880s. “They are all values that can be found in both American and Norwegian design,” Carpenter says.
Overhauling the Norwegian-American Experience, written by Tor Kjolberg.
All images © Snøhetta