A bold new water tower by White Arkitekter strides across the Swedish landscape

A dramatic and sculptural wave-shaped water tower that rises above the Swedish city of Varberg is White Arkitekter’s latest project in Våga.

Concrete has an enduring afterlife, whether we like it or not. Just like the buildings, bunkers, and memorials that have been bestowed monument status by their monolithic solidity, the Våga Water Tower – Vattentornet Våga – is intended to have a long life. ’Our ambition has been to design an object that will stand for hundreds of years, never diminishing in beauty,’ says White Arkitekter’s Agnes Orstadius.

Explore Våga Water Tower by White Arkitekter

Intended to increase capacity for this fast-expanding city, the project began with a design competition in 2017. White Arkitekter’s winning response eschews the usual solitary tower form in favour of a 187m-long structure that marches across the landscape on nine slender pillars. The brief called for a functional structure that was also a ‘new landmark symbolising the power and sanctity of water, as well as its profound significance to the city.’

Despite its length, Våga is just 9m wide, with each concave concrete segment forming a wave shape that makes the entire structure ripple across the landscape. Set atop the small hill of Bastekullen in Träslöv, the new tower contains five times as much water as the old one. Built by Scandinavian construction company Veidekke, the tower can be accessed from a stair and elevator embedded in the large central pillar.

‘Våga makes a powerful impression at a distance, but the tower will also be experienced up close,’ says Orstadius, and the concrete pillars have been carefully integrated into the existing landscape, emphasising the sculptural form. New wildflowers have been planted and the service road turned back into a gravel path.

‘All these elements – the elongated shape, the wave motif, the concave facade, and the interplay of light and shadow – mean the tower is perceived differently depending on your vantage point and the time of day,’ says Per Hultcrantz, who worked as the lead architect on the project after Mattias Lind. ‘This creates a dynamic quality that ensures the tower never ceases to surprise,’ he concludes.

The landscaping also encourages visitors to come to the base of the structure, from where the sea, the Kattegat, can be seen. The water company, Vivab, wanted the new tower to be both landmark and recreation space, as well as a long-lasting piece of community infrastructure.

White Arkitekter