Author(s)

Shuxiang Wang ¹

Affiliation(s)

¹ School of Humanities and Arts, Xi'an FanYi University, Xi'an, 710105, Shaanxi, China

Corresponding Author

Shuxiang Wang

ABSTRACT

This essay examines how changes in Stockholm's architecture between the 1960s and 1980s reflect the evolving socio-cultural environment of Sweden's welfare state and influence Swedish cinema. Drawing on a range of non-fiction films and selected feature films, it analyzes three key dimensions: the modernisation of building exteriors and interior layouts, the cinematic re-creation of realistic spaces, and the symbolic meanings attributed to urban landmarks. The findings indicate that economic prosperity, housing policies and shifts in everyday life are visually embedded in film settings, spatial narratives, and characterisation. In turn, Swedish cinema not only documents but also reinterprets these architectural transformations, enriching its aesthetic and expressive possibilities. This study highlights the reciprocal relationship between urban built environments and national cinema within a specific historical and cultural context.

KEYWORDS

Swedish cinema, buildings, realistic space, vision expression, film studies

CITE THIS PAPER

Shuxiang Wang. Buildings in Stockholm: The Impact of Socio-cultural Environment on Swedish Cinema. Art and Performance Letters (2026). Vol. 7, No.1, 107-113. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.23977/artpl.2026.070117.

REFERENCES

[1] Kent, N. (2008). Triumph of the Swedish Welfare State. In: A Concise History of Sweden. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 238-263.
[2] Hedling, O. (2016). Cinema in the Welfare State: Notes on Public Support, Regional Film Funds, and Swedish Film Policy. In: M. Hjort, and U. Lindqvist, ed., A Companion to Nordic Cinema. Wiley Blackwell. pp. 60-77.
[3] Ekholm, C. (2016). The Social Avant-Garde – The 'Democratisation' of Literature in the Early 1960s in Sweden. In: T. Ørum, and J. Olsson, ed., A Cultural History of the Avant-Garde in the Nordic Countries 1950–1975. Avant-Garde Critical Studies, pp. 97-105.
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[6] Jonsson, M. (2016). Non-Fiction Film Culture in Sweden circa 1920-1960: Pragmatic Governance and Consensual Solidarity in a Welfare State. In: M. Hjort, and U. Lindqvist, ed., A Companion to Nordic Cinema. Wiley Blackwell. pp. 125-147.
[7] Constant, C. (2012). Modern Architectural Landscape. Minneapolis; London: University of Minnesota Press. pp. 1-24, 25-43.
[8] Hard, M. (2010). The Good Apartment: The Social (Democratic) Construction of Swedish Homes. Home Cultures, 7(2), pp. 117-133.
[9] Andersson, J. E. (2015). Architecture and the Swedish Welfare State: Three Architectural Competitions that Innovated Space for Dependent and Frail Older People. Ageing and Society, 35(4), pp. 837-864.
[10] Rosa, J. (2013). Tearing Down the House: Modern Homes in The Movies. In: M. Lamster, ed., Architecture and Film. New York: Princeton Architectural Press. pp. 159-167.

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