• Photography Josefine Laul

    An interview with Daniel Nordgren, founder of Nord Books

    Written by Ulrika Lindqvist

    What truly makes a city feel alive is the diversity of independent shops, cafes, and other ventures. About a year ago, Stockholm was fortunate to gain a little gem of a bookshop: Nord Books. Specializing in a curated selection of books in English, Nord Books has quickly become a cherished spot. We sat down with founder and owner Daniel Nordgren to reflect on his first year as an independent shop owner.

    Ulrika Lindqvist: Have you always wanted to work with books? How did you get started in this industry?

    Daniel Nordgren: No, not really. I’ve always wanted to run a shop, for some odd reason. I have a very romantic idea of having a small business that is enough to sustain me and my family. I got into reading quite late and I’m not from an academic background so books became a way to self-educate myself. They became a way to discover stories, in form of fiction as well as non-fiction about art, philosophy, film, music and things like that. I think the shop is a product of that constant search of knowledge.

    UL: Before opening Nord Books, you spent many years at the renowned bookshop Söderbokhandeln. How did you know it was the right time to start your own bookshop?

    DN: In all honesty, I don’t think that there’s ever a” right time” to open a bookshop. I felt that I needed some sort of change, a space opened up and it happened quite spontaneously. I had seen a kind of bookshop in other cities, bookshops that carried what struck me as a very personal selection. Small bookshops in London and Paris represented something that I missed in Stockholm and when the tiny space on Sankt Paulsgatan became available I decided to give it a try.

    UL: What are the most important criteria for your book selection? How do you go about curating the store?

    DN: I guess the most important criteria is excitement or befuddlement. Some books I get instantly excited by and others lead to some sort of curious confused feeling that needs to be dealt with. That usually leads to rabbit hole reading and more books being bought for the shop. No books exist in a vacuum so what makes my job fun is to try to figure out where a book is coming from and try to have some of the other titles that it is in dialogue with. I also like to look at publishers a lot. The shop carries a big selection of independent publishers from the UK, the US and Europe and I try to follow the ones I like and take on their new titles as much as I can. But basically, I just want books that makes me interested.

    UL: As a Stockholm-based shop, what inspired your decision to exclusively sell English books?

    DN: I guess I’ve always been a huge anglophile. Growing up in Gothenburg gives you a certain interest in British culture from the start. Having studied English literature and worked with the English selection for Söderbokhandeln for a long time, it sort of became my thing. And I firmly believe that if you’re going to have a shop, it should be full of stuff that you know something about. Not just something that is in demand at the moment but something that you are excited about.

    UL: Are there any particular bookshops or other stores that influenced or inspired Nord Books?

    DN: There is a shoe shop called Lester in Gothenburg, where I’m from, that I’ve always loved. I think that’s where I first got the idea to be a shop owner. They just seemed to love their job and their selection of shoes so much. As far as bookshops go, I learned my trade as Söderbokhandeln so they were a big influence on me as a bookseller. The same goes for the people of John Sandoe Books in London who have been very supportive. But if I’m going to mention bookshops that influenced my selection it would have to be Donlon Books in London and After 8 Books in Paris. The way they curate and arrange their selection is very inspiring. Two incredible bookshops.

    UL: Could you share a memorable moment or event from Nord Books' early days?

    DN: The first event we had is a bit special to me. American poet Wendy Lottermans came by and did a talk and a reading from her brilliant collection A Reaction to Someone Coming In (Futurepoem Books 2023). Everything just came together that night. The shop was packed with people (and a dog), another great poet called Matthew Rana held the talk and read some of his own poems. It was just a perfect night at the bookshop.

    UL: You showcase artists' work on the store's walls—can you tell us about the current artist on display?

    DN: Well, that whole thing started out by me seeing a painting by Olle Halvars that I wanted to buy. I’ve never been a person that buys art and I really couldn’t afford it now so I asked him if I could borrow the painting and have it in the shop for a few months. Then that led to me asking some artist that I liked if they would want to hang some paintings in the shop. We’ve had eight” shows” this year and we have a bunch planned for next year. Right now, we have prints from an artist called Tova Fransson. She works with printmaking and creates beautifully graphical shapes inspired from the printing press in itself. She feels very based in craft, which I admire a lot. Her bold prints often look like some sort of ancient alphabet, portrayed in a very industrial way. It’s such a pleasure to have works from artist like Tova around me in my workplace.

    UL: Who are your customers? Are they primarily Swedish, or has an international clientele discovered the shop?

    DN: I’d say it’s about 50/50. A lot of non-Swedish speaking people based in Stockholm have found their way to the shop, all very nice and curious. People in the neighborhood has shown great interest and a fair bit of travelers has popped in as well.

    UL: What's next for Nord Books? Are there any specific projects or ideas you're looking to explore?

    DN: We will be launching a web shop next year, which is something I have had mixed feelings about. At first, I just wanted it to be the physical shop but then I started getting so many nice emails from people in different parts of the country and thought that since I have so many publishers that are hard to find elsewhere, it seemed only right to be able to get books to people outside of Stockholm as well. Apart from that we really just need to land a bit. This year has been intense. We’ll continue to build a selection of publications from big and small presses that we find interesting.

    UL: If you had to recommend three books to gift for Christmas, what would they be?

    DN: Hannah Regel - The Last Sane Woman (Verso Books 2024)

    This was one of my favorite novels of the ones I read over the summer. A devastating portrait of an artist’s life that deals with class, gender, procrastination and the modern obsession with discovering a dead genius.


    Hugh Corcoran - Two Dozen Eggs (Luncheon 2024)

    A bestseller this year. A short story collection/cookbook with made out of short anecdotal stories that looks upon cooking and eating with a sociological perspective. All of them followed by a recipe of a dish that has a connection to the story. I liked it instantly and it reminded me a great deal of writers like Laurie Lee or John Steinbeck.


    Matthieu Nicol (ed.) - Fashion Army (SPBH Editions 2024)
    An incredible photo book that investigates the evolution of military clothing into iconic fashion. The book is made out of three hundred and fifty documentary images from the declassified US Army Natick Labs archive, tracing military style from the late 1960s to the early 1990s. More or less a source book for modern contemporary fashion and street wear shot in a really raw and straight forward way.

    Photography Josefine Laul 

  • Interview: Light Beyond Reality - The Ethereal Worlds of Sol Summers

    Written by Jahwanna Berglund

    “Parhelion” is not just the title of this latest body of work; it is a gateway into an ethereal and mesmerising exploration of light, wonder, and myth. The series delves into the phenomenon of parhelia—commonly known as sun dogs—and uses this rare interplay of light and atmosphere to evoke a sense of the extraordinary breaking into the mundane.

    In this interview, the artist Sol Summers discusses the inspirations and creative processes that shaped the series, drawing on everything from the paintings of Edvard Munch to the otherworldly beauty of desert landscapes. The work reflects a profound connection to nature’s fleeting, awe-inspiring moments, as well as a fascination with the idea of contemporary myth-making—placing the unexplainable and magical within the everyday.

    From embracing new materials and techniques to reflecting on the cyclical nature of artistic exploration, “Parhelion” represents a significant evolution in the artist's oeuvre. Yet, at its heart, it maintains a consistent thread: a desire to distill life, energy, and emotion into each painting. Through this series, viewers are invited to pause, reflect, and perhaps find a mirror to their own sense of awe and discovery.

    As “Parhelion” debuts at the Untitled Art Fair during Art Basel in Miami, Sol Summers hopes these works resonate on both a deeply personal and universal level, offering a transformative experience that lingers long after the moment of encounter. In the conversation that follows, we delve into the ideas, techniques, and inspirations behind this captivating new collection.

    Jahwanna Berglund: “Parhelion” is an intriguing title. Can you elaborate on its significance and how it relates to the themes explored in this new body of work?

    Sol Summers: “Parhelion” speaks to the idea of something strange and ethereal breaking through the everyday. It has this quality of otherworldliness that feels as though it belongs to myth rather than reality. I often think about how these phenomena must have struck people thousands of years ago – they must have dropped what they were doing and stood, staring at the sky with awe, maybe even fear. Back then, things like rainbows or eclipses sparked entire mythologies, stories about gods and cosmic events.

    What I’m trying to capture in these series is light that defies explanation – light that forces you into a kind of magical thinking. That sense of wonder, of being momentarily untethered from the ordinary, is what I want these paintings to hold. Whether it’s an atmospheric phenomenon or a lens flare, these glitches of light bring a sense of wonder to the work. In a way, it’s a form of contemporary myth-making, placing something unexpected into a scene to disrupt its familiarity.

    JB: What inspired you to focus on the atmospheric phenomenon of parhelia (sun dogs) in this series?

    SS: It started when I saw a painting of the sun by Edvard Munch. It wasn’t just the sun itself – it was the way he painted light, how it radiated beyond the physical and became something emotional. That got me thinking about how light could be a subject in itself. One of the first paintings I made exploring this motif was of a nacreous, opalescent cloud, and that naturally made me curious about other atmospheric phenomena.

    JB: Could you describe your creative process for this exhibition? Were there any new techniques or materials you experimented with?

    SS:For me, the creative process is never just the act of painting. It’s everything around it – the staring at the wall, the restless pacing, the moments where you feel stuck, and the moments where you’re surprised by what you’ve done. It’s all part of it. A close friend once said to me, “Dentists don’t get dentist block.” That thought stayed with me, and for the past couple of years, I’ve always returned to it when I come up against creative blocks.

    What was new in painting these series was the total absence of these blocks. Once I turned to nature for inspiration, it felt as though everything opened up. There was no hesitation. I saw more ideas than I could possibly paint in a lifetime. These works came to me quickly, almost effortlessly – not because they were easy, but because I was excited about them. That excitement carried me through.

    I embraced an experimental approach, using every tool at my disposal: squeegees, plastic wrap, airbrushes, paintbrushes. I find that mixing up techniques and tools keeps me engaged with the paintings.

    JB: How does these series differ from your previous works in terms of style and subject matter?

    SS: At first, I didn’t see how these paintings connected to my earlier work. They felt like something completely new. But as I went deeper, I started noticing threads – colour, energy, that desire to pack as much life into a painting as possible. It’s all still there. You think you’re moving forward, only to realise you’ve been circling back the whole time.

    The first cactus painting I ever made was almost seven years ago, right after a visit to the Huntington Gardens. Their cactus botanical garden floored me. It felt as though nature was experimenting with its own extremes. That memory stayed with me, quietly, until one day I found myself returning to it without even realising.

    It’s like big cycles. Things you painted ten years ago suddenly resurface. Painting is always in the corner of your eye; that’s what this feels like. You think you’re chasing something new, but it’s been waiting there all along, half-hidden, just out of reach.

    JB: Sun dogs are known for their ethereal and transient nature. How do these qualities manifest in your artwork?

    SS: The sun dog is, at its core, a purely visual experience. That’s what drew me to it – its undeniable beauty. The way it transforms the sky, interrupts it, feels like something unrepeatable. But it’s also a symbol, and symbols are slippery things. They mean one thing to you and something else to me. How you arrive at them changes what they mean. What it represents to me might not be what it represents to you, and that’s fine.
    For me, a sun dog represents the impossible breaking into the everyday. It’s a reminder that the world is strange and magical if you look at it long enough. That’s what I want my paintings to hold.

    JB: What emotions or messages do you aim to convey to the audience through this collection?

    SS: In preparing for this show, I spent a lot of time in the deserts of Nevada and Arizona. What struck me is that the desert isn’t just a place – it’s a mirror. It reflects who you are, shows you aspects of yourself you might not have seen before. I hope these paintings can serve a similar purpose for the viewer, allowing them to find something personal within the work – something that says as much about them as it does about the paintings themselves.
    For me, the emotion that resonates most in this work is awe. When I was a kid, I would stand in front of massive landscape paintings in museums – works by artists like Kuindzhi or Friedrich – and feel something so profound I couldn’t name it. If I’ve managed to create something that evokes even a fraction of that feeling for someone else, then I’ve succeeded.

  • Interview: AARKE – Redefining Home Essentials with Purpose and Passion

    Written by Jahwanna Berglund

    In this exclusive interview with Aarke co-founders Carl Ljungh and Jonas Groth, we dive into the heart of their design philosophy—one that champions simplicity, functionality, and timeless beauty. Drawing from years of experience in industrial design, Carl and Jonas share how their frustration with disposable, uninspired products sparked the vision for Aarke: a brand that puts people and longevity first. From the countless iterations behind their iconic Coffee System to their unwavering focus on sustainability, the duo opens up about their passion for creating objects that are not just functional, but truly loved. This is the story of Aarke—an exploration of what happens when thoughtful design meets real-life needs.

    Jahwanna Berglund: Aarke has a strong emphasis on integrating high functionality with aesthetics. How did your backgrounds in industrial design shape your approach to creating Aarke’s minimalist, premium look and feel?

    Carl Ljung and Jonas Groth: During our years running a design agency, we had the opportunity to work closely with many different types of companies, designing various products and solutions. This experience ultimately led us to the direction of starting our own brand—one where we could combine insights and ideas from all this work and create something new and something we felt was overseen by the design community.

    After years in the industry, we learned that the customer must always be in focus in order to create a good product. A product or solution may be aesthetically pleasing, but if it doesn’t function the way the user expects and intuitively understands, it misses its purpose. We also have experience of working with many types of materials, gaining insight into what is sustainable—not only for creating products that can withstand physical wear but also for visual durability, an aspect that is equally important if you want to create timeless and sustainable products.

    We felt a certain frustration over how many products are designed and how quickly their design becomes outdated. We felt that if we ourselves thought there was a lack of a certain type of products—true design objects to love, made from better materials with intuitive and delightful functionality and timeless design—then there was probably an audience that shared the same frustration. This was the start of Aarke.

    JB: Carl, you mentioned (at the press breakfast) that each product requires hours of iteration to achieve quality and user-centered design. Can you share insights into Aarke’s iterative process and any challenges faced in creating the Aarke Coffee System?

    CL: In all our development projects, we face challenges where our high standards for making even the simplest functions exceptional, are put to the test. We invest countless hours into solving what often appears to be the simplest functions. Ironically, it’s often that the seemingly simplest solutions are the hardest to achieve.

    The Coffee System is no exception. For example, developing a very advanced and finely tuned technology to achieve the best results with just one push of a button required at least 60 iterations of the software that controls the brewer. Solving the seemingly simple function of being able to use both a glass carafe and a Thermal Jug in the same Coffee Maker required many hours of consideration. Also, being able to create a solid stainless steel handle without making it too heavy is another example that took us many months to resolve.

    JB: Aarke products, such as the new Coffee Maker, prioritize ease of use. What are the key factors you consider to balance advanced functionality with a simple, intuitive user experience?

    CL and JG: The answer to this question is balance. There is always a balance between many good ideas and simple usability. We believe we have incorporated the essential and important features in our Coffee System without making it complex or hard to understand. The Coffee Maker and the Grinder work intuitively and seamlessly, without the user even having to think about it. The focus remains on the result and an elevated coffee brewing routine, with minimal effort and interactions.

    JB: Your products emphasize durability and quality, often using stainless steel. Could you elaborate the role of sustainable materials and practices in your production process and future goals in this area?

    CL and JG: In our designs, we carefully select materials that meet several criteria, each to serve its purpose in the best possible way. The materials we use are thoughtfully chosen to meet several criteria, each to serve its purpose in the best possible way. We use stainless steel as the main structural material since it’s both lightweight and long-lasting and the majority of the steel we use is recycled. For structural integrity, we use screws rather than glue, making our products highly repairable. When we use plastic it is because it is the best choice of material for the particular application and when we can explore and try to use plastic materials with less Co2 footprint and Ocean Bound Plastic, which is what we use for our Purifier Large. We constantly challenge ourselves to try to be better and better in all of those aspects. It is our core belief that by developing high quality, built-to-last products with a timeless design we can enable a more sustainable lifestyle by investing in fewer, superior products that will last for years to come. This philosophy is the foundation of our product development.

    JB: How do you address the expectations of customers who prioritize both high-quality design and functionality? Are there specific user insights or requests that have influenced recent product updates or features?

    CL and JG: We don't see a conflict in combining high-quality design and functionality. To achieve this combination in the right balanced way is our constant focus. We aim to avoid clutter, keeping the design clean and free of unnecessary buttons or screens. We believe that with the intricate craft of shaping steel in combination with the creating simple, intuitive interactions we achieve a result that is both a true design object and highly functional.

    JB: Having expanded from water carbonators to the Coffee System, where do you envision Aarke’s product range evolving in the next few years?

    CL and JG: There is a lack of really good working AND beautiful, long-lasting design objects in the space of domestic appliances. This was the frustration, or insight, that pushed us to start Aarke. So far our field of focus has been the kitchen and kitchen products, however we do see a lot of potential in the rest of the home as well. There are really no limits other than time and resources for what Aarke could become.

    JB: Since you both founded Aarke, has your design philosophy evolved with the brand? Are there any core values that you’ve maintained from the start?

    CL and JG: From the very start, we believed that the true story should be built into the product and this is something we still strongly believe. We don’t believe in cutting corners to save costs—our focus is always on the product itself and how it’s built and experienced by the people using it. Perhaps we’ve learned even more about the importance, as designers, of truly listening to our customers or core users. We wouldn’t have come this far without our Aarke fans!

    www.aarke.com

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