My dear brother Peter has worked tirelessly for years with his organization Operation Karlstad. He has spent endless hours blogging, writing newspapers, calling people who didn’t want to take his call, doing research no one else cared to do, urging people to fight for the protection of old, beautiful, historical buildings, and to save them from being carelessly torn down. He is deeply passionate about what environments we live in, and what we leave behind to future generations. I’m so happy he is finally getting the attention he deserves for all his hard work. Last year he was the recipient of a an annual architectural award in Sweden, given to people who’ve done the most for our surroundings. A journalist called him “The House hugger”, and I can’t think of a better name.
On top of his full time job as a graphic designer, he fights so beautiful old buildings like this one in my hometown Karlstad…
…does not turn in to….
…this boring building which is there today.
Or quaint old city blocks…
….like this street, doesn’t turn in to…
…this sterile shopping arcade that’s there today.
Thousands of people have joined his cause. With each beautiful old building that goes down, we lose history that will never return.
He’s also a great older brother and a great uncle! Here are Peter and Luke outside of Peter’s house last summer. He bought an old house a few years ago and renovated it himself.
He restored it…
…and painted it the original colors.
Of course I have to show some of the inside….filled with only (Sweden’s version of ) Craigslist finds. (Blocket)
Sneaking in a snapshot from last summer so you can check out his DIY zebra table he did 15 years ago, way before zebra or DIY’s were cool!
His girlfriend lives in another beautiful, old house that has received the same loving care. How could you ever tear down homes like this?
(Could not resists to include her insanely cute kitten.)
When I think of all the generations of kids that have grown up at my old house in Sweden, I have tremendous appreciation for what he does. (You can see old and new photos here). It feels really special to live in a home with all that history, and to be it’s caretaker for a while.
Of course we need to create, invent and design new things, but we also need to care for and respect our beautiful history.
Don’t we owe it to future generations to leave something special behind? Something of our history?
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