For Alicia Vikander, the interest in interior design and design has existed throughout her life. In her teens, she bought fashion magazines, like others her age, to fit in. But actually, she was interested in something else on the magazine shelf.
It was a big part of me that just wanted to buy interior design magazines, she says and continues:
And I probably did that from a pretty early age.
That's also why Vikander agreed to be the narrator in SVT's "Nordic design - a love story". The series goes through a hundred years of Nordic design - and why it has become such a global success.
From the Paris exhibition in 1925 to the Furniture Fair in Milan 2025, the viewer gets to meet contemporary furniture collectors, designers, and design historians. The series tells the story behind design classics and about society. It also takes up design in popular culture and answers the question: Why is Kim Kardashian obsessed with sports cottage furniture?
Dreamed of chairs
Vikander remembers how she, in her then rental apartment, collected large piles of interior design magazines. When she daydreamed, it wasn't about what clothes and shoes she would own.
But it was more about what chairs I wished I had at home, says Vikander and laughs.
Vikander is now based in Lisbon, Portugal, but is in her house in France during the interview, which is conducted via video. In her homes, she has furniture from several Swedish designers, such as Hans-Agne Jakobsson and Axel Einar Hjort's "sports cottage furniture" in the form of the classic Utö table.
Current in "The wizard of the Kremlin"
Vikander is also current with two films that will be released later this year: "The last day" and the political thriller "The wizard of the Kremlin". The latter is based on the award-winning novel - with the same name - where the fictional character Vadim Baraov becomes a political advisor to Vladimir Putin. The book was released in 2022 and is written by Giuliano Da Empoli.
It's interesting how the story feels like it's mimicking something you might see in the news today, says Vikander.
She is also returning to the theater stage - after a 17-year hiatus. From September 10, she will play Ellida in Henrik Ibsen's "The Lady from the Sea" at the Bridge Theatre.
I will be on stage for the first time on West End in London, tells Vikander.
"Nordic design - a love story" is a five-part series where each episode deals with a certain period, from 1925 to 2025. The first episode will be shown on August 26 on SVT Play and SVT1. The series is a co-production between the five Nordic public service companies.
