[Photos by Andrew van Leeuwen]

For more than three decades, Konst/ig has quietly shaped the creative landscape of Scandinavia—cultivating what designers, architects, and artists read, reference, and revere. BUILD recently visited Stockholm to speak with owner Helene Boström, who helped found the Stockholm bookshop in 1994 and has since stewarded it through expansions, contractions, and a rapidly shifting publishing world. From the legacy of her late co-founder Charlotte Ekbom to the future of Scandinavian design publishing, Boström shares candid insights on quality, curiosity, and the uncompromising craft of keeping a small, essential cultural institution alive.

How did you get your start in the design and art bookshop business?
I came back from my studies in New York in the early 90s and got a temp job at a bookstore in Stockholm, substituting for Charlotte Ekbom. When I met her, I knew immediately that I wanted to collaborate with her. At the time I was organzing an academic symposium on human-computer interaction within the art called Cybersphere at Kulturhuset art center in Stockholm. Charlotte had previously run an art bookstore at Kulturhuset. So directly after Cybersphere our collaboration started and became Konst/ig. We opened Konst/ig in December 1994 and ran together for almost 30 years until her passing last year.

Charlotte was a very special person in the design community. How have you had to evolve as a business owner moving forward?
Charlotte and I had interests that were very aligned – what type of quality books to stock, what publishers to work with. At the same time, we divided the business so that we each had our own areas. She handled all of the administration, which I’ve had to learn, but now I feel competent running the business on my own. Despite the challenges, I’m still passionate about coming into the shop every day – I walk in here and everything speaks to me. It’s a privilege.

What was the vision for Konst/ig?
Originally, I wanted to have a bookstore without any sections. I wanted to create unanticipated synergies between the subject areas. So, you could find a hardback architectural monograph next to a paperback on art theory. But it didn’t work. Architects went only to the architecture books, artists to the art books, photographers to the photography books. Eventually, we returned to categories.

And yet your bookshop has been the go-to design bookshop in Scandinavia for 30 years. What’s in the secret sauce?
The first ingredient is being curious. I listen to my customers and learn something new every day. If someone mentions a new little architecture studio in Belgium, I ask about it, try to remember it, and research it. Second, I never waiver from quality. If you look at the publishers I stock here, I’m very strict about only carrying titles from A-level publishers. And third, there are no shortcuts.

Talk a bit about the expansions that Konst/ig has attempted over the years.
It’s hard to talk about. In addition to the Stockholm shop, we had bookshops in Gothenburg and Malmö. We were in the early years of expansion and it was very expensive. Then the internet and Amazon came along and we had no choice but to shrink back down to the single shop in Stockholm. Shortly thereafter, we tried an online art bookstore but found it impossible to raise adequate funds to compete with the big online sellers. Recently the Form/Design Center in Malmö asked if I’d consider having a small bookshop there, and we’ll see if that goes anywhere.

Have you tried any of the partnership programs with Amazon?
No, the discount they require simply doesn’t allow me to run a business. The big online booksellers have distorted the market to a degree that people no longer understand what things actually cost to produce.

How do you see this in the day-to-day business of selling books?
Customers will come into the shop and comment on how expensive design books are, and I’ll respond by saying that it’s how much it costs to produce a book. These books are a very fair price when you consider the years of research, writing, photography, printing, and distribution. The same people will gulp down a bottle of wine at a restaurant for 800 SEK (about $80) because they savor the wine-making process. But that same appreciation can be lost when it comes to the craft of the book. A friend once told me that we get the country we deserve, and if everyone decides to buy everything online, we shouldn’t be surprised when our cities are emptied of everything but offices and real estate agencies.

You vote with your money.
Absolutely. There’s also an environmental vote cast with every purchase we make. The fact that we now order five pairs of shoes online, fully expecting to return four, is insane. What’s the environmental cost of this convenience we’ve come to accept as normal?

Where do books succeed where the internet fails?
The book is an incredible vessel of information. Between two covers, you get an author’s twenty years of research on a particular subject. When you sit with a book, you can focus – there are no flashing ads, no distractions. It’s simply a superior way to learn and reflect.

In a world that is all about getting bigger and louder, how do you refine the craft of keeping a small, local shop?
For me, it’s about sticking to the core. Throughout recessions and pandemics, it’s always tempting to flirt with selling paper, pens, or coffee cups. But that’s not what I do here. The core of Konst/ig is books – it’s the essence of who I am and what this shop is about.

How has the economy of design books changed since the arrival of online booksellers?
The theory section is largely gone now because students buy academic titles online from sources whose prices I can’t compete with. Instead, students and younger designers are more interested in books based on photographs and drawings – books you don’t buy for the reading.

Is there a design book trend you wish would disappear?
Trends always come and go. A few years ago, everything was yellow. I prefer to focus on the trends I admire instead.

Fair enough. What trends in the design book business are you a champion of?
I absolutely love the number of books now being published in soft cover and that people are more inclined to buy them. A big monograph doesn’t have to be a heavy, hardcover tome. Softcovers save energy, reduce shipping costs, and are more practical to carry around. They’re also more tactile and personal.


[Torö House by AT-HH]

Who are some up-and-coming Scandinavian architects we should keep an eye on?
I’d look at the design firm AT-HH, run by Malin Heyman and James Hamilton. They are a research-based practice, they both teach at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, and they’ve done beautiful built projects. Their house at Torö won them a young Swedish architects award, and they recently published a book titled Heyman Hamilton. Other Swedish studios are Jägnefelt Miilton, Förstberg Ling, General Architecture, Nordmark & Nordmark, Petra Gipp …


[Torö House interior by AT-HH]

What advice do you have for architects and designers who want to publish a book?
The process requires more groundwork than most people realize. I recommend first understanding the economy of books and the distribution chain. In the old days, publishers financed and managed the entire process. Now, anyone can produce a book from a laptop, which has decreased costs but also flooded the market. Some things aren’t meant to be books, and there’s too much garbage out there now. Unless you’re already famous, author financing is usually required. My advice: ask who the book is for, whether it has value, and research how to distribute it. If you proceed, work with an experienced editor and invite other voices – it can be boring to hear architects talk only about their own work.

What are the pitfalls you commonly see with book publication?
By the time an author completes the content of a book, they often have no energy left for production or marketing. Yet that’s half the work.

Is there a book that you think needs to be written?
There’s a real need for books on materiality – more specifically, a substantial book on Swedish or Nordic wood architecture.

I read that you also offer custom library consultation.
Yes, I’ve completed several custom libraries for private clients, usually people in the creative fields who want a well-composed design library. Occasionally, museums also bring me in to consult on their book selections. These projects can be tricky because they often involve locating out-of-print books. I love this work, though it’s rare.

Have you thought about getting into the publishing business yourself?
Yes, I’d love to take what I’ve learned from bookselling and apply it to publishing. I’m currently consulting on six book projects involving architecture, design, and photography, and would love to extend into publishing. One of the biggest challenges is the distribution economy, which I understand well.

What does the architecture and design publishing landscape look like in Sweden?
There aren’t any dedicated publishers of design and architecture books in Sweden anymore, and someone needs to reopen that space. The most unfortunate part is that, as a country, we no longer have anyone preserving our architectural history. Not even the universities publish architecture and design books.

What are three books that every design-conscious person needs on their shelf?
Thinking with Type by Ellen Lupton – a clear, practical guide to typography, grids, and hierarchy.
Interaction of Color by Josef Albers – an exploration of how colors influence one another.
Autoprogettazione by Enzo Mari – a book that celebrates accessible, self-built furniture from basic lumber.

Helene Boström is the owner of the renowned Stockholm art bookshop Konst/ig (founded in 1994) and offers deep expertise in contemporary art, photography, architecture, and design publishing. Under her leadership, the shop has become a cultural landmark in Södermalm and a vital resource for creatives and institutions. With a background in book culture and retail consultancy, she continues to champion craftsmanship, knowledge, and the enduring value of the physical book.

[Photo by Misha Pedan]