eringstam, cooper & gorfer

Avalon Hotel Art Collection

Ann Eringstam – Escape to Reality

In this work by Gothenburg-based artist Ann Eringstam, we see a group of boys working together to climb over a wall. They lift, support and reach upward. The movement is physical, but driven by something else — a clear, almost restless curiosity.

Eringstam often stages photographs in which everyday situations acquire symbolic weight. Here, the wall becomes more than a constructed surface. It can be read as a boundary, a threshold or an opportunity. What lies on the other side? What happens if you make it across?

The composition is precise. A central pillar divides the image, creating a mirrored balance that enhances the sense of choreography. At the same time, the scene feels alive and human — the boys’ bodies in motion, their gazes directed upward. No one appears hesitant. Curiosity propels them forward.

Within the environment of Avalon Hotel, the work gains particular resonance. A hotel is a place of transition — between cities, meetings and ideas. Eringstam’s image reflects this state of passage. Being on the way. Wanting to see more.

As part of the Avalon Hotel Art Collection, the work introduces a social and existential dimension. It speaks of collaboration, courage and the willingness to take the step upward and beyond. And perhaps of how curiosity is what carries us across boundaries — together.

Cooper & Gorfer

Since its inception, Avalon Hotel has been more than a place to stay. It has functioned as a space where art and architecture meet in everyday life — where guests do not simply check in, but enter a context.

Within this tradition, the work by Cooper & Gorfer has become an integral part of the hotel’s art collection. The Swedish-German artist duo is known for large-scale photographic works in which mythology, identity and history are woven into visually powerful compositions. Their images move between the documentary and the staged, between the personal and the collective. The result is portraiture that carries both presence and narrative weight.

The work in question is marked by an intense palette and monumental stillness. The figure appears in profile, almost sculpturally defined against a deep background. The textiles, the light and the posture create an image that feels both contemporary and timeless. It holds the room — not through scale alone, but through concentration.

When Stureplansgruppen took over Avalon Hotel, they chose to continue and deepen the hotel’s artistic profile. Preserving and developing the collection was a deliberate decision. Art here is not decorative; it is foundational. It shapes atmosphere, conversation and memory.

With Cooper & Gorfer in the collection, this direction is reinforced. The work becomes part of the hotel’s visual backbone — an image that meets the guest with strength, integrity and quiet intensity.