We love objects with a story. This time we are looking behind the scenes at Mold Atelier. Their brass earrings are handmade in Oslo and we chose them for their sophisticated yet casual appearance. We talked to founders Linda and Mikal about Mold Atelier and their hometown Oslo. They reveal their favorite places in the Norwegian Capital and why their weekends usually start at 5.30 am.
Mikal Murstad and Linda Christiansen
Who are you?
We are Linda Christiansen and Mikal Murstad, together we are Mold Atelier – and if you add our 1-Year-old boy Storm, we are also a family. Mold Atelier is a creative studio we founded in 2017. Linda started experimenting with different materials and designing jewelry for friends. We both also needed a creative outlet for personal projects. The entire process has been and still is quite organic. Linda does all the jewelry design and styling for all our photoshoots. Mikal is our Art Director, communication manager, and sometimes also does photography.
Linda is actually half Danish and half Swedish, and Mikal is Norwegian. So together we cover almost all of Scandinavia. We live and work in Oslo, Mikal’s hometown and we really love this place. Oslo is one of Europe’s fastest-growing cities which means the city is growing faster than we are able to explore it. This is perfect for us because we love walking around, location scouting, looking at architecture, and residential areas. Imagining how it is to live in different places.
Why have you chosen to live in Oslo?
We have both lived in a few different cities and what we have gradually realized is that it’s really not a matter of which city, but rather who you know in the city you live in. We both have great friends and wonderful connections in Oslo. So that is why such a small city can be enough, combined with the access the internet gives to the rest of the world. It’s interesting that your main target audience doesn’t have to live in the city you live in.
“There is also a new wave of young experimental furniture designers emerging in Oslo. So for now, we are more than happy with what Oslo has to offer. ”
Is there anything you don’t like about Oslo?
That being said, we do have some thoughts on how Oslo could improve. We miss the openness, positivity, and creative scene that (we perceive) Copenhagen has. It’s definitely interesting things happening in Oslo, but Oslo is in its creative infancy compared to Copenhagen.
A few interesting things happening in Oslo we feel are worth mentioning. Elise By Olsens incredibly ambitious Fashion Research Library. The Fushion festival, merging art and fashion, is quite recently established but it has potential. Kirsten Visdal’s Håntverk+ aiming to facilitate the meeting of designers and makers. There’s also a new wave of young experimental furniture designers emerging in Oslo. So for now, we’re more than happy with what Oslo has to offer.
What does your usual day look like?
On weekdays. Mikal works full time as an art director for a larger fashion company and Linda works with new designs for Mold Atelier and takes care of Storm, who hasn’t started kindergarten yet.
Our weekend mornings start at about 05:30. Storm makes sure that the day starts early. We drink coffee, watch some kids' programs on TV, and talk a bit about what we want to do today. Storm goes back to sleep at 8 am and that’s when the day really starts. Everything before 8 am goes nice and slow. We work with Mold Atelier, take a walk through Oslo Botanical Gardens which luckily are less than a minute away. Oslo has a lot of parks. These walks often turn into explorations of new areas of the city, we stop for some Swedish “fika” and continuously look for possible locations for upcoming photoshoots. In the evening Mikal likes to draw and Linda loves to bake.
These are our favorite places to hang out:
Eat at Pasta Fresca, Trondheimsveien 2, 0560 Oslo or Golden Chimp, Heimdalsgata 37, 0578 Oslo
The best place for oysters and wine Eff Eff, Fredensborgveien 22A, 0177 Oslo
Drink coffee at Supreme Roastworks, Thorvald Meyers gate 18A, 0555 Oslo,
Watch art at Galleri Golsa, Waldemar Thranes gate 84C, 0175 Oslo
Architecture at Villa Steneresen or Sverre Fehn’s Exhibition Pavilion at Architecture Museum
We love the nature area Bygdøy and swim in the Oslofjord from Vølund
The perfect thing to do in Winter: Going to the Sauna at Kok, Langkaia 1, 1050 Oslo