Åse Persson turns Skellefteå into a living stage

When Society Expo takes shape in Skellefteå in the summer of 2026, it's not just the content that captures visitors' attention - it's the space, the colors, the surfaces and the feeling. We can thank scenographer Åse Persson for much of that experience. With decades of experience and a heart that beats for both sustainability and artistic playfulness, she is the key person behind the atmosphere that will characterize the place during the expo.

Society Expo opens on May 27 and runs until June 9 - transforming Skellefteå into a stage where the society of the future literally takes place.

Closing a creative circle

Åse has worked for many years in textile art, tent production, stage design and exhibition design. She has created everything from stages for performances to large public events. She describes returning to her hometown and shaping such a significant part of Society Expo as coming full circle. "It feels so meaningful to do something where I have my roots," says Åse Persson.

Set design as a story

For Åse, set design is not just a backdrop - it is an active storyteller. She sees the whole Society Expo as a theater performance where the visitors play the main role.

I think a lot in color and movement. For me, stage design is about creating emotions - inviting, inspiring and guiding.

She is working with five major sites in Skellefteå - each with its own identity. At Kurjoviken, the scenography merges with nature, while the areas at Guldtorget and Sara Kulturhus become more urban and lively. The campus area, Skellefteå Airport and Nordanå will have their own expressions - with their own focus on innovation, belief in the future, creativity and collaboration. Through color schemes, scaffolding, textiles and recycled materials, a changing urban environment is created - where each place offers something new, while the whole is connected.

"We take existing environments and turn them into something else - something temporary, inviting and vibrant. And we work a lot with sustainability and some reuse. I don't want to be part of a throw-away mindset."

A gigantic gallery - created together

But Åse does not create in a vacuum. The scenography emerges in collaboration with others - together with colleagues in Society Expo, local carpenters, students from different schools, associations and the business community.

"It's like a giant gallery where everyone gets to create. It makes the process alive - and much more fun."

By handing over drawings to partner managers, each site is given its own interpretation and adapted to the content, while her design language keeps the whole together.

What happens next?

After Society Expo, Åse plans to return to her textile roots.

"I've been longing to do something just for myself, after so many years of big projects. I will create for myself. I'll start by making carpets"

But when someone manages to turn an entire city into a stage, you know that the stage hasn't seen the last of Åse Persson.