It’s out with the old and in with the new at Stockholm’s Arlanda International Airport. That’s because airport authorities have unveiled a portrait of Loreen, the darling of Eurovision 2012, in the Stockholm Hall of Fame inside Terminal 5. It fills a gap created when officials removed a photo of ABBA earlier this year.

Around six million foreign passengers walk past the Hall of Fame annually, and officials say it makes an important first impression. So the wall features notable Swedes like director Ingmar Bergman, King Carl XVI Gustaf and 1991 Eurovision winner Carola. “It is a fantastic honour, and it feels incredible to be part of the Stockholm Hall of Fame along with these other Swedish figures,” Loreen said in a statement.

Until recently, the wall also featured Benny Andersson—one-fourth of ABBA, which won Sweden’s first Eurovision crown back in 1974. But in March Andersson asked for his image to be removed as part of a protest over the controversial (and costly) renovation of the Slussen interchange in downtown Stockholm.

“I have no desire to be a billboard for a city that makes unreasonable decisions like this,” Andersson said in an interview with Dagens Nyheter on March 6. “I am not available for use anymore.”

But Loreen is, and we’re absolutely euphoric about it.

3 Comments
Newest
Oldest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Alex
Alex
11 years ago

By putting Loreen and other swedish musicians alongside King Carl XVI Gustaf and other big swedish personalities shows how big is the music industry in Sweden and how important it is music for swedes.
I surely believe that Eurovision Song Contest 2013 will be a huge succes.

David Thielen
11 years ago

With all the problems in the world… Benny Andersson is upset over a traffic interchange?