Christmas 1978 I was commissioned by Lars Hector to redecorate an old space, a substandard pizzeria, in Tunneln Hotel - it was to be converted into an exclusive private nightclub - Club Trocadero. The concept was simple and genius: Hector’s vision was a mix of decadent and refined, gay and straight club. A place without segregation, where everybody is welcome. The budget, however, was very small and I did not have much time to finish the project.

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I had until New Year’s to design this. It proved impossible to find contractors during the holidays - the only ones available were a metal worker and a mirror maker, so that limited my choice of materials. The whole concept of the space was to be based on two materials: aluminum and mirror glass.

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The bogie truck that also served as the nightclub’s entrance was a long passageway, with strange train windows. There I hung various portraits of the most famous revolutionaries, politicians and superstars - among others Humphrey Bogart, Mao Tse Tung, Fidel Castro, Zarah Leander and Greta Garbo. The floor was terrible but, with our budget, laying a new floor was out of the question. Instead, we covered the entire floor with a gorgeous zebra-patterned wall-to-wall carpet. Zebra pattern became the main design idea and completed the concept: metal/grey, mirrors and black and white stripy zebra. The carpet was perfect - depraved and conspicuous.

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Visitors were shocked when they entered Club Trocadero the first time. From the day it opened in February 1979 until it closed its doors in 1985, the place was packed. I was there almost every night, happily. I sat there because I wanted to witness all the fascinating, exciting, enticing, intriguing encounters and events that took place. The space together with the people created that magical atmosphere, kind of like a great stage play! It compared to super-trendy Studio 54 in New York, Regine in Paris and Alexandra's in Stockholm.

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Troccan, as the regulars called it, quickly became a node, a meeting point and, weirdly, it had been created in little Malmö, which at the time was a dark, rather dull town. For me, this was a unique experience, completely without comparison. I am thrilled to have had the opportunity to be the hand behind that fantastic phenomenon.

Abelardo Gonzalez

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