It is located on nearly half of Helgeandsholmen (island), in the Gamla stan (old town) district of central Stockholm.

[2] In 1889, a competition had been held to select a design for the new Parliament building, that Johansson won.

The two buildings of the complex were originally constructed to house the Riksdag in one, and the Sveriges Riksbank (Swedish National Bank) in the second, of a semicircular shape.

During the construction, the Parliament moved into temporary premises in the newly erected Kulturhuset (House of Culture) south of Sergels Torg, also in central Stockholm.

[3] The award was established in 1980 to honour and support those "offering practical and exemplary answers to the most urgent challenges facing us today."