BLOX – BRYGHUSGRUNDEN
KØBENHAVN, DK
Area
8.000 m2
Role
Subconsultant
Client
Realdania
Project Status
Completed 2018
Collaboration with
OMA, Realdania, DUCKS SCENO, Ove Arup & Partners, COWI
BLOX – BRYGHUSGRUNDEN
The international architectural firm OMA asked Kragh&Berglund to design the square around Realdania’s cultural institution BLOX by the Copenhagen waterfront. Aside from housing, shops, and a fitness center, BLOX is also home to the Danish Architectural Center’s new center for architecture, design, and urban life.
BLOX’s unique location on the edge of the Copenhagen harbor provides an opportunity to create a meeting place between very different people and spaces. In this intersection point between city and harbor, Kragh&Berglund have created a living and diverse space surrounded by the contrasts of the new constructions, the raw waterfront, and the historical buildings from the 17th century. The new square thus provides its users with an authentic experience of old and new, while also connecting the different spaces around it, as it does with Vester Voldgade and the new Lille Langebro.
SPACE FOR CITY KIDS
The space on the square is founded on the ideals associated with an active urban lifestyle and social spaces in the city, and it was planned as an extension of BLOX’s underlying concept and identity out into the city. The result is a continuous and recreational space in the city that welcomes its many different users. The square emphasizes playfulness, movement, and community, and creates a sense of continuity between the building’s inner and outer functions.
The square realizes the local potential by creating a fun space for all kinds of users. The wide promenade stretching southwards along the harbor makes it possible to walk along the water as well as to rest or play. The “Movement Space” in the northern part offers plenty of opportunity for activity. The scenic element “The Mountain” challenges children to use their mobility on its rope nets and slides, and its connection to the building creates an interesting relationship between the indoor and the outdoor spaces. Underneath “The Mountain,” you have “The Cave” with swings, a sandbox, and plenty of room for play.
