Architecture

Castle-like office building rises out of Danish fjord

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Fjordenhus is topped by a green roof and solar panels 
David de Larrea Remiro
Fjordenhus was commissioned by investment firm Kirk Kapital to serve as its new headquarters in Vejle, Denmark
Anders Sune Berg
Kirk Kapital's offices are located on the upper floors
Anders Sune Berg
Fjordenhus is arranged into four converging cylinders
Anders Sune Berg
Fjordenhus rises to a total height of 28 m (91 ft)
Anders Sune Berg
Visitors are greeted by a public double-height entrance and artworks by Eliasson
Anders Sune Berg
Fjordenhus comprises 15 different tones of unglazed brick as well as multiple colors of glazed bricks to produce interesting color fades
Anders Sune Berg
Fjordenhus' floors are finished in Pietra Piasentina stone
Anders Sune Berg
Fjordenhus rises out of a Danish fjord 
Anders Sune Berg
Pietra Piasentina stone can only be found in boulders quarried from the hills of Friuli, Italy
Anders Sune Berg
Visitors are greeted by a public double-height entrance and artworks by Eliasson
Anders Sune Berg
Fjordenhus was commissioned by financial firm Kirk Kapital to serve as its new headquarters in Vejle, Denmark
Anders Sune Berg
The building is accessed from land by a short footbridge
Anders Sune Berg
Visitors are greeted by a public double-height entrance and artworks by Eliasson
Anders Sune Berg
Particular emphasis has been placed on Fjordenhus' lighting 
Anders Sune Berg
Fjordenhus is topped by a green roof and solar panels 
David de Larrea Remiro
Another shot of one of Fjordenhus' artworks 
Anders Sune Berg
View gallery - 16 images

Icelandic/Danish artist Olafur Eliasson's studio recently completed its first major architectural work, Fjordenhus (or Fjord House). Rising out of a Danish fjord like a sculpted modern take on a castle, the building is arranged into four converging cylinders and is defined by its remarkable brickwork.

Fjordenhus was commissioned by investment firm Kirk Kapital (which is headed by descendants of Lego founder Ole Kirk Kristiansen) and its striking facade consists of hundreds of thousands of bricks finished in multiple glazed and unglazed colors to produce patterns.

The building reaches a height of 28 m (91 ft) and is topped by a green roof and solar panels. Access is gained from land by a short footbridge and visitors are greeted by a double-height public entrance. This area connects to an enclosed circular space that's open to the water of the fjord.

Particular emphasis has been placed on Fjordenhus' lighting 
Anders Sune Berg

Kirk Kapital's offices are located on the upper stories and are finished in a tasteful decor of wood, brick and glazing. The floors are concrete and finished in Pietra Piasentina stone, which can only be found in boulders quarried from the hills of Friuli, Italy.

Particular emphasis was placed on the building's artwork and lighting, which makes sense since Eliasson's past work has focused on lighting, and in addition to interior LEDs that illuminate the building like a lighthouse at night, there are underwater spotlights and a just-visible steel art installation installed underwater that provides interesting shapes for people to gaze upon.

Kirk Kapital's offices are located on the upper floors
Anders Sune Berg

"I am very thankful for the trust shown by the Kirk Johansen family in inviting me, with my studio, to conceive Fjordenhus," says Olafur Eliasson. "This allowed us to turn years of research – on perception, physical movement, light, nature, and the experience of space – into a building that is at once a total work of art and a fully functional architectural structure."

Fjordenhus will officially open June 9.

Sources: Studio Olafur Eliasson, Kirk Kapital, Studio Other Spaces

View gallery - 16 images
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2 comments
EH
The catenary arches and decorative ceiling installations remind me somewhat of Gaudi, though I wish it had even more such elaborations rather than the long practically obligatory Modernist details. Imagine how fantastic today's cities would look if Gaudi had been emulated rather than van der Rohe and Corbusier.
YouAre
What a beauty! I'll commission a copycat when I get rich in my next life. Till then I'll just dream. Well done Olafur Eliasson!