Realdania - houses of the 20th century

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Realdania own important historic buildings throughout the country including a number of homes designed by some of the major Danish architects from the 20th century for themselves and their own families.

These have been restored by Realdania and they try to return the buildings to their original arrangement by removing later alterations if they are inappropriate and restoring interior schemes of decoration. 

Many of these houses are let to tenants but are open to the public at intervals. This is a list of some of these homes of architects that are open in the Spring. Please check with the Realdania site as numbers of visitors to each property are limited and for some houses it is necessary to book a ticket before the day the house is open.

Realdania also produce excellent guidebooks and these are available free on line … the name of the house is a link to more information on the Realdania site and images are links to the relevant pages to download the guide book.

 
 


House by Eva og Nils Koppels for Jørgen Varming (1952)
Skovvej 35A, Gentofte 
open 6 February 2020

 
 

House for JW Friis by Kay Fisker (1917)
Valnøddevænget 10, 3000 Helsingør
open 26 February 2020

 
 

House designed and built for himself by Arne Jacobsen (1929)
Gotfred Rodes Vej 2, 2920 Charlottenlund
open 3 March 2020

 
 

House designed and built for himself by Bertel Udsen (1956)
Bjælkevangen 15, 2800 Kgs. Lyngby
open 11 March 2020

 
 

House by Karen and Ebbe Clemmensen (1953)
Solbakkevej 57, 2820 Gentofte
open 18 March 2020

 
 

House by Viggo Møller-Jensen (1939)
Borrekrattet 7, 2800 Kgs. Lyngby
open 15 and 22 April 2020

the house is about to be restored and is opened to give people an opportunity to see the house before work starts

 
Møller Jensen.jpeg
 

House by Halldor Gunnløgsson (1958)
Rungsted Strandvej 68, 2960 Rungsted Kyst
open 16 April 2020 

 
 

House by Poul Henningsen (mid 1930s)
Brogårdsvej 72, 2820 Gentofte
open 27 April 2020

 
 
 

climate change and sustainability in Denmark? - information on line

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Many of the major reports on new policies to tackle climate change and directives on sustainability from the Danish government and by city councils and by organisations such as Realdania or Danish Industry are published on line and often published in English although it is now relatively easy to translate even pdf files from Danish using Google.

read more

Here the images of the report cover are links to the on-line site where the report can be read and, in most cases, downloaded as a pdf file.

 
 
 

Lokalplanner i København

For the city of Copenhagen, plans for proposed developments - including extensive schemes to deal with flooding from rain storms - are published on line as part of the public consultation process and, for planners and architects from other countries, these readily-available reports provide a useful introduction to developments in planning and major engineering projects for climate change mitigation in the city.

The front page has a map where the reader can zoom in to find a specific report for a district or city block or square or specific building and the map is live or active so take you to the on-line pdf reports.

More recent reports have extensive research on historic context and function so they are as much an impact assessment as a public consultation document

 
 

Realdania UN seating moved to BLOX

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The Realdania circle of seats with the graphics of the UN 17 Goals for Sustainability has been moved from Jarmers Plads to the public square in front of BLOX.

 
 

Realdania at Jarmers Plads - seating to promote the UN sustainable development goals

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Established in 2000, Realdania are a philanthropic association with the mission to improve the quality of life through their projects in the built environment. They support major projects and have an extensive programme to produce reports and research publications.

Their offices are at Jarmers Plads in Copenhagen and in the public square at the front of the building they have installed wood bench seating and planters around a large circle to set out the United Nations 17 sustainable development goals adopted formally by World leaders at a summit in September 2015.

earlier posts:
KADK graduates and UN Sustainable Development Goals

Realdania report - Baseline for the Global Goals in Denmark
United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
the 17 Goals

 
 

update - Lille Langebro

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Lille Langebro is almost complete with final work on the hard landscaping on the quay at at each side almost finished.

This is the new bridge for cyclists and pedestrians that will cross the harbour from Christians Brygge, from the quayside opposite the end of Vester Voldgade, to the Christianshavn side and lining up with Langebrogade.

Current traffic surveys suggest that there are around 40,000 cycle journeys a day across the main road bridge - an astounding number - and planners hope that at least 16,000 cyclists a day will change there route to the new bridge and also avoid the heavy and relatively fast road traffic along Hans Christian Andersens Boulevard.

The official opening is set for the Autumn but opening and closing of the new bridge is already controlled from the tower of the main bridge so presumably the wait is for safety tests.

There was a post on this site when the sections of the new bridge were lifted into place but Realdania have since posted a time lapse record of that work over two days when the four sections were delivered by barge from where they were manufactured in the Netherlands and were lifted into place by a giant crane.

post on Lille Langebro in September 2017

lifting the sections of the bridge into place April 2019

 
 

Kunst i Byudvikling / Art in Urban Development

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Kunst Realdania cover.jpeg

Realdania have just published a report on sculpture and art in public space that is aimed at municipalities, development companies and other professionals to inspire them "to consider art as a value-creating asset in their own projects."

“Culture and temporary activities are often included in urban development to open up new urban areas and give them identity, involve local citizens, or attract investors and outsiders.”

Christine Buhl Andersen, director of the Glyptotek in Copenhagen, has written an introduction or overview and she emphasises the importance of art in public space …  "art is increasingly used strategically to make urban areas, urban spaces and buildings vibrant and attractive."

The report points out that art in public spaces has a clear role in helping to create a good urban environment but requires a partnership between politicians, architects, planners, developers, builders and artists.

read more

 

data to plan for housing needs in the future

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Danskerne i det byggede miljø / Danes in the built environment is a detailed annual survey that asks Danes about their homes.

Information for the most recent report was gathered in April 2018, when 7,090 people completed a questionnaire from Kantar Gallup A/S for Bolius. The results have been published by Realdania and the most recent edition is now available on line.

These surveys have been conducted every year since 2012 so now they provide an important data base but have also tracked changing attitudes so they should influence decisions by planners and should prompt architects, builders and designers to assess carefully the real problems people encounter because the surveys show how people perceive problems and show how these are prioritised. 

The survey is published with general points and summaries but most of the information is set out in a large number of tables. These provide a fascinating insight not just into day-to-day practical problems people have and about the way they complete maintenance and repairs but also broader issues about neighbourhoods - about what makes a good neighbourhood - and how all these factors together influence how people rate the quality of their lives.

More than 6 out of 10 Danes believe that their home is important when they consider the quality of their life … for 22% of Danes  their home is of very high importance and for a further 41% their home is of high importance when they consider the quality of their lives.

read more

Realdania - full report to read on line or download as a pdf file

 
 
 
 

the house of Arne Jacobsen and a rare opening to the public

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In 2005 Realdania purchased the house in Gotfred Rodes Vej that Arne Jacobsen designed and had built for himself and his young family in 1929. The house has been restored and many features returned to the original arrangement. The house is normally occupied by tenants so access for the public is rare but the villa was opened for two days on the 11th and 12th of February.

Gotfred Rodes Vej 2

the house of Poul Henningsen

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The house designed by Poul Henningsen for himself and his family in Gentofte, a suburb of Copenhagen, and completed in 1937 was purchased by Realdania By & Byg in 2014. 

After an extensive programme of restoration work, returning the house to its original appearance, it will be leased but just for this week the public has been allowed access. 

It will be open on Saturday and Sunday the 17th and 18th September from 13:00 to 17:00.

Brogårdsvej 72, 2820 Gentofte