Non-profit affordable housing association Lejerbo commissioned BIG to design the much-needed Dortheavej affordable housing complex back in 2013. Some five years later, BIG has revealed photos of the finished product.
Located in historically industrial Dortheavej in northwestern Copenhagen, the 5-story complex offers 66 new apartments to low-income citizens. Built on a $9.8 million budget, the 6,800 m2 complex features a distinct checkered pattern that is based on a singular prefab structure. Apartment units range from 60 to 115 m2 and have 3.5-meter-tall ceilings, generous floor-to-ceiling windows that allow natural light to flood in, and outdoor terraces.
The building's north-facing facade looks towards an enclosed green courtyard, which residents of the complex and neighboring buildings can use for recreation. On the sunnier south side, balconies retract and therefore add depth to the facade.
“The prefabricated elements are stacked in a way that allows every second module an extra meter of room height, making the kitchen-living areas unusually spacious. By gently adjusting the modules, the living areas open more towards the courtyard while curving the linear block away from the street to expand the sidewalk into a public square,” Bjarke Ingels said in a statement.
This past spring, the housing project received the honorable 2018 Lille Arne Award from the Danish Association of Architects.
Check out more project images in the gallery below.
Project credits
Partners-in-Charge: Bjarke Ingels, Finn Nørkjær
Project Managers: Ole Elkjær-Larsen, Per Bo Madsen
Team: David Zahle, Alberte Danvig, Alejandro Mata Gonzales, Alina Tamosiunaite, Birgitte Villadsen, Cat Huang, Claudio Moretti, Dag Præstegaard, Daruisz Duong Vu Hong, Enea Michelesio, Esben Christoffersen, Ewelina Moszczynska, Frederik Lyng, Henrik Kania, Høgni Laksáfoss, Jakob Andreassen, Jonas Aarsø Larsen, Karl Aarso Larsen, Katerina Joannides, Krista Meskanen, Laura Wätte, Lucas Torres Aguero, Maciej Jakub Zawaszki, Maria Teresa Fernandez Rojo, Michael Schønemann Jensen, Mikkel Marcker Stubgaard, Nigel Jooren, Rasmus Pedersen, Robinson Neuville, Sergiu Calacean, Taylor McNally-Anderson, Terrence Chew, Tobias Hjortdal, Tobias Vallø Sørensen
Collaborators: MOE
10 Comments
Njice!
Interesting their best work is in Denmark. Go figure.
Ah, to be poor in Denmark.
Isn't it wonderful to have a welfare state that looks after its citizens, to know that paying taxes actually contributes to society and to looking after people who have difficulty looking after themselves.
I wouldn't know about that, I can only imagine.
I'm sorry about that.
@Miles, shouldn't affordable housing be for everyone? Not just the "poor"?
Affordable is a relative term.
Looks great up close but loses something the farther away from the building the photo is taken.
Hopefully the concrete finishes will age gracefully, but I agree, from further out it looks like another stack of boxes.
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