Research Article
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The Building Edge as Public Space: Discussing the Contemporary Design Approach with Five Projects from Copenhagen

Year 2022, Volume: 15 Issue: 2, 798 - 818, 15.06.2022
https://doi.org/10.35674/kent.1014603

Abstract

New building projects have increasingly been offering publicly accessed outdoor spaces, transforming the interfaces between the building and the city into soft edges. This approach is especially evident in the latest projects in Copenhagen. This design apprehension is considered to be in relation to the increasing emphasis on public space, changing roles of private and public entities in the production and maintenance of space, the urban policies of Copenhagen as well as the inclusive approach of the designers. The study aims to evaluate this new kind of architectural design approach where the boundaries between the city and the building blur and the edge turns into a public space serving to a wider public. The study examines five projects from Copenhagen (BLOX/DAC, Maersk Tower, Axel Towers, CopenHill and Red Cross Volunteer House), based on the criteria derived from the urban policies of Copenhagen (that owes significantly to Jan Gehl) targeted towards 2025 to analyze the spatial configuration of the edges as well as the success of the public spaces introduced within the projects. The results of the analyses demonstrate different patterns of publicness in different projects as well as in different parts of the same project. Nonetheless, the projects in question can be considered as successful soft edges offering vivid urban life by blurring the boundaries between the building and the city.

References

  • arch2o. (n.d.). Maersk Tower I C.F. Møller Architects. https://www.arch2o.com/maersk-tower-c-f-moller-architects/
  • Archdaily. (2018, May 07). BLOX / OMA / Ellen Van Loon. ArchDaily. https://www.archdaily.com/893920/blox-oma-ellen-van-loon.
  • Ariza, M. C., Quintero, M. C. & Alfaro, K. E. (2019, June 28). Public Space for All: What Makes Copenhagen the City for the People?. IADB. https://blogs.iadb.org/ciudades-sostenibles/en/public-space-for-all-what-makes-copenhagen-the-city-for-the-people/
  • Baldwin, E. (2019, October 07). CopenHill: The Story of BIG's Iconic Waste-to-Energy Plant. ArchDaily. https://www.archdaily.com/925966/copenhill-the-story-of-bigs-iconic-waste-to-energy-plant.
  • Balmori, D. & Sanders, J. (Eds.) (2011) Groundwork: Between Landscape and Architecture. Monacelli Press.
  • Barandy, K. (2018, December 16). COBE Designs Copenhagen's Red Cross Volunteer House as an 'Urban Living Room'. Designboom. https://www.designboom.com/architecture/cobe-red-cross-volunteer-house-copenhagen-12-14-18/.
  • BIG. (n.d.). CopenHill / Amager Bakke. https://big.dk/#projects-arc.
  • Carmona, M. (2019). Principles for public space design, planning to do better. Urban Design International, 24(1), 47–59.
  • Centre for Urban Development. (2015). City of Copenhagen Municipal Plan 2015: The Coherent City. City of Copenhagen, Finance Administration, Centre for Urban Development.
  • C.F. Møller Architects. (n.d.). Maersk Tower, extension of the Panum Complex at the University of Copenhagen [Booklet]. https://www.cfmoller.com/log/attachments_CFM/108/Maersk%20Tower%20-%20Booklet.pdf.
  • Cho, I. S., Heng, C. K. & Trivic, Z. (2016). Re-Framing Urban Space: Urban Design for Emerging Hybrid and High-Density Conditions, Routledge.
  • Chodikoff, I. (2008). Pragmatic Utopia. Canadian Architect, (02), 36-41.
  • COBE. (n.d.). Red Cross Volunteer House: A Building Turned into a Public Space. https://www.cobe.dk/place/red-cross-volunteer-house.
  • Danish Architecture Center [DAC]. (n.d.). Axel Towers. https://dac.dk/en/knowledgebase/architecture/axel-towers-2/.
  • Fera, G. (2012). Urban space, a True European heritage. Futuropa, (3), 6-7.
  • Gehl, J. (2010). Cities for People. Island Press.
  • Gehl, J. (2011). Life Between Buildings: Using Public Space. Island Press.
  • Genise, F. (2015), Life in betwen buildings: Soft places in the thresholds between public and private domain, Urbanistica Informazioni, Special issue, Urban Happiness and Public Space 3rd Biennal of Public Space (261), M. Sepe (Ed.), 56-59.
  • Herzog, L. A. (2006). Return to the Center: Culture, Public Space and City-Building in a Global Era. University of Texas Press.
  • Jacobs, J. (1961). The Death and Life of Great American Cities. Random House.
  • Landezine. (2017, November 27). Mærsk Tower and SLA Wins Scandinavian Award for Green Roofs. http://landezine.com/index.php/2017/11/maersk-tower-and-sla-wins-scandinavian-award-for-green-roofs/.
  • Lim, A. (2020, March 05). Copenhagen: a Masterclass in urban Architecture for Public Spaces. The Peak Magazine. https://www.thepeakmagazine.com.sg/lifestyle/copenhagen-copenhill-public-space/?slide=1-park-n-play-this-parking-garage-in-trendy-nordhavn.
  • Lungaard & Tranberg Arkitekter. (n.d.). Axel Towers. https://www.ltarkitekter.dk/axel-towers-en-0.
  • Madanipour, A. (2019). Rethinking public space: between rhetoric and reality. Urban Design International, 24(1), 38–46.
  • Mandrup, M. (2017). Behind the Maersk Tower [Video]. C.F. Møller Architects. https://www.cfmoller.com/g/Behind-the-Maersk-Tower-i16670.html.
  • Németh, J. & Schmidt, S. (2011). The Privatization of Public Space: Modeling and Measuring Publicness. Environment and Planning B: Planning and Design, 38, 5-23.
  • Payne, T. O. (2018, September 18). Copenhagen's Three Key Design Cues the World Should Follow. Architectural Digest. https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/copenhagen-key-urban-design-cues
  • Perry, F. (2018, May 17). A Ring Road Runs Through it: BLOX by OMA. Design Curial. http://www.designcurial.com/news/blox-by-oma-6154895/
  • Perry, F. (Ed.) (2020). C. F. Møller Architects-Welfare Architecture for All. Arvinius+Orfeus Publishing.
  • Sennett, R. (1977). The Fall of Public Man. Cambridge University Press.
  • SLA. (n.d.). SUND Nature Park. https://www.sla.dk/en/projects/sundnaturepark.
  • Staeheli, L, A. & Mitchell, D. (2008). The People's Property?: Power, Politics, and the Public. Routledge.
  • Stevens, P. (2018, May 07). OMA's BLOX Opens in Copenhagen: New Destination for Architecture and Urban Solutions. Designboom. https://www.designboom.com/architecture/oma-blox-copenhagen-danish-architecture-center-03-26-2018/.
  • Sorkin, M. (2015). Why Public Space Belongs to People [Video]. reSITE Small Talks. https://www.resite.org/talks/why-public-space-belongs-to-people-with-michael-sorkin.
  • Stoughton, J. (2018, April 27). Sky Cities: Copenhagen's Circular Axel Tower Reinterpret Traditional Urban Form. The Architect's Newspaper. https://www.archpaper.com/2018/04/axel-towers/
  • Technology and Environment Department. (2017). Architecture Policy for Copenhagen 2017–2025: Architecture For People. The City of Copenhagen, Technology and Environment Department.
  • Technical and Environmental Administration. (2015). Co-create Copenhagen, Vision for 2025. City of Copenhagen, Technical and Environmental Administration.
  • Wall, A. (1999). Programming the Urban Surface. In J. Corner (Ed.), Recovering Landscape, Essays in Contemporary Landscape Architecture (pp. 233-249). Princeton Architectural Press.
  • Image References.......................................
  • Axel Towers Street View (2020, September) [Photograph]. Google Maps. https://www.google.com/maps/place/Kopenhag,+Danimarka.
  • C.F. Møller Architects. (2018). Maersk Tower [Isometric Drawing]. C.F. Møller Architects. https://www.skyfish.com/p/cfmollerarchitects/1361095/35227033?predicate=label&direction=desc.
  • Candemir, G. (2019). DAC/BLOX [Photograph]. Gizem Candemir Archive.
  • CopenHill Street View (2020, October) [Photograph]. Google Maps. https://www.google.com/maps/place/Kopenhag,+Danimarka.
  • Dragør Luftfoto and BYGST (n.d.). Maersk Tower [Photograph]. C.F. Møller Architects (n.d.). Maersk Tower, extension of the Panum Complex at the University of Copenhagen [Booklet]. https://www.cfmoller.com/log/attachments_CFM/108/Maersk%20Tower%20-%20Booklet.pdf.
  • Hjortshøj, R. (n.d._1). CopenHill [Photograph]. BIG. (n.d.). CopenHill / Amager Bakke. https://big.dk/#projects-arc.
  • Hjortshøj, R. (n.d._2). Red Cross Volunteer House [Photograph]. COAST. https://coastarc.com/r-e-d-c-r-o-s-s.

Bir Kamusal Mekan Olarak Yapı Eşiği: Yeni Tasarım Yaklaşımının Kopenhag Kentinden Beş Proje Üzerinden Tartışılması

Year 2022, Volume: 15 Issue: 2, 798 - 818, 15.06.2022
https://doi.org/10.35674/kent.1014603

Abstract

Mimari projeler son zamanlarda giderek artan bir biçimde, binayla kent arasındaki arayüzleri yumuşak eşiklere dönüştürerek, kamusal açık alanlar sunmaya başladı. Bu yaklaşım özellikle Kopenhag kentinde yakın zamanda inşa edilen projelerde belirgin olarak görülmektedir. Bu tasarım yaklaşımının, kamusal alan üzerindeki artan vurgu, özel ve kamusal sektörlerin mekânın üretiminde ve sürdürülmesindeki değişen rolleri, Kopenhag'ın kentsel politikaları ve tasarımcıların kapsayıcı yaklaşımları ile yakından ilişkili olduğu düşünülmektedir. Bu çalışma, kentle yapı arasındaki sınırların bulanıklaştığı ve bina eşiklerinin herkese hizmet veren bir kamusal alana dönüştüğü bu yeni mimari tasarım yaklaşımını mekansal açıdan değerlendirmeyi amaçlamaktadır. Çalışma, yapısal eşiklerin mekansal biçimlenişini ve projeler dahilindeki kamusal mekanların başarısını analiz etmek üzere, Kopenhag'dan beş projeyi (BLOX / DAC, Maersk Tower, Axel Towers, CopenHill ve Red Cross Volunteer House); Jan Gehl'e çok şey borçlu olan Kopenhag'ın 2025 hedefindeki kentsel politikalarından elde edilen kriterlere dayanarak incelemektedir. Analizlerin sonuçları, farklı projelerde ve aynı projenin farklı bölümlerinde farklı kamusallıkların söz konusu olduğunu göstermektedir. Bununla beraber, sözkonusu projelerin bina ve kent arasındaki sınırları muğlaklaştırarak canlı bir kentsel hayat sunan, başarılı yumuşak eşikler olduğu söylenebilir.

References

  • arch2o. (n.d.). Maersk Tower I C.F. Møller Architects. https://www.arch2o.com/maersk-tower-c-f-moller-architects/
  • Archdaily. (2018, May 07). BLOX / OMA / Ellen Van Loon. ArchDaily. https://www.archdaily.com/893920/blox-oma-ellen-van-loon.
  • Ariza, M. C., Quintero, M. C. & Alfaro, K. E. (2019, June 28). Public Space for All: What Makes Copenhagen the City for the People?. IADB. https://blogs.iadb.org/ciudades-sostenibles/en/public-space-for-all-what-makes-copenhagen-the-city-for-the-people/
  • Baldwin, E. (2019, October 07). CopenHill: The Story of BIG's Iconic Waste-to-Energy Plant. ArchDaily. https://www.archdaily.com/925966/copenhill-the-story-of-bigs-iconic-waste-to-energy-plant.
  • Balmori, D. & Sanders, J. (Eds.) (2011) Groundwork: Between Landscape and Architecture. Monacelli Press.
  • Barandy, K. (2018, December 16). COBE Designs Copenhagen's Red Cross Volunteer House as an 'Urban Living Room'. Designboom. https://www.designboom.com/architecture/cobe-red-cross-volunteer-house-copenhagen-12-14-18/.
  • BIG. (n.d.). CopenHill / Amager Bakke. https://big.dk/#projects-arc.
  • Carmona, M. (2019). Principles for public space design, planning to do better. Urban Design International, 24(1), 47–59.
  • Centre for Urban Development. (2015). City of Copenhagen Municipal Plan 2015: The Coherent City. City of Copenhagen, Finance Administration, Centre for Urban Development.
  • C.F. Møller Architects. (n.d.). Maersk Tower, extension of the Panum Complex at the University of Copenhagen [Booklet]. https://www.cfmoller.com/log/attachments_CFM/108/Maersk%20Tower%20-%20Booklet.pdf.
  • Cho, I. S., Heng, C. K. & Trivic, Z. (2016). Re-Framing Urban Space: Urban Design for Emerging Hybrid and High-Density Conditions, Routledge.
  • Chodikoff, I. (2008). Pragmatic Utopia. Canadian Architect, (02), 36-41.
  • COBE. (n.d.). Red Cross Volunteer House: A Building Turned into a Public Space. https://www.cobe.dk/place/red-cross-volunteer-house.
  • Danish Architecture Center [DAC]. (n.d.). Axel Towers. https://dac.dk/en/knowledgebase/architecture/axel-towers-2/.
  • Fera, G. (2012). Urban space, a True European heritage. Futuropa, (3), 6-7.
  • Gehl, J. (2010). Cities for People. Island Press.
  • Gehl, J. (2011). Life Between Buildings: Using Public Space. Island Press.
  • Genise, F. (2015), Life in betwen buildings: Soft places in the thresholds between public and private domain, Urbanistica Informazioni, Special issue, Urban Happiness and Public Space 3rd Biennal of Public Space (261), M. Sepe (Ed.), 56-59.
  • Herzog, L. A. (2006). Return to the Center: Culture, Public Space and City-Building in a Global Era. University of Texas Press.
  • Jacobs, J. (1961). The Death and Life of Great American Cities. Random House.
  • Landezine. (2017, November 27). Mærsk Tower and SLA Wins Scandinavian Award for Green Roofs. http://landezine.com/index.php/2017/11/maersk-tower-and-sla-wins-scandinavian-award-for-green-roofs/.
  • Lim, A. (2020, March 05). Copenhagen: a Masterclass in urban Architecture for Public Spaces. The Peak Magazine. https://www.thepeakmagazine.com.sg/lifestyle/copenhagen-copenhill-public-space/?slide=1-park-n-play-this-parking-garage-in-trendy-nordhavn.
  • Lungaard & Tranberg Arkitekter. (n.d.). Axel Towers. https://www.ltarkitekter.dk/axel-towers-en-0.
  • Madanipour, A. (2019). Rethinking public space: between rhetoric and reality. Urban Design International, 24(1), 38–46.
  • Mandrup, M. (2017). Behind the Maersk Tower [Video]. C.F. Møller Architects. https://www.cfmoller.com/g/Behind-the-Maersk-Tower-i16670.html.
  • Németh, J. & Schmidt, S. (2011). The Privatization of Public Space: Modeling and Measuring Publicness. Environment and Planning B: Planning and Design, 38, 5-23.
  • Payne, T. O. (2018, September 18). Copenhagen's Three Key Design Cues the World Should Follow. Architectural Digest. https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/copenhagen-key-urban-design-cues
  • Perry, F. (2018, May 17). A Ring Road Runs Through it: BLOX by OMA. Design Curial. http://www.designcurial.com/news/blox-by-oma-6154895/
  • Perry, F. (Ed.) (2020). C. F. Møller Architects-Welfare Architecture for All. Arvinius+Orfeus Publishing.
  • Sennett, R. (1977). The Fall of Public Man. Cambridge University Press.
  • SLA. (n.d.). SUND Nature Park. https://www.sla.dk/en/projects/sundnaturepark.
  • Staeheli, L, A. & Mitchell, D. (2008). The People's Property?: Power, Politics, and the Public. Routledge.
  • Stevens, P. (2018, May 07). OMA's BLOX Opens in Copenhagen: New Destination for Architecture and Urban Solutions. Designboom. https://www.designboom.com/architecture/oma-blox-copenhagen-danish-architecture-center-03-26-2018/.
  • Sorkin, M. (2015). Why Public Space Belongs to People [Video]. reSITE Small Talks. https://www.resite.org/talks/why-public-space-belongs-to-people-with-michael-sorkin.
  • Stoughton, J. (2018, April 27). Sky Cities: Copenhagen's Circular Axel Tower Reinterpret Traditional Urban Form. The Architect's Newspaper. https://www.archpaper.com/2018/04/axel-towers/
  • Technology and Environment Department. (2017). Architecture Policy for Copenhagen 2017–2025: Architecture For People. The City of Copenhagen, Technology and Environment Department.
  • Technical and Environmental Administration. (2015). Co-create Copenhagen, Vision for 2025. City of Copenhagen, Technical and Environmental Administration.
  • Wall, A. (1999). Programming the Urban Surface. In J. Corner (Ed.), Recovering Landscape, Essays in Contemporary Landscape Architecture (pp. 233-249). Princeton Architectural Press.
  • Image References.......................................
  • Axel Towers Street View (2020, September) [Photograph]. Google Maps. https://www.google.com/maps/place/Kopenhag,+Danimarka.
  • C.F. Møller Architects. (2018). Maersk Tower [Isometric Drawing]. C.F. Møller Architects. https://www.skyfish.com/p/cfmollerarchitects/1361095/35227033?predicate=label&direction=desc.
  • Candemir, G. (2019). DAC/BLOX [Photograph]. Gizem Candemir Archive.
  • CopenHill Street View (2020, October) [Photograph]. Google Maps. https://www.google.com/maps/place/Kopenhag,+Danimarka.
  • Dragør Luftfoto and BYGST (n.d.). Maersk Tower [Photograph]. C.F. Møller Architects (n.d.). Maersk Tower, extension of the Panum Complex at the University of Copenhagen [Booklet]. https://www.cfmoller.com/log/attachments_CFM/108/Maersk%20Tower%20-%20Booklet.pdf.
  • Hjortshøj, R. (n.d._1). CopenHill [Photograph]. BIG. (n.d.). CopenHill / Amager Bakke. https://big.dk/#projects-arc.
  • Hjortshøj, R. (n.d._2). Red Cross Volunteer House [Photograph]. COAST. https://coastarc.com/r-e-d-c-r-o-s-s.
There are 46 citations in total.

Details

Primary Language English
Subjects Urban and Regional Planning, Architecture
Journal Section Research Article
Authors

Hale Gönül 0000-0003-3360-6132

Publication Date June 15, 2022
Submission Date October 25, 2021
Published in Issue Year 2022 Volume: 15 Issue: 2

Cite

APA Gönül, H. (2022). The Building Edge as Public Space: Discussing the Contemporary Design Approach with Five Projects from Copenhagen. Kent Akademisi, 15(2), 798-818. https://doi.org/10.35674/kent.1014603

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