In this thread I will post the most brilliant projects, which Copenhagen never got. The thread will include material on:

- Sverre Fehn's "Theater bird"
- Dominique Perrault's proposal for "DR Byen"
- Erick van Egeraat's proposal for "Krøyers Plads"
- schmidt hammer lassen's proposal for a new playhouse
- Lundgaard & Tranberg's project for a new bridge across the inner harbor connecting the new playhouse and the new opera
- Jørn Utzon's proposal for a "Langelinie pavilion"
- Behnisch Architects' winning but abandoned project for a new national archive
- Knud Fladeland Nielsen’s winning proposal for “Hotel Pro Forma” in Ørestad

The selections are based on my own premises resulting e.g. in a project like Foster + Partners' Tivoli Hotel being left out; I just didn't think it was brilliant enough - it didn't have enough X Factor...:dj:

I will update this thread continuously. When I stumble across new material on the various projects, I will upload it. Feel free to submit projects that I might have forgotten. Also renderings and photos etc. are welcomed, however, send these directly to me, so that this thread is kept tidy, clear and manageable.

I wont include very old projects like for instance Jardin’s proposal for the Marble Church. The projects will all have a somewhat modern point of departure.

The first project will be Fehn's "Theater bird".

The "Theater Bird" by Sverre Fehn

About the architect:
Sverre Fehn is a Norwegian architect. In 1997 he was awarded both the Pritzker Architecture Prize and the Heinrich Tessenow Gold Medal.

About the project:
The "Theater Bird" is a Copenhagen winning project from 1996 by Sverre Fehn on a new playhouse for the Royal Danish Theatre. The project sparked a heavy debate resulting in almost 5000 formal objections. The most criticized feature of the project was the tall stage tower. A full-scale mockup of the "bird" (the most spectacular feature of the project) was put in place to give a real-time impression of the project. However, in the end the Copenhagen town council refused to accept the plans, and the project was finally brought down carving the way for a new playhouse along the harbor front (by Lundgaard & Tranberg).

My comments:
I love this project, however, one tend to forget nowadays, that Fehn’s proposal was not only about the beautiful and intelligent feature of the “theater bird”. Not at all. The project is in fact HUGE (as you can see from the renderings). It is really grandiose. Many Copenhageners just felt it was too big, especially the stage tower. What a shame. This could have become a real landmark.

All photographs appear courtesy of Andreas Trier Mørch.

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I am glad you started with the bird, as it has always been one of my favorite projects that never happend. Insted we got the new playhouse, which is nice, but I still like the idea of stærekassen....

But as you also say, it is heard to miss the other sides of the project, which I dont really know how would have turned out...

The "DR Town" by Dominique Perrault Architecture

About the architect:
Dominique Perrault is a leading French architect. He is known for projects like the Olympic Velodrome and Swimming Pool in Berlin and the French National Library in Paris. The latter a project he was awarded the Mies van der Rohe Award for in 1997.

About the project:
The project is part of a prestigious 2000 competition on a master plan for the gigantic new headquarter (105.000 m2) for Danish Radio (“DR”) in Ørestad, Copenhagen.

The overall ambition of the competition was to unite the many offices of DR spread around Copenhagen in one single building, the “DR Town”, consisting of various segments (concert hall, news house, TV production (studios), administration and service). The exact design of the segments would afterwards be decided in separate competitions respecting the winning master plan (as you might know the concert hall competition was won by Jean Nouvel).

Eight architects were selected/invited: Henning Larsen Architects, Aarhus Arkitekterne together with Von Gerkan, Marg & Partner, schmidt hammer lassen, C.F. Møller Architects, Vilhelm Lauritzen Arkitekter (VLA), Ian Ritchie Architects, Niels Torp Architects and Dominique Perrault Architecture (DPA).

Having been behind previous large-scale DR-projects (the radio house and the “TV Town”) many predicted the winner to be Danish Vilhelm Lauritzen Arkitekter. And they were right: Big and boring VLA, sadly, won the competition with a somewhat anonymous master plan totally lacking identity. Sadly because there were so many great and much more interesting projects among the original eight:
Henning Larsen Architects came up with a gigantic, floating wing high above ground housing all the various editorial offices.
Ian Ritchie Architects included the nearby, future metro letting it pass-through the building itself making room for an in-house metro station.
And then Perrault’s: A spectacular project above ground on piles in a lake (letting the planned canal, “Emil Holms Kanal”, end in a giant, artificial lake with the “DR Town” on piles). The jury, however, described the project as “arrogant”!

My comments:
DPA’s project is fantastic. It houses so much ambition and so many possibilities. Perrault had, intelligently and progressively, sketched room for future expansions outside the main building complex - possibilities that the current master plan by VLA doesn't hold.
The project would probably have been rather expensive to realize, however, Perrault claimed it to be inside budget limits.
One must also remember, that at the time when DPA created this project, there were concrete plans for a complex national archives building on the site directly to the south-east (by Behnisch Architects – to be covered later in this thread). DPA's "DR Town" plays up against or can be seen as corresponding to this complex' unique expression. Behnisch's project was later scrapped, which probably would have hampered Perrault's project.

The project has been a feature in respected El Croquis (BTW: Nouvel’s concert hall has too).

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hey, fab 5, this is a fantastic idea for thread! (:

DAMN! i had already written a long text, asking about some things concerning the project by perrault + el croquis, then thought: why am i asking this from you when i could do some research and most certainly find out the answers myself... and i did just that :D

so... no more questions :D

..

"Krøyer’s Square" by Erick van Egeraat associated architects

About the architect:
Erick van Egeraat is a leading Dutch architect. He is known for projects like the Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art, Popstage Mezz in Breda and the ING headquarter in Budapest. The former he received a RIBA Award for in 2007. Egeraat also received the Copenhagen Award in 2004 for “Krøyer’s Square”.

About the project:
The project is a 15.000 m² winning proposal from 2003 for a residential building complex at Krøyer’s Square – one of the last undeveloped sites directly along the water of the inner harbor in central Copenhagen.
At the time the State of Denmark’s own property developer and seller, “Freja ejendomme”, owned Krøyer’s Square. Freja was also responsible for the architectural competition.

The other participants in the invited competition were Vilhelm Lauritzen Arkitekter, KHR arkitekter, Lundgaard & Tranberg (all Denmark) and Baumschlager & Eberle (Austria).

Krøyer’s Square is part of what locals call the “benenden” (“foot of a bed”) district of old, historic Christianshavn in Copenhagen. The locals were already on beforehand anxious on what would happen to the area. For many years the site had been sitting quite empty with only a restaurant/café, the alternative “Luftkastellet”, and a think-tank, “Supertanker”, as occupiers.

Egeraat’s winning project immediately sparked protests. In the beginning the protests mainly came from residents of Christianshavn, but as time went by more and more joined in. The project really divided Copenhageners into two groups, for and against, and Krøyer's Square almost became a national event. Protestors collected almost 15.000 signatures against Egeraat’s proposal.

Protestors were mostly concerned with the height – the tallest tower would be 55m, the lowest 35m. Many protestors actually admired the idea of Egeraat, or so they claimed, they just didn’t feel that the site was the right place for it. When Egeraat was asked whether he would allow the project to be moved to another part of Copenhagen, however, he quickly refused it.

In 2004 Freja sold the site and the project to developer etc. NCC. In the following process a lot of critique was directed at NCC for not handling the matter and the public very well.

In the end, however, it was all up to the local politicians in the Copenhagen town council – 28 voted against, 23 for, and the project was brought down on the 17th of March 2005.

To show that something was about to happen to Krøyer’s Square no matter what, NCC, somewhat brutally, started clearing the site in July 2005. This just made protestors even more angry and manic.

A somewhat silent period with regard to the project now followed. In a lot of circles many couldn’t accept that what they saw as a genius, modern interpretation of Christianshavn was brought down by the “parliament of the streets”. Numerous articles were written in various papers and magazines supporting Egeraat’s proposal. However, NCC silently began looking around for new architects that could come up with a more low-profile project.

In July 2006 NCC, surprisingly, sold the site to American Carlyle Group. NCC arranged for themselves be the preferred contractor and consultant of Carlyle, when a future project was due to go under construction. At the time a brand-new project was already in the pipeline and up for presentation in short time.

In October 2006 BIG, Henning Larsen Architects and Kim Utzon Arkitekter (all Denmark) presented their shared bid for a new project. The town council, which now had a new composition since the days of Egeraat, and almost everybody else, were extremely disappointed by this proposal. Bjarke Ingels of BIG also said, between the lines, that the process of making a joint bid with the two other firms, had been complicated and challenging. He clearly didn’t like, what they had been able to come up with together.
It was clear that the politicians would not accept the new proposal.

Again the case for a project on Krøyer’s Square took a new and surprising turn. In the new composition of the town council there now seemed to be a majority in favor of Erick van Egeraat’s original project! The responsible mayor for that particular area, Klaus Bondam, was given permission to hold a meeting with Carlyle Group and NCC on whether they, primarily Carlyle, could be interested in readmitting Egeraat’s proposal. Copenhageners, on both sides, once again anxiously awaited what seemed to be the final verdict.

That came on Wednesday the 15th of November 2006: After the meeting with Bondam it was announced, that Carlyle Group and NCC didn’t think that sound economy existed any longer in Egeraat’s project. Moreover, they were both worn out by the rough and aggressive process – they simply thought the public opposition towards Egeraat’s buildings was too big and unwieldy. It was not worth trying once again – and they probably didn’t trust the politicians and their new stand on the matter. What would happen when the going once again got rough?

Politicians again reassured Carlyle and NCC, that they would indeed support another high profile and “high-rise” project for Krøyer’s Square. And that they would not accept a mediocre proposal for such a central site in Copenhagen. However, since November 2006 not much has been known about the advancement of the new process. I have heard in the corridors, that actually not anything has happened with regard to a new project. Carlyle, one of the world’s largest investors, is not in a hurry with regard to a small site in Copenhagen. Especially not at this point of time with a luring global financial crisis.

My comments:
First of all: Egeraat’s proposal is fantastic – not many would disagree about that. It interprets the historic surroundings in a very intelligent, modern and sensitive way – the old warehouses of Christianshavn, the whole mood out there. I don’t think it is insensitive to its surroundings. Not at all. Too tall? Come on…
Egeraat himself continues to put this project forward when talking about high profile, high-quality residential projects in the world.
Many just wont forget these buildings. They continue to come up in various papers, magazines, TV shows and what not. An almost united Danish architectural business (which is unheard of) pays tribute to Egeraat’s project.
I also think the whole process was a huge lesson for politicians on how not to handle such a matter. They really got carried away by a largely elitist and manipulating opposition to the project – an opposition that succeeded in influencing and changing politicians minds (and many others!) along the way to an extent, that many politicians afterwards looked frivolous and too susceptible to influence.

The complex process has even been subject to PhD’s on the matter of local democracy.

Erick van Egeraat’s project has also been a feature in respected El Croquis.

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Protesters even got hold of a crane, and a big banner was put up saying “NO” to the project at Krøyer’s Square. The top of the crane is exactly where the tallest part (55m) of Egeraat’s project would be:

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Krøyer’s Square, home to “Luftkastellet” restaurant, before it was cleared (with "Nyhavn" in the background):

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sad :(

oh, and kudos for this thread, extremely informative and well published!

Thanks for a fantastic work FAB 5 - you could write a book about the subject:-)

Iám looking forward to follow and hopefully contribute to this tread.

Really loved the Krøyer’s Square, but the first two ones were just boring!

It almost makes me cry whenever I'm reminded of van Egeraat's wonderful buildings. They look so wonderful. How could they be dismissed? Oh dear....

What can one do in order to re-awaken this project? I've been thinking of making t-shirts with the motives of van Egeraat's vision of Krøyer's Square. Just a tiny contribution. What else? Send letters to people in the right places?

I have found and uploaded my favorite picture of the "Theater bird" mock-up - see the respective post.
New and more detailed renderings of Perrault's "DR Town" will be following in the near future.

Really loved the Krøyer’s Square, but the first two ones were just boring!

Do you call a 105.000 m2 building complex consisting of various structures of different size and with individual expressions standing high on piles in a giant, artificial lake for just plain BORING?
This is a project with a concept and size that the world hasn’t seen before.

..

I hope you'll forgive me this little provocation: If you want to see architecture that can best be described as a complicated mess of multi-coloured boxshapes supported by implausible poles then all you need to do is log on to Second Life. ;)

:)^^

Well, it is a master plan sketching out and focusing on difference in size of the various structures and a project that attaches importance on difference too in facade expression, both areas that would eventually be explored in detail and decided upon in the individual architectural competitions, that were to follow. With this in mind I think that this master plan basis could have created a really unique and extremely interesting building complex. Come up with a real-world project of this size, with such diversity and room for creativity (yet still obeying an overall frame) standing high on piles in a huge, artificial lake – I can’t think of having seen such a project ever before.

Lots of new renderings etc. of Dominique Perrault's "DR Town" have been uploaded and posted above.

I hope you'll forgive me this little provocation: If you want to see architecture that can best be described as a complicated mess of multi-coloured boxshapes supported by implausible poles then all you need to do is log on to Second Life. ;)

Or go to a tupperware party! :lol: Naah...actually I like it - especially compared to that anonymous monument of wasted oppertinities that we have ended up with.:ohno:

"The Royal Danish Playhouse" by schmidt hammer lassen

About the architect:
Schmidt hammer lassen (SHL) is a leading Danish practice. They are known for projects like “The Black Diamond” royal library in Copenhagen, the Aros Art Museum in Aarhus and the Aberdeen University Library in Scotland. They hold two MIPIM awards from 2007 and 2008 respectively.

About the project:
The 18.600 m2 SHL proposal for a royal playhouse from 2001 is part of a grand process retransforming the institution of the Royal Danish Theatre eventually creating an independent house for opera (by Henning Larsen Architects) and an independent play house (eventually won by Lundgaard & Tranberg) away from the old theatre grounds at “Kongens Nytorv”. The latter was a consequence of Sverre Fehn’s proposal for an extension to the existing theatre, ballet and opera scenes at “Kongens Nytorv” being brought down (for a description hereof see the post on Fehn’s project above).

The site for the new playhouse was to be the old ferry terminals and quay areas at “Kvæsthusbroen” supporting the Oslo and Bornholm routes – really an amazing spot right in the most central part of the Copenhagen harbor almost vis-à-vis the new, gigantic opera house.

Due to the prestigious task and the unique spot many (including the minister of cultural affairs) had hoped for some of the big names in the world of architecture to draw up proposals and participate in the open, international competition that was to follow arranged by the Ministry of Cultural Affairs. In the end, however, none of the upper A-list practices participated (Ando, Hadid, Nouvel, Piano, H&deM, Foster, Gehry), but there were still some of the renowned, international firms from the lower parts of the A-list present (e.g. Noriaki Okabe, who came up second and would actually have won if he hadn’t produced one, huge bummer in his bid). Almost all the leading Danish firms were there.

SHL’s project is very different from most of the other proposals in the way that it works with a house placed directly IN the water making a total removal of the “Kvæsthusbroen” pier area necessary. That’s rather controversial really – and probably a feature and an approach that wouldn’t have made the project cheaper to build.
It also holds a very non-Danish idiom – it is not the typical, sharp box building but more organic and gliding in its expression. It has somewhat of a landmark form and identity – a unique and easy identifiable piece of architecture.

In the end the project received 200.000 DKR worth of purchases from the Ministry of Cultural Affairs and came in as the fourth best or most qualified proposal.

My comments:
I am a fan of the proposal of Lundgaard & Tranberg that ended up winning the competition, however, L&T’s project is also very typical Danish (and so was Okabe’s BTW). It’s sharp, boxy, functional and somewhat reserved – it does not meet you with a “big bang”. SHL’s holds “big bang” quality – it is spectacular, unique and could have become a real Copenhagen landmark. From certain angels it even looks a bit "Guggenheim'ish". Copenhagen and Denmark could use such a provocative and spectacular yet beautiful piece of architecture. On the other hand it would probably have been rather expensive to realize – and at the time politicians had a bad budget excess case going on with regard to the new National Archives building in Ørestad (to be covered later in this thread). They probably had focus on proposals that had a good potential of staying INSIDE the frame of budget.

It is also a project, as indicated above, that has a very alternative placing. At the time a new cultural house of some sort (ended up becoming an opera house) was in the pipeline extending the historical monumental “axis of Amalienborg” across the harbor (Copenhagen’s humble version of the “L'Axe historique” in Paris). The placing of SHL’s playhouse could have messed up this extension as the project is placed right off the axis itself. A spectacular building is in this regard not an advantage.

The project has been a feature in Danish magazine “Arkitekten”.

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A new (and good) rendering has been added to the royal playhouse proposal by schmidt hammer lassen.

I will updating this thread soon with new material on Lundgaard & Tranberg's project for a new bridge across the inner harbor connecting the new playhouse and the new opera, and Jørn Utzon's proposal for a "Langelinie pavilion". The latter will include the original competition review from 1953 + renderings and drawings from a bunch of sources.

I don't know, if that was the alternative I think I prefer the DR Byen we got. A bunch of coloured boxes on piles just don't do it for me :lol: The theater bird looks good, though, would've liked to see that one built

I don't know, if that was the alternative I think I prefer the DR Byen we got. A bunch of coloured boxes on piles just don't do it for me :lol: The theater bird looks good, though, would've liked to see that one built

Well, we ended up with a DR Byen consisting of four segments; three of them done by the most uninspiring and boring large-scale architectural firms this country got - Gottlieb Paludan, DISSING+WEITLING and Vilhelm Lauritzen Arkitekter. :ohno::goodnight Scary composition.

I might end up doing a "almost made the list"-category. A proposal I am thinking on publishing there is Ian Richie Architects proposal for DR Byen - crazzzzy stuff!

The “Kvæsthus” Bridge by Lundgaard & Tranberg

About the architect:
Lundgaard & Tranberg is a leading Danish practice. They are known for projects like the “Kilen” (“The Wedge”) extension to the Copenhagen Business School and the “Tietgen Dormitory” in Ørestad, Copenhagen. The Royal Institute of British Architects has awarded both projects with prestigious RIBA European Awards.

About the project:
The ambitious proposal for a bridge from 2006 linking the Opera/Holmen/Christianshavn and the new Royal Playhouse/Copenhagen City (the playhouse also by Lundgaard & Tranberg) is part of an offer by the Realdania foundation aiming at revitalizing the area around the new playhouse and establishing a connection between the two main powerhouses of the Royal Danish Theatre. In addition to the bridge the offer also contains turning the “Kvæsthus” mole into a new, cultural urban space, quay installations for the “Kvæsthus” fairway and an underground car park.

Back in the days when construction of the Opera was taking place discussions began surfacing on how to ensure a good and advantageous connection between this new cultural powerhouse/the district of Holmen and the rest of Copenhagen.
The Opera is situated at Holmen – an old naval base – and although the area is not that far from the center of Copenhagen as the crow flies, the area had never, qua its naval history, been developed with easy, public accessibility in mind. In the midst of all this local protest groups feared that the most obvious access road for the Opera would increase traffic in parts of the Christianshavn district tremendously. These people succeeded in influencing local politicians so much, that an electronic bus gate, effectively sealing off the Opera (and Holmen!), was established. Only town busses, cyclists, pedestrians and residents with cars living at Holmen are now allowed, via an electronic chip, to pass this gate. All others with car have to take a huge detour. However, for pedestrians, cyclists and people by bus going to the Opera was (and is) still an uneasy, unnatural and time-consuming journey. A fast connection directly across the harbor was needed.
Local politicians continued to discuss whether to aim for a bridge, a tunnel or a high-frequent ferry link. Eventually, in March 2005, they agreed on opting for the tunnel solution (!). The arguments in favor of this solution were, that Opera guests would never use a bridge during rainy and windy conditions, this removing part of the basis for such a solution, and that a bridge could end up destroying the aiming lines of the harbor fairway. Handling these challenges a tunnel seemed to hold the upper hand.
However, less than a year later politicians began realizing, that the tunnel solution was extremely expensive and unrealistic. Instead they now seemed to be hooked on the high-frequent ferry link solution. This solution even ended up getting financial backing by Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller, the rich financer of the Opera. This “package” included one of the old tour boats (of “Netto-Bådene”) being converted and formally put in service as route 903 of the public transportation network of Copenhagen. A real simple solution that could be pulled off almost immediately.

Out of nowhere the Realdania foundation suddenly appeared with an offer as described earlier – including a bridge – in November 2006. Initially the offer included a bridge, the urban space at the “Kvæsthus” mole and the underground car park (all elements by Lundgaard & Tranberg). Local politicians seemed at first rather skeptic. They had spent years discussing a solution and had now finally reached an agreement with the establishment of the ferry link. They really wanted to move on. Moreover, Realdania’s project included an underground car park operated by themselves, which a majority of the politicians didn’t want any longer (originally establishment of parking facilities for the playhouse were part of an agreement between the Copenhagen Municipality and owners of the Royal Danish Theatre, the Danish Ministry of Culture; this dispute is still unsettled). Realdania was initially turned down, but after a second meeting they were asked to go back to the drawing board and concretize their offer.
That offer came in March 2007. The proposal had now been expanded with quay installations for the “Kvæsthus” fairway. Realdania also opened up for a dialogue with the public on their project. One would perhaps think that the story ends happily here – that the offer from Realdania secured a foothold and got approval from politicians. Oh, boy, were you wrong!

The Realdania offer from March 2007 ignited a discussion, especially on the underground car park. Politicians still seemed to be mostly skeptic. Then suddenly on the 13th of June 2007 the A.P. Møller foundation (formally “A.P. Møller og Hustru Chastine Mc-Kinney Møllers Fond til almene Formaal”) led by the original financer of the Opera, Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller, revealed a competing offer on a bridge connection across the harbor by 3XN Architects. This master plan proposal crossed the harbor very differently than the one by Lundgaard & Tranberg (thereby handling some of the criticism put forward by sailors, who feared Realdania’s bridge would make it difficult for them to get in and out of the harbor). Moreover, it seemed evident, that the matter was a personal one for patron Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller; he clearly saw Realdania’s bridge as a proposal messing up the aiming lines of the Copenhagen harbor. He probably also didn’t like this proposal’s landing on sites owned by himself next to the Opera. And when powerful Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller gets personal, well, we all pretty much know what happens!

On the 27th of November 2007 a majority of parties in the municipal council issued a statement saying, that they had decided to accept the A.P. Møller foundation’s offer for a bridge only. The decision was formally taken on the 5th of December. That also meant that at least Realdania’s bridge offer was shot down (it is still unclear whether the remaining parts of the offer – car park, urban space and quay installations – will end up being constructed; these elements are part of an ongoing dispute between the municipality and the Danish Ministry of Culture).

Sadly it seems that the brilliant and intelligent bridge proposal by Lundgaard & Tranberg wont happen.

My comments:

I know this adding to the list of the most brilliant projects Copenhagen never got might seem a bit controversial, however, I honestly believe, that the offer could have become a new, national landmark – a “Millennium Bridge” of Copenhagen. I really like the curved bridge; an intelligent and not only aesthetic feature; the functional curving is supposed to handle wind issues as well. Moreover, the Realdania offer is clearly the best proposal when it comes to linking the inner city of Copenhagen with the district of Holmen (one of the original premises) – a longtime missing link. And of course the proposal links the two cultural powerhouses, the Opera and the Royal Playhouse, much more directly than the A.P. Møller foundation’s; a quality as well.
BTW: Why not just build both bridges?:)

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http://img410.imageshack.us/img410/7407/10072950ue7.jpg

http://img258.imageshack.us/img258/9053/55283410cp0.png

http://img255.imageshack.us/img255/3121/10gc5.jpg

http://img260.imageshack.us/img260/562/11tl2.jpg

http://img254.imageshack.us/img254/1249/12sg3.jpg

I really liked that one. Shame they nixed it. Do we have even a smal idea of how the møller bridge will look like? I cant imagen anything better than this...

^^The short answer is "NO". The proposal by 3XN is nothing more than a master plan showing some intentions (primarily the route across the harbor, which has later been changed). There will be an international competition on the concrete design.

Here is how 3XN presented the bridge in their master plan proposal:


http://img175.imageshack.us/img175/5209/26028qn3.jpg

^^That what I thought. Thanks...