Danish Architecture is easily considered one of Denmark’s most influential international reputation. In 2019, two tremendous Bjarke Ingels projects reached the bay, the Ying Yang Panda Facility in Copenhagen Zoo and Copenhill. Bjarke Ingels founded BIG – Bjarke Ingels Group in 2005 after co-founding PLOT Architects in 2001 and working at OMA in Rotterdam. Bjarke defines architecture as the art and science of making sure our cities and buildings fit with the way we want to live our lives. Through careful analysis of various parameters from local culture and climate, everchanging patterns of contemporary life, to the ebbs and flows of the global economy, Bjarke believes in the idea of information-driven-design as the driving force for his design process. Named one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World by TIME Magazine in 2016, Bjarke has designed and completed award-winning buildings globally.
Copenhill
Tourists taking their compulsory selfies with the Little Mermaid might discover a weird, triangle-shaped metal building with chimneys in the background. Copenhill is not only the city’s brand-new urban mountain sports facility but an important milestone in reaching Copenhagen’s plan of becoming Co2 neutral by 2025.
Now all Copenhageners and visitors can hit the slopes in the flattest country in Scandinavia all year round! As a multifunctional urban mountain, Copenhill is placed on top of a state-of-the-art waste-to-energy plant, which is one of the best and most complex of this kind in the world.
Besides Skiing & Snowboarding, the visitor can run, hike and train as well as climb and round up the adventure in their cosy facilities and grab something to eat and drink.
The plant, ARC, produces environmental-friendly energy with the newest technology by burning waste and turning the exhaust into energy which yearly provides the city of Copenhagen with electricity for 30,000 households and central heating for 72,000 households.
Panda Facility
“The arrival of the pandas and the opening of the Panda Facility is a historical event.” – said Jørgen Nielsen, the Administrative Director of the Zoo of Copenhagen.
The preparations to welcome the two panda bears from China started many years ago with the planning of the facility, preparing zookeepers to take care of the pandas and building the facilities. The Ying-Yang shaped Panda Facility were revealed in early 2017 and after 18 months of construction, Her Majesty the Queen, Margrethe II and Her Royal Highness the Crown Princess Mary amongst with other prestigious guests participated in the opening celebrity. Mary, Crown Princess of Denmark also became the protector of the Zoo as the pandas were state-present to the Queen.