A new typology

The 3,200 m² Ku.Be House of Culture in Move­ment was desi­gned for the muni­ci­pa­lity of Frede­riks­berg as a focal point for both the imme­diate commu­nity and also the wider area of Copen­hagen; one that the people them­selves could take owner­ship of and that would evolve its programme based on the specific wants and needs of its users. The project is a new typo­logy, deve­loped out of the response to a brief that solely asked for a buil­ding that would bring people toge­ther and improve the quality of life. In reply MVRDV and ADEPT answered with one that blends theatre, sport and lear­ning into a space where body and mind are acti­vated to promote a more healthy life for ever­yone, regard­less of age, ability or inte­rest; crea­ting links between people that wouldn’t other­wise connect with each other.

Encourage the unexpected

The six primary volumes which make up Ku.Be, each with their own programme, are clad in a unique colour and mate­rial, clearly defi­ning them within the buil­ding; from outside these shapes are hinted at in the frag­mented tile façade. “We desi­gned Ku.Be to encou­rage the unex­pected,” explains MVRDV co-founder Jacob van Rijs. “Larger volumes are suited to hold perfor­mances or public meetings, smaller ones can be for exhi­bi­tions or debates. The fast-pace rooms are perfect for dance, or parkour; and zen rooms give you the contrast of yoga or medi­ta­tion. It’s between these volumes where the real fun will happen though; spaces where we hint at a use, but which will become enti­rely user-defined.”

Movement

The route through the buil­ding focuses on deve­lo­ping and encou­ra­ging alter­nate forms of move­ment. The Laby­rinth gets people on their hands and knees clim­bing through a three dimen­sional network of cubes from the second to third floors; or alter­na­tively they could take the Mouse­trap, a vertical maze. A net which spans several floors throug­hout the buil­ding, lets users climb up from floor to floor – suspended over the voids – and slides and fireman poles offer a fast way to get back down. “In Ku.Be we tried to turn your average expe­ri­ence of a buil­ding on its head,” tells ADEPT co-founder Martin Krogh. “What would other­wise be a simple, mind­less journey through the buil­ding turns into an explo­ra­tion and disco­very of move­ment. Here it’s you that defines the route, however you want: clim­bing, sliding, craw­ling … jumping.” To cater for all abili­ties and ages, both easier and more stan­dard ways of moving around are provided but even then a visual connec­tion is main­tained throug­hout Ku.Be.

Urban gardens

The urban gardens outside form the connec­tion between Ku.Be and the urban realm, playing an important role in expres­sing the eight volumes and the acti­vi­ties happe­ning inside. The diverse land­scape — a system of micro­cli­mates with chan­ging sounds, lights and scents which blends seam­lessly into a hill with inte­grated slides — reaches out into the gardens and ends in an amphi­theatre outside.

By beco­ming an exten­sion of the urban land­scape of Frede­riks­berg and inte­gra­ting the commu­nity to such an extent, the House of Culture and Move­ment looks to become an incu­bator for further deve­lo­p­ment within the neigh­bour­hood.