It has now been a week in Copenhagen. Today I was able to visit the office of Bjarke Ingles Group also known as BIG. This was a big deal for some the architecture students on the trip, the man that started the group is known as the Elon Musk of the architecture world. The group is known for breaking down the walls and high-profile clients it serves. From the new sea wall that will surround NYC to EXPO 2020 in Dubai. We had a short presentation from the business affairs employee, who shared more about the company and some projects. One of the projects that we focused on was a tower in Vancouver Canada. Because of where the lot was and the specific zoning laws in place, BIG created a building that appears to be top heavy. The zoning laws only apply to a certain height, after that height is reached the rules don’t apply. This has led to a building that looks almost “top heavy”. Here is a link for what the building looks like https://big.dk/#projects-van.
After the presentation I headed over to the Danish Architecture Center where I visited the BIG exhibit that I had learned about during the presentation. Here I was able to learn more about the current and past projects that BIG is designing. I learned there that when the company starts a project, they first do modeling and then go into the nitty gritty details of rendering and then engineering. This allows the designs to play with the overall design. They also are fond of Lego, making replicas of the buildings to display to clients and display in there reception area. The main goal of BIG is to create an AI system for architecture that would allow more immersive experiences when designing their structures. This would allow staff to fully understand what the structure will look like before being built. The whole exhibit was very mind blowing and made me realize how building design can really create a mood for an urban area.
Later in the evening I was able to catch up with some friends I have made over the years. It was a lovely last night in Copenhagen and I sure do hope I will find myself here one day. Tomorrow I start my first stretch of bicycle touring up to Northern Denmark, heading to Elsinore.
Here are some photos, from the offices at BIG, the BIG exhibit, and my lovely friend Anne.
-Chip
