Tales of the City

Architecture for communities is at the centre of the work of Copenhagen-based architecture studio WERK. In the exhibition Tales of the City, 14 presented buildings and public squares can be experienced in an entirely new mode of perception and personal way. For each architectural work, the Danish-German writer and social commentator Knud Romer tells a short story based on his own associations and recollections. He contextualizes the works within society and provokes with unexpected questions. In combination with delicate models and sketches, the exhibition Tales of the City creates an alternative and entertaining insight, stimulates the visitors’ imagination and documents how architecture affects human beings and society.

The presented projects from Denmark and Germany range from sport and leisure facilities to work environments, housing and urban spaces all focussing on community. This mindset as well as the holistic approach of offering social, climatic and infrastructural solutions are what characterises WERK’s work and are reflected in all the projects.

To quote Thomas Kock, founder and creative director of WERK: “Each project in the exhibition is accompanied by Knud Romer's personal stories and opinions, adding poetic and diverse dimensions to architecture that will undoubtedly stimulate the visitors. Our goal is to create an architectural experience with a lot of opinions. We hope that visitors will open their eyes to how architecture and communities can contribute to solving current societal challenges.”

One of the 14 projects presented in the exhibition is the Sportstårnet, which is a proposal for addressing the growing problem of limited space for sports facilities in the city. Instead of occupying large areas for just one sports field, the pitches are stacked on top of each other. This creates space for various sports facilities and new communities in dense urban areas. WERK's Sportstårnet is designed in wood as an open and unheated structure, with only nets between the load-bearing wooden beams.

In his story about this project, Knud Romer talks about what truly led him to the sports hall when he played handball in his youth. Again, it's about community and relationships: “What I really wanted to score though – and the entire reason why I went down to the sports hall – were the girl handball players from NFH Nykøbing F. Handball Club.” (Excerpt from Knud Romer’s recollection in the exhibition on the project Sportstårnet.)

The exhibition invites visitors to listen and experience the tales in German and English by writer and social commentator Knud Romer in combination with models as well as a collection of different materials and objects referring to the projects by WERK. The exhibition is a synergy of architectural models, personal recollections, social comments and visions of community, and it gives the visitor an insight into how architecture affects human beings and society.

Opening: 5.4.2024, 6:30 pm
Speakers:
Hans-Jürgen Commerell, Petra Wesseler, I.E. Susanne Hyldelund, Knud Romer, Thomas Kock