Scan Magazine | Special Theme | Nordic Architecture & Design Special – Denmark
The former ship chandler’s warehouse in Vejle.
Good quality takes time Good-quality architecture has the potential to greatly improve our well-being, which is why the 30 architects at RAVN Arkitektur take their time when designing buildings. RAVN Arkitektur aims to design buildings that will stand the test of time and remain relevant and inspiring for decades to come. By Josefine Older Steffensen | Photos: Adam Mørk for RAVN Arkitektur
RAVN Arkitektur was founded by Søren Ravn in 2009 and today has offices in Vejle and Copenhagen in Denmark. Quality has been at the forefront since the beginning, and the company plans and designs buildings and renovations for both private clients and businesses. “We’re very fortunate in that we often work with the people who will actually be using the building. This means that we’re able to create something that is useful and functional for the users. At the same time, they can provide us with 42 | Issue 105 | October 2017
the time needed to create these functional spaces,” explains Uffe Lumbye Nielsen, partner and architect at RAVN Arkitektur.
Getting to the core of the project “When trying to work out what a building should look like or what we need to be doing, it’s incredibly important that we know a lot about the area it is in and have a good dialogue with the client,” says Nielsen. “There is no point in putting a really dramatic building into an area that doesn’t suit that kind of style.”
The first step in the design process is establishing the future use of the building – and researching and, if possible, visiting the project site. By having that background knowledge, the architects are able to create a building that from the outside suits the local area and fits in, and on the inside creates an astonishing and functional design to suit the people who are going to be using it. “Architecture is a process that takes time. It takes time to create the drawings and to actually construct the buildings, but this process is a minor element of the building’s total lifespan. It’s important to us that we’re creating buildings that will stand the test of time – buildings we’re still proud of and our clients are still happy with and excited about many years down the line,” says Nielsen.