Written by By Staff Writer
A dramatic new Copenhagen subway entrance has been unveiled, a monument to the latest urban renewal in the Danish capital.
The 30-meter-tall, angular entrance, designed by Danish architecture firm Peter Zumthor , features a two-way glass curtain for passengers to admire, gleaming with sunlight through a curve of glass doors and one double glass window.
It will open to the public in the middle of January at the Metro entrance to the Department Store Quay, having been built as a temporary structure before the permanent entrance is completed.
“It was born out of the question of how to connect the underground with the street and connect the underground with the city. For me, it’s an amazing opportunity for us to rethink what the station entrance could be,” Zumthor said in a statement.
The design will become a permanent fixture in the city, expanding to cover the space outside the entrance in April 2020. The iconic glass roof will be filled with stone from a quarry in Denmark’s Dordrecht county, and new woodland will line the track beneath to give the subterranean station a human scale.
Seen from above, the Metro entrance to the Department Store Quay is currently a temporary structure. Courtesy Copenhagen Metro
Copenhagen Metro chief executive Christoffer Myhre told local media the station has been re-imagined with the intention of becoming a major attraction in the city, incorporating a national science museum, exhibition hall and car park.
“You can see the beauty of the glass roof in this building and the materials in it,” Zumthor said. “We had a lot of problems when we started designing the building and we learned a lot together.
“I guess we finally have the perfect solutions for the challenges that faced us. It’s a great success story in the design business.”
The architect admits designing an entrance is always a tricky task, but he is pleased that the station has been presented as a work of art.
“It really shows what we’re capable of, not only as architects but also as people. It reflects in a way Copenhagen is a beautiful city, and the city is a real problem in Copenhagen now.”