Latest posts for Copenhagen

One thing about doing a world tour is that I was so focussed on catching planes and trains and following a schedule, not to mention crossing all the different time zones, that I forgot the seasons that I was in. Well, I had acknowledged autumn in Seoul but looking at the Tivoli Gardens in the centre of Copenhagen suddenly it struck me that Christmas is just around the corner.

It seemed the Playhouse was not the only place I encountered Jesper Garde Kongshau work and the designer himself. I was fortunate enough to be invited by Christina Augustesen, a Danish lighting designer to watch a dress rehearsal. The play War Sum Up – a Manga Opera on the Nature of War was performed by a Danish well known Theatre Company called Hotel Proforma.

The Havnebadet canal crosses the city of Copenhagen and just by walking along it you can find very interesting architecture. On the harbour fronts I found two buildings that caught my eye: the Royal Danish Playhouse and the Copenhagen Opera House. Sitting almost in front of each other, these two buildings express their architecture through light in a very different and special way.

The first time I came across Olafur Eliasson's work was actually in London, back in 2003. I was one of the lucky visitors of the Tate Modern Museum when his 'Weather project' was set there for 6 months. At that time, I knew nothing about lighting, neither that I would somehow be deviated into such a field but I was so impressed that I still remember every detail of that moment. People were having picnics under this 'fake' sun and lying on the ground making shapes with their bodies and looking at themselves at the mirror surfaced ceiling. I felt so attracted by the light that I felt I was hypnotised by this orange and bright sun at the end of the turbine hall and I couldn't stop staring at it for a while.

After two months away, I started my way back to Europe in Copenhagen. Sure, I was jet-lagged again and the temperature shock was enormous but the shining sun made me feel like home. It was a perfect day to see some of the new exciting architectural projects that have put Copenhagen under the architects' spotlight and Anne Marie Lund knew it. We didn't climb the 'Mountain' but we walked around it and explored the 8 house.