Copenhagen, Denmark

“We wanted to celebrate Fritz Hansen’s past, while also looking ahead to the future. Henning Larsen has a strong track record as a leading sustainability-thinking studio. We both have a holistic approach to design, and a similar taste in materials and creative expression, so our collaboration felt natural,” states Christian Andresen, Design & Brand Ambassador at Fritz Hansen.

European Prize for Architecture Laureates Henning Larsen Architects has designed a sleek modernist wooden pavilion for this year’s “3 Days of Design Festival” in Copenhagen to celebrate the historic furniture designs manufactured by Fritz Hansen.

This 350-square-meter, translucent pavilion is made of glued laminated timber and is designed to let in as much light as possible during the day.

The walls are made of translucent polycarbonate letting the light in while inside, plywood forms both the walls and the built-in furniture.

“By working with such a translucent building, the intensity of the light is not so much about sunlight or where the shades are cast, but more about how the building is almost breathing,” Henning Larsen partner and project director Eva Ravnborg.

“You can have very different atmospheres insides throughout the day and at night, the opposite is happening and it becomes a little beacon.”

The pavilion sits on point-screw foundations that have been screwed into the ground to support the wooden frame.

“We practically leave from here with no trace afterward, which was part of the brief,” Ravnborg said.

The pavilion is located in Grønnegården, Designmuseum Denmark’s garden, and its low shape and stepped roof reference the gabled 18th-century buildings that surround it.

The pavilion can then be completely disassembled as nothing is glued or welded together.

Its materials will be used in the reconstruction of Fritz Hansen’s own headquarters, and Ravnborg said the company may also reassemble a smaller version of the pavilion into a meeting room.

During the days of the 3 Days of Design event, the space will serve as a platform for several initiatives, exhibitions, and workshops, where visitors and locals can participate and meet the creative community.

Project: Fritz Hansen Pavilion
Architects: Henning Larsen Architects
Project Director: Eva Ravnborg
Client: Fritz Hansen A/S
Photographers: Laura Stamer