38 DIGS.NET
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2.21.2020
P R O F I L E | M U S E U M S T O V I S I T N O W
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PHOTOGRAPHS
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COURTESY
OF
RASMUS
HJORTSHOJ
TIRPITZ
On the west coast of Denmark,
a structure in the sand emerges
anew, a site of remembrance and
reckoning by Bjarke Ingels Group.
R
epurposing old architecture for new uses
is a hallmark of contemporary architecture
across the world. Including and especially
for this story, in Denmark, where on windswept dunes
a historic German bunker from WWII is the edifice of
an extraordinary cultural blockbuster in Blåvand—the
TIRPITZ museum.
To the north of the Tirpitz bunker, a hulking concrete
stronghold built by the Nazis, is an embankment where
Bjarke Ingels Group cut walls into the dunes from all
sides so that one descends to a centrally located
clearing via sloping walkways. A courtyard serves as
the access point from which to explore a quartet of
underground galleries, each with its own entrance
and skylight. Unusually, given that these subterranean
spaces are literally fixed into the sand, the galleries
capture an abundance of light, while rotating walls in the
foyer allow for flexibility. The orientation of the project
generates a dialogue with the landscape into which it is
embedded and also between new and old structures,
so that the complex feels of its time and timeless too.
Cultural, temporary and permanent exhibits
are the ballast to a narrative that begins as an
imposing engine of war. BIG's architectural
intervention presents another story: that of
contrast, between an enclosed monolith and
the openness of contemporary space, and
its counterbalance of light and fluidity. An
underground tunnel links the physical structures
and the tales they tell. In transforming a hostile
environment to one of light and openness, BIG
brings a dark history from out of the shadows,
reminding all who grace this spectacular site that
places of war can indeed be places of peace.
vardemuseerne.dk/en/museum/tirpitz-en
