DTU’s largest auditorium building is changed and expands its activities. An open environment is the setting for teaching as well as events.
Campus must encourage meetings between people. This is one of the fundamental visions for the continuous campus development at DTU since 2012. The renovation of the University’s largest auditorium building—Building 116—is one current example of this.
The formerly cramped foyer and hallway areas have been transformed into open study environments, a narrow entrance area has been replaced with a large glass façade, and a dark cloakroom at the entrance has become a bright learning space.
The changes are to promote the desire for learning and social interaction, and Anders Overgaard Bjarklev—President of DTU—hopes that it will appeal to both students and locals.
“The ambition has been to make Building 116 an active part of life in Lyngby, so that even more of our campus benefits the citizens. DTU is an elite university that enters into a dialogue with the outside world, and we therefore want to make our buildings available for more than just teaching. This may—for example—be to use the auditorium for concerts, book receptions, or debate evenings,” he says.
Science and art intersect
The idea of inviting the outside world inside permeates the thoughts that artist Malene Bach and lighting designer Iben Winther Orton have had in relation to the design of the new interior of the auditorium building.
Together, they have focused on utilizing the inflow of light from the high windows positioned 360 degrees around the building. They have done this by hanging large, transparent textiles down from the ceiling of the hallways.
Photo: Kontraframe
“We’ve added the coloured textiles to soften the light layer by layer. We have three layers and three different materials to avoid flicker and create the most natural light. Before, you had a side with sun and a side with shadow. Now you have two equal sides of light where you can work. This gives a different flow in the room, and the poetry has been heightened,” explains lighting designer Iben Winther Orton.
The use of textiles is also repeated in the largest auditorium of the building. Here, a 15-metre-long stage curtain with layers of coloured textiles constitutes a work of art on which art films will be projected before and after lectures and events. The art films interpret DTU’s research fields through processed film material, and aim to challenge the audience’s perceptions of what science is and can do.
Updated to today’s teaching forms
In addition to the central position given to art, project manager Laura Utke Graae Jørgensen highlights the large, open study environments as the biggest change in the building. The focus has been on adapting the interior design to today's teaching forms.
“Teaching is today more informal and group-oriented than 50 years ago. Therefore, we’ve attached importance to supporting many different learning situations, so that the building accommodates both informal learning environments and more formal classrooms,” she explains, adding that respect for the existing architecture has weighed heavily in the modernization process.
Photo: Kontraframe
Building 116 was originally designed by the famous architect couple Eva and Nils Koppel, and it was inaugurated in 1974. This is the first time that changes are made to the form and interior design.
“It’s a huge strength that the Koppel couple have designed a building that is at once iconic and open to adaptations. This has meant that we’ve been able to maintain the spirit of the building throughout the process,” says project manager Laura Utke Graae Jørgensen.
Building 116 opened its doors to students on 4 June and has already hosted its first conference.