Hvalsø Børnehus
BUILDER Lejre Municipality
ARCHITECT Lone Backs Architects, Friis & Moltke Architects
ENGINEER Viggo Madsen A/S, JL Engineering
CONTRACTOR JJ Tømrer & Snedker A/S
STATUS Completed
The studio has won the assignment for a new kindergarten in Hvalsø in Lejre Municipality with fantastic nature in the surrounding area such as Bidstrup Forests and Skjoldungernes Land. In addition to incorporating nature into daily life, the institution has play, creativity and learning as its core values.
A landscape of play
Our ambition for Hvalsø Børnehus is an institution in close proximity to the expression of nature that identifies Hvalsø and with a creativity in play and experience that is linked to the culture-bearing and identity-creating ties that characterize Hvalsø on both a large and small scale, such as the communities, sawmill, gravel pit, Lerbjergtårnet and Tadre Mølle.
Nature up close
Conceptually, nature is drawn into the children’s house and the proximity to Storskoven has been the inspiration for placing the building body, which has a village-like character in a landscape context, where the forest to the east and west retreats from Storskoven and surrounds the institution to dissolve towards the core and the heart space in an open terrain where the village character unfolds in line with the surrounding communities’ community-oriented activities and outdoor life.
Explore
Cultivation gardens are established here, which can be used for keeping chickens and beehives. The bird hill can be climbed and perhaps you can see the neighbor – Gyldenløves Høj or Lerbjergtårnet. The arrival from the parking lot leads to a nice square with a circular bench where there is room for a rest and a chat with another parent, this is a nod to the circular benches in town, which have become a landmark for Hvalsø.
Flexibility and unfolding
The forest and the clearing are the two strong character-defining space-forming elements that are the main concept for the landscape approach and design of the outdoor areas. The clearing supports and enhances the institution’s landscape in a very usable form and creates accessibility for the many creative elements of outdoor life. At the same time, the many elements offer countless opportunities to develop as processes and support the future nature and biodiversity of the area.