SOPU Campus

SOPU Campus neighbors Den Hvide Kødby, which in many ways is in the midst of disintegrating and becoming something very different from the closed-off industrial area of the past 100 years. SOPU is designed with special focus on the area’s cultural and architectural heritage. The white-washed façade and the heavy, clean building masses stand as a modern reference to Kødbyen’s humble, yet bold architecture from the golden age of functionalism in Copenhagen during the 1930s.

SOPU Campus is furthermore a paraphrasing of the familiar Copenhagen typology, the block structure with a courtyard. In this case, the courtyard space is interpreted as a large atrium outfitted with light hardwood called accoya in Danish. The atrium is the heart of the building. The wooden slats are broken – like the polished façade of the exterior – by glass sections which create rhythm and ensure both natural lighting and a good view.

The traditional Copenhagen block structure inspired the SOPU building, but is reinterpreted in this project with a cubist touch and slanting rooves. Looking from Kødbyen, the slanted rooftops of SOPU create an architectural transition from the large blocks to the west, while this modern interpretation marks the phasing out of Kødbyen towards Skelbækgade.