A new public promenade ties together the bay in east and leisure harbor in west. The meandering shape of the promenade defines a series of new public spaces on land and water weaving together the two and extending the new public realm into the water earlier reserved for industrial purposes. The promenade brings life to the area through a sports plaza, harbor bath, theater, restaurants, cafés, and beach huts which all together create a new vibrant waterfront in Aarhus.

The instructional and research spaces are organized around the perimeter of the building – providing classrooms with picturesque views while keeping the quieter instructional spaces farther away from the more social atrium. Overall, the interior’s materiality is defined by the contrast of the warm wood-clad beams, concrete floors, and the functional double-duty surfaces found within the integrated sciences labs.

To prove that the concept was affordable with standard techniques, BIG decided that nothing would be more convincing than building it in LEGO. It happened that on the : scale model of the building, the size of a single pixel was identical to the size of the smallest one-dot LEGO brick. The model showcased the silhouette that combines the stepped figure of the traditional spire with the rationality and rigour of a functional structure.

The , sq ft campus includes a new building and ceremonial courtyard, as well as the potential renovation of existing historical buildings. BIG’s competition proposal, developed in collaboration with landscape architects Olin Studio and digital media agency Squint/Opera, seeks to reflect the historical context of the Navy Yard, while referencing the scale, materials and details of Navy vessels. An array of large-scale vitrines open up towards a public street, welcoming visitors and locals with an impressive glimpse into the museum&#;s collection of artifacts inside and outside, conveying the mission, lineage and breadth of operations that constitutes the US Navy.

Toward the top, the towers erode in a similar way by creating a landscape of terraces for the people living and working there. The resulting complex provides a new park with a more than threefold increase in public green space, and an alpine architectural silhouette on the city’s skyline. In a synergy of public and private interest, by offering the space to the public where it is the most in need, we earn the freedom to redistribute the lost density above.