New Neighbour will be decorated with Icelandic art

Wednesday 28 August a new work of art by the Icelandic artist duo Krot & Krass will be unveiled in the container building called New Neighbour located at Godsbanearealet.

In 2021, Aarhus School of Architecture will be moving into Denmark’s first new built school of architecture. And construction is in full swing. As part of the building site a container building has been established. In the period leading up to the opening of the new school, this building will be home to several events and workshops. In this way, the school can slowly begin to move activities to Godsbanearealet and start being part of the new neighbourhood.

“We really look forward to moving into the new school. This is why we are starting on this a little early with New Neighbour”, says Kristine Leth Juul, Prorector of Aarhus School of Architecture.

Currently, the new container building is all white. However, it will soon be decorated by Icelandic artist duo Krot & Krass, who use typographically inspired motifs in their art.

“We hope that the DNA we see at Godsbanearealet today can be maintained and made to grow as the area expands. It is consequently important that we, as new stakeholders in the area, understand and support the qualities that exist down here. After all, there is a strong tradition for art and graffiti in the area today. And we want to be a part of this tradition. Which is why we have chosen Krot & Krass to decorate New Neighbour”, says Kristine Leth Juul.

The written language of Iceland

The artist duo Krot & Krass comprises two Icelanders, Björn Loki and Elsa Jónsdóttir. They will be decorating New Neighbour with their characteristic motifs, inspired by an ancient Icelandic font called Höfðaletur, dating from the 16th century.

“We take inspiration from both runes and Höfðaletur, as it helps make the works more abstract and gives them more layers. I wouldn’t say that Höfðaletur has been forgotten in Iceland. But until recently it was not used at all. But now it’s coming back”, explains Björn Loki from Krot & Krass.

The motif on the New Neighbour container building centres around an Icelandic word that can best be translated as ‘breathing space’ or ‘anti-space’.

“We love the area around Godsbanen and have spent a great deal of time there. We think the whole area is a breathing space as well as an anti-space, which is why we have chosen this particular motif. We, of course, hope people will like our work, but our aim is not that everyone should love it. We would rather a third of the people hate the work than people not feeling anything after seeing it”, says Björn Loki.

Small enterprises

Apart from the school being able to use New Neighbour for workshops and other events, it also contains several offices. The offices will be housing four different companies:

Dearstudio ApS – who design user experiences for digital products and services.

Social Entrepreneurs in Denmark (SED) – a nationwide association for everyone with an interest in social entrepreneurship, co-production and other types of solutions to specific societal problems that can be implemented across civil society, the market, and the public sector.

Det Turkise Telt (The Turquoise Tent) – a non-profit association based on volunteer work which aims to bridge and connect people, music, new ideas and long-standing traditions. Being firmly rooted in Aarhus’ cultural life, they try to make the strange less unfamiliar – music as well as our fellow human beings. They do this by having open arms and arranging total concert experiences.

Office U67 – an architectural research-based practice specialising in exhibition design, interior architecture, detailed architecture, teaching, art direction, and research.

In addition to New Neighbour, Aarhus School of Architecture has also established ONSITE GALLERY – Denmark’s first architecture gallery. The company A. Enggaard, who is responsible for the construction of the new school of architecture, will also be setting up a ‘recycle exchange’. Here surplus material from the construction of the new school can be recycled and picked up by the users of the area. This initiative is part of a goal to create an involving building process around the new school of architecture.

“The new school will be located in an area where many good things were already happening. For this reason, it is important to us that the construction site should not close itself off from its surroundings in the period until the school is ready for occupation. We hope that New Neighbour and ONSITE GALLERY will help create an engaging building site. A site that retains the vibrant life that is a characteristic of the area”, says Kristine Leth Juul.

The original work of art which will adorn the walls of New Neighbour will be revealed Wednesday, 28 August, at 15.00. This will coincide with the opening of the Form Follows People exhibition in the ONSITE GALLERY architecture gallery.