Herning Center of the Arts: Denmark

After two years of planning, Steven Holl‘s vision for the Herning Center of the Arts is finally in motion. Breaking ground last month, the finished project will eventually house the Herning Art Museum, the MidWest ensemble and the Socle du Monde. The result will be one very eco-friendly, beautifully designed building — concrete- and mesh- based, somewhat reminiscent of a fabric tent — measuring over 60,000 square feet, and will feature an auditorium, both permanent and temporary exhibits, a restaurant, office and rehearsal spaces. Curved roofs will allow indirect natural light to illuminate artwork during the day, and both gray water recycling and geothermal HVAC heating systems will be implemented as well as reflecting pools and a green roof topping the structure’s parking lot. Just like the folks at Inhabitat, I’m a huge fan of Holl (some friends of mine got married at the Chapel of St. Ignatius in Seattle a few years back) and I’m really excited to follow the progress and completion of this latest super-innovative project.