The Brewery
Christian IV's iconic brewery on Copenhagen's waterfront is home to 350 royal statues erected between 1500 and 1700. Originally, these statues were housed in royal gardens, squares, and castles. However, time has taken its toll on these valuable statues, and to preserve this important piece of cultural heritage, they have been given shelter. Today, the Brewery is open to the public, allowing visitors to admire these ancient statues.
When lighting designer Jesper Kongshaug was tasked with designing lighting for the exhibition and revitalizing the statues, Stouenborg handled the technical installations and programming.
The lighting design was created with respect for the statues' original placement, focusing on reproducing the same shadows cast by the statues when they were outdoors. The building's sparse natural light has been combined with high-quality optics and energy-efficient light sources with excellent color rendering to highlight the statues' intricate details.
The lighting is programmed to follow the rhythm of the day, gradually increasing the artificial lighting as daylight diminishes. As the day turns to dusk, the shadows become more pronounced, creating a dramatic effect.
As the entire building is protected, special requirements were placed on the installation. For example, it was not possible to mount the light sources to the walls. Additionally, the system had to be theft-proof and capable of withstanding occasional flooding of the ground floor. To meet these challenges, Stouenborg drew on experience from projects at Kronborg Castle and Dover Castle in England.
You can also read more about the project we did at the Flugt museum.
