Luke Cowen

PLACE AND PLACELESSNESS

Luke Cowen
Tutor: Charlie Sutherland

Thesis question: How can Refshaleoen’s distinct identities and sense of place be strengthened in the face of
rapid modernisation?

The thesis demonstrates, in its tectonic and programmatic design, how Refshaleoen can develop in
continuity with its past. Preservation of identity without modernisation falls into nostalgia, with architecture possessing the
capacity of preservation through expression, and modernisation through function.
The architectonic language demonstrates a material and formal grammar generated from the shipbuilding
industry, while the programme strengthens the creative and cultural presence, capturing the story of
the island through the foundry, artists’ residency, and hall of memory.

Through the collaboration of the past and present, a future can be constructed in continuity with its past, retaining a distinct sense of place.