Arch, Geografisk Have, 2000

In connection with the Danish Ceramics Triennial in Kolding in the summer of 2000, I contributed to an exhibition in Geografisk Have, titled "Arches". The exhibition was dedicated to the ways in which ceramics can be used to shape the outdoor environment.

The arch is a universal building element that people throughout the ages have been occupied with and given a variety of expressions to.
In this connection the brick arch has its long history.

To me the possibilities of the brick arch - both in construction and content - is of great importance.

One of the things an arch does, is to emphasize the passage from one sphere to another, it creates a zone of awareness.
Geografisk Have has a lot of passages from one fine garden to the next.
It is a thrill to get lost in a maze or a forest of tall trees, to feel contained, and then to suddenly come upon the open land of the lawn with its open spacious views.
And conversely - from the open land to "dive" into the tall and dense growth, an adventure.

It is such a passage in the landscape that my arch illustrates.

The project has been sponsored by Konsul George Jorck and wife Emma Jorck's Fund og Grosserer L. F. Foghts Fund.
Master builder: Kjeld Beck Madsen, Gelsted.
Bricks sponsored by Petersen Tegl, Egernsund A/S. Mortar sponsored by Optiroc.
Photos: Ole Akhøj.