mike taylor + nicole la hausse de lalouviere
opposite: chores by and parties at night above: Dominque Perrault and Aldo Rossi’s competition entries for allottment houses
This supply provides nearly seven gardens per 100 eligible flats (those with no private garden). Due to the continued appeal of allotments, demand for them has continued to grow. As a result, the Danish Government has conceded to pressure from the Allotment Garden Federation to raise the ratio to ten gardens per 100 flats. In addition to ensuring accessibility, the Allotment Garden Federation also serves as a moderator for land valuation in order to maintain standards for the acquisition of these gardens. An allotment plot costs 5,000 DKK (1,000 CAD) per annum in rental fees and the houses can cost between 10,000 and 100,000 DKK (2,000-20,000 CAD). These price ceilings have ensured that allotments continue to serve as a middle class retreat. A demographic of rural enthusiasts and kitsch collectors has been maintained by this highly controlled system. Very recently, however, a new, younger subculture of allotment owners has developed, positioning the allotment garden on the cutting edge of hipster-youth culture. Allotments have become an attractive destination for young singles seeking community, hospitality, and engagement between neighbours. In small groups of three or four, friends will acquire an allotment to partake in the garden lifestyle, sharing groceries and supplies with their neighbours, a routine not possible in the city. Although many may also have access to family cottages, allotment gardens serve a purpose beyond whatever summer houses provide. Life at the gardens is experienced as more down- to-earth, anti-capitalist and communal. This exploration of a rural lifestyle is a reaction to the highly commercial urban condition that has developed over the last 20 years. During the 1990s, Denmark made a radical shift into a knowledge-based economy. Copenhagen, a relatively provincial city with an economy rooted in shipping, manufacturing and industry quickly became one of the strongest business centres of
the Scandinavian-Baltic region. With economic growth, however, has come dislocation of community, triggering activism against the status quo in Denmark. The significance of the Danish allotment house was acknowledged in 1996 with an international architectural competition, Kolonihaven: The International Challenge , part of the Copenhagen Cultural Capital Programme. It called on world- renowned architects to reconceptualise the Danish allotment house. Several of the built entries are now located at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in Humlebæk. This competition celebrated the allotment house as a legitimate type in Danish architecture. The allotment house’s ability to serve Danish society’s evolving needs makes it not only a typology but also a vital cultural artefact. The house as it exists within the lots, hedges and paths of the allotment has consistently epitomised traditional Danish ideals. Since their establishment, allotment gardens have served as a catalyst for the creation of community. Initially, they united farmers who provided food for the city in times of crisis. Later, they were adopted by the middle class as an affordable alternative to beach houses. Most recently, allotment gardens have served the agenda of a dissatisfied youth within a prospering economy. Gardens like Vennelyst seem to have been created with great prescience. The loose, malleable framework of these spaces and the flexibility inherent in their built structures have enabled different segments of Danish society to fulfill the hopeful naming of Vennelyst as ‘friend’s delight’. –
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