Due to Kronborg Castle`s UNESCO World Heritage status, the Danish Maritime Museum, formerly housed within the castle`s walls, was evicted in order to restore the castle`s original interiors. It was decided that the museum would be relocated in an adjacent dry dock next to the castle. Contrary to its name, the dry dock was full of water, so it needed to be redesigned to accommodate the new museum. We proposed to place the museum wrapped around the existing dry dock like a doughnut, where the hole was the dry dock itself and the centerpiece of the museum`s collection. A series of three two-level bridges span the dry dock, serving as short-cuts to different sections of the museum. A sloping zigzag bridge spanning the entire dry dock navigates visitors to the main entrance. This bridge creates a dynamic tension between old and new as visitors descend into the museum space overlooking the majestic surroundings above and below ground, while Denmark`s maritime history unfolds in a continuous motion. All floors –connecting exhibition spaces with the auditorium, classroom, offices, café and the dock floor within the museum—slope gently, so that a visitor continually descends further below the water`s edge to immerse themselves in Danish maritime lore.
