The (Royal) Institute for the Blind (

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

: Blindeinstituttet) is a listed,

Historicist Historicism is an approach to explaining the existence of phenomena, especially social and cultural practices (including ideas and beliefs), by studying their history, that is, by studying the process by which they came about. The term is widely u ...

building on Kastelsvej in the

Østerbro Østerbro () (literally, "Eastern Bridge") is one of the 10 official districts of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is located just north of the city centre, outside the old city gate Østerport which, after it was moved around 1700, used to be located clo ...

district of

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

. Built in two stages in 1858 and 1880 to a design by

Ferdinand Meldahl Ferdinand Meldahl (16 March 1827 – 3 February 1908) was a Danish architect best known for the reconstruction of Frederiksborg Castle after the fire in 1859. Meldahl was one of the leading proponents of historicism in Denmark. Biography He was ...

, it was the first

special school Special education (known as special-needs education, aided education, exceptional education, alternative provision, exceptional student education, special ed., SDC, or SPED) is the practice of educating students in a way that accommodates th ...

for blind students in

and was listed in 1977. The institution relocated to new premises in

Hellerup Hellerup () is a very affluent district of Gentofte Municipality in the suburbs of Copenhagen, Denmark. The most urban part of the district is centred on Strandvejen and is bordered by Østerbro to the south and the Øresund to the east. It compri ...

in the 1960s and is now known as the Danish Institute for the Blind and Partially Sighted . The Østerbro building is now home to

Copenhagen Municipality Copenhagen Municipality ( da, Københavns Kommune), also known in English as the Municipality of Copenhagen, located in the Capital Region of Denmark, is the largest of the four municipalities that constitute the City of Copenhagen (), the other ...

's Children's Centre.

History

The first Institute for the Blind was established by the Order of the Chain (Danish: Kjædeordenen)) on 10 June 1811 on Kastelsvej in Østerbro in 1857-58: Known as the Royal Institute for the Blind, it was ceded to the Danish State when it was completed. The building was one of the first civilian brick buildings to be constructed outside Copenhagen's old East Rampart when the city's fortifications were decommissioned in the 1850s. It was built next to the Institute for the Deaf which had already been completed on the

glacis A glacis (; ) in military engineering is an artificial slope as part of a medieval castle or in bastion fort, early modern fortresses. They may be constructed of earth as a temporary structure or of stone in more permanent structure. More genera ...

in front of Kastellet in 1838. The Institute for the Deaf had been built as an arrowhead-shaped revelin which could easily be converted into a defensive structure in the event of a hostile attack.

was charged with the design of the building. Construction began in 1957 and was completed in 1858. The three-winged complex had room for 60 students, 30 boys and 30 girls, each housed in their lateral wing. The main wing contained various workshops and activity rooms. The institution opened in 1858 with 25 students and with J. Moldenhawer as its first principal. The building was expanded with a new rear wing in 1880. Rooms for 40 new students were created in the main wing while most of the workshops and activity rooms were moved to the new wing. A new institution was built in the 1960s in

Ryvangen Ryvangen or Ryvangskvarteret (English language, English: The Ryvang neighbourhood) is a neighbourhood of single-family detached homes in the northern part of Østerbro, on the border with Hellerup, in Copenhagen, Denmark. History The name Ryvangen ...

neighbourhood. The foundation stone was set on 25 May 1966.

Architecture

The building is designed in a

style which combines influence from Venetian Renaissance architecture such as

San Zaccaria The Church of San Zaccaria is a 15th-century former monastic church in central Venice, Italy. It is a large edifice, located in the Campo San Zaccaria, just off the waterfront to the southeast of Piazza San Marco and St Mark's Basilica. It is de ...

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

with inspiration from Danish buildings such as

Hesselagergård Hesselagergård (or Hesselager Manor), located near Gudme in the southeast of the Danish island Funen, is the oldest Renaissance building in Denmark. It was built by Johan Friis, one of the most powerful men in Denmark during the reigns of Christia ...

. The four-winged complex is built in red brick and has a grey tile roof. The two-storey main wing faces Kastelsvej to the northeast. The younger southwest-facing rear wing is attached to the two lateral wings by a couple of low, narrow connectors. The front and rear wings feature median ricilits, the front wing on both sides, all three of which are tipped by rounded pediments. The main entrance is located in the central axis of the main wing and is surrounded by a low portal with columns and

lesene A lesene, also called a pilaster strip, is an architectural term for a narrow, low-relief vertical pillar on a wall. It resembles a pilaster, but does not have a base or capital. It is typical in Lombardic and Rijnlandish architectural building s ...

s. The portal is flanked by two zinc statues by Peter Daniel depicting a blind boys and a blind girl.

References

External links

Renderings
for the extension of the Building in the

Danish National Art Library The Danish National Art Library is the national research library for architecture, art history, visual arts and museology in Denmark. It was founded in 1754 as part of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and has been located at Charlottenborg' ...

{{Østerbro Schools in Copenhagen Historicist architecture in Copenhagen 1858 establishments in Denmark Zinc sculptures in Denmark

History

Architecture

See also

References

External links