Henrik Bjørn Valeur (; born 13 October 1966) is a Danish architect-urbanist, founder and creative director of UiD (Denmark) and UiD Shanghai Co., Ltd (China), curator of ''CO-EVOLUTION: Danish/Chinese Collaboration on Sustainable Urban Development in China'', which was awarded the Golden Lion at the
Venice Biennale of Architecture
Venice Biennale of Architecture (in Italian
Mostra di Architettura di Venezia) is an international exhibition of architecture from nations around the world, held in Venice, Italy, every other year. It was held on even years until 2018, but 202 ...
in 2006, and author of the book
''India: the Urban Transition - a Case Study of Development Urbanism'' (2014), which is based on his experiences teaching, researching and practicing in India.
[Richa Sharma. ''Development Urbanism, Issues and possibilities: In Conversation with Henrik Valeur'', Tekton, Vol. 2, Issue 1, March 2015 (pp.94-109), ISSN 2349-6282.]
Early life
Henrik Valeur was born in
Denmark
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, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
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, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark
, establish ...
in 1966 to visual artist Mogens Valeur and fashion designer Birgitte Valeur. His grandfathers were both civil engineers.
[Niveditha Ravikumar]
''Interview: In Conversation with Architect and Urbanist Henrik Valeur''
Zingy Homes, Tete-A-Tete with Experts, October 26, 2015. Retrieved on October 27, 2015. He grew up in
Tibirke (
Tisvilde), a small village located to the north 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 ...
, and studied architecture with
Enric Miralles
Enric Miralles Moya (12 February 1955 – 3 July 2000) was a Spanish architect from Barcelona. He graduated from the Barcelona School of Architecture (ETSAB) at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC) in 1978. After establishing ...
at
Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura in
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
and at the
Royal Academy of Fine Arts, School of Architecture in Copenhagen, from where he graduated in 1994. He then worked briefly for
Rem Koolhaas’
Office for Metropolitan Architecture in
Rotterdam
Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"Ne ...
.
[''Arkitektur og procestænkning i Skovhuset'']
, Furesø Avis, November 20, 2007 (in Danish). Retrieved on September 18, 2015.
Career
Denmark, Sweden
In 1995 Henrik Valeur started out on his own making competition entries of which a few were awarded, including a proposal for a new entrance to
Copenhagen Zoo
Copenhagen Zoo ( da, København Zoo) is a zoological garden in Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1859, it is one of the oldest zoos in Europe and is a member of EAZA. It comprises and is located in the municipality of Frederiksberg, sandwiched betw ...
and for a new university on
Amager (U97), following which, in 1997, he founded UiD, a networking urban consultancy.
In 1999 he was invited to present his work at Arkitekturgalleriet, an exhibition venue for young architects at the
Danish Architecture Centre
Danish Architecture Center (Danish: Dansk Arkitektur Center), (DAC), is Denmark’s national center for the development and dissemination of knowledge about architecture, building and urban development.
DAC’s objective and legitimacy consist in ...
. He included in the exhibition, entitled ''‘99'' but sometimes wrongly referred to as ''UiD/Henrik Valeur'', not only his own work but the works of other architects, as well as material that is not commonly seen in architecture exhibitions. Architectural projects were not presented as unique, solitary pieces, but were mixed with commercials, news pieces, slogans and snap shots.
[Henrik Valeur (ed.). ''’99'', Architectural Publisher B, 1999, .] The Danish architecture critic
Allan de Waal
Allan may refer to:
People
* Allan (name), a given name and surname, including list of people and characters with this name
* Allan (footballer, born 1984) (Allan Barreto da Silva), Brazilian football striker
* Allan (footballer, born 1989) (Al ...
commented:
“These are radical attempts at a new architectural practice, but almost de-illuminated. At first sight the quotations out of context or the mischievous clippings on the walls critically turn their back on the subject of architecture, away from any architectural core. But it is there! Floating somewhere in between text fragments, photos ...
With Swedish architect and comedian
Fredrik Fritzson, he initiated CoMa in 2001 – a research project about the newly formed
Øresund Region
The Øresund Region ( da, Øresundsregionen ; sv, Öresundsregionen ), also known as Greater Copenhagen for marketing purposes, is a metropolitan region that comprises eastern Denmark and Skåne in southern Sweden. Centred around the Øresund ...
, centered on the cities 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 ...
and
Malmö
Malmö (, ; da, Malmø ) is the largest city in the Swedish county (län) of Scania (Skåne). It is the third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the sixth-largest city in the Nordic region, with a municipal pop ...
, hence the name CoMa, and the urban regions of
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
and
Pearl River Delta/
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...
. The project was based on a “diagnosis of society as a
multicultural
The term multiculturalism has a range of meanings within the contexts of sociology, political philosophy, and colloquial use. In sociology and in everyday usage, it is a synonym for " ethnic pluralism", with the two terms often used interchang ...
society.
is diagnosis becomes the frame for conceiving a new regional strategy that crosses the national borders of Denmark and
Sweden, using urbanism as an integrating force”.
CoMa was exhibited, in the format of a
multimedia
Multimedia is a form of communication that uses a combination of different content forms such as text, audio, images, animations, or video into a single interactive presentation, in contrast to tradit ...
installation, at Form/Design Center in Malmö in 2002 and at the
Danish Architecture Centre
Danish Architecture Center (Danish: Dansk Arkitektur Center), (DAC), is Denmark’s national center for the development and dissemination of knowledge about architecture, building and urban development.
DAC’s objective and legitimacy consist in ...
in Copenhagen in 2004. In addition, the team organized a conference about the Øresund Region and contributed a sound installation to an international group exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art in
Roskilde
Roskilde ( , ) is a city west of Copenhagen on the Danish island of Zealand. With a population of 51,916 (), the city is a business and educational centre for the region and the 10th largest city in Denmark. It is governed by the administrative ...
.
For the development of
Trekroner
Trekroner is a district in the north-eastern outskirts of Roskilde on the Danish island of Zealand.
The Trekroner district has been a major growth area of the city, expanding in the fields surrounding the campus of Roskilde University
Roskild ...
East in Roskilde (2002–03), Henrik Valeur organized a workshop with groups of young architects, artists and representatives of various interest groups, the municipality, local citizens and experts, who worked together to design the landscape of this new part of the city - prior to the design of the buildings, thus making it a practical example of
landscape urbanism
Landscape urbanism is a theory of urban design arguing that the city is constructed of interconnected and ecologically rich horizontal field conditions, rather than the arrangement of objects and buildings. Landscape Urbanism, like Infrastructural ...
and of a
participatory
Citizen Participation or Public Participation in social science refers to different mechanisms for the public to express opinions—and ideally exert influence—regarding political, economic, management or other social decisions. Participato ...
and
collaborative planning process.
[Birgitte Kleis. ''Trekroner Øst – en anderledes byudviklingsproces'', Arkitekten no. 30, 2002 (pp.12-13), ISSN 0004-198X (in Danish).]
During the early 2000s, Henrik Valeur and Fredrik Fritzon developed a series of planning tools intended to make planning processes flexible and inclusive.
[Pernille Stensgaard. ''Så er der opbrud!'', Byplan Nyt no. 3 2005 (pp.6-9), ISSN 1602-9038 (in Danish).] These tools, which include the 1:1 Sketch Model, the 4D+ Model and the Change Design Model, were demonstrated and discussed at a fair-like idea shop, which they organized for the ''6th European Biennal of Towns and Town Planning'' in Copenhagen in 2005.
[''Process Planning: Parallel Processing'', Arkitekten no. 7, 2005 (pp.24-25), ISSN 0004-198X (in Danish).] Several young Danish and Swedish architecture offices participated in the idea shop, which was entitled ''A New Future for Planning – Young Architects Show the Way!''
[Henrik Valeur (ed.). ''A New Future For Planning'', Architectural Publisher B, 2005, .]
Henrik Valeur and Fredrik Fritzson's ideas of planning were implemented in the development of
Musicon Musicon is a district of the city of Roskilde on the Danish island of Zealand. It is being developed south of Roskilde Station in an area of where a cement factory once stood.
Roskilde Municipality
Roskilde municipality ( da, Roskilde kommune) is ...
in Roskilde, for which they made the
structure plan and the process manual, based on a scenario game and
role play
''Role Play'' is an upcoming American thriller film directed by Thomas Vincent, written by Seth Owen, and produced by and starring Kaley Cuoco.
Premise
A married couple's lives are turned upside down when secrets are revealed about their pasts. ...
with local stakeholders.
[''Urbanism'']
UiD. Retrieved on November 26, 2015. Roskilde Municipality
Roskilde municipality ( da, Roskilde kommune) is a municipality in Region Sjælland, 30 km west of Copenhagen on the island of Zealand (''Sjælland'') in east Denmark.
The biggest city is Roskilde, the municipality covers an area of 212 ...
was awarded the
Danish Urban Planning Award The Danish Urban Planning Award (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 ...
in 2012 for the "exceptionally creative planning" of Musicon.
China
Henrik Valeur was appointed
curator
A curator (from la, cura, meaning "to take care") is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the parti ...
of the Danish Pavilion at the
Venice Biennale of Architecture
Venice Biennale of Architecture (in Italian
Mostra di Architettura di Venezia) is an international exhibition of architecture from nations around the world, held in Venice, Italy, every other year. It was held on even years until 2018, but 202 ...
in 2006. He traveled to
China where he met with universities and city administrations in several of the biggest Chinese cities.
[Bert de Muynck]
''An interview with Henrik Valeur''
Domus China, no. 4, 2007, ISSN 0012-5377. Retrieved on September 16, 2015. Based on the conversations he had with people there he conceived the project ''CO-EVOLUTION - Danish/Chinese Collaboration on Sustainable Urban Development in China'' in which young professional Danish architects and architecture students would work together with professors and students from leading Chinese universities in the cities of
Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
,
Chongqing,
Shanghai
Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flowin ...
and
Xi’an
Xi'an ( , ; ; Chinese: ), frequently spelled as Xian and also known by other names, is the capital of Shaanxi Province. A sub-provincial city on the Guanzhong Plain, the city is the third most populous city in Western China, after Chongqin ...
. The curator and his team wrapped the exterior of the Danish Pavilion in a green scaffolding, often seen on Chinese construction sites, and conducted a research project on problems and possibilities related to the processes of rapid
urbanization in China
Urbanization in China increased in speed following the initiation of the reform and opening policy. As of 2022, China had an urbanization rate of 64.7% and was expected to reach 75-80% by 2035.
By 2010, the OECD, based on Functional Urban Area ( ...
, which constituted the background story of the exhibition, literally in the format of billboards mounted on the interior walls of the pavilion, with the project proposals developed by the four teams placed as free-standing installations in space. ''CO-EVOLUTION'' was awarded the Golden Lion for Best National Participation
[''The 10th International Architecture Exhibition'']
la Biennale di Venezia. Retrieved on September 16, 2015. by the jury of the 10th International Architecture Exhibition,
Richard Sennett
Richard Sennett (born 1 January 1943) is the Centennial Professor of Sociology at the London School of Economics and former University Professor of the Humanities at New York University. He is currently a Senior Fellow of the Center on Capitalis ...
(President),
Amyn Aga Khan
Prince Amyn Muhammad Aga Khan ( fa, امین محمد آغا خان , ur, ; born 12 September 1937) is the younger brother of Aga Khan IV, Imam of the Nizari Isma'ili sect of Shia Islam. He is the son of Prince Aly Khan and Princess Tajuddaw ...
,
Antony Gormley and
Zaha Hadid
Dame Zaha Mohammad Hadid ( ar, زها حديد ''Zahā Ḥadīd''; 31 October 1950 – 31 March 2016) was an Iraqi-British architect, artist and designer, recognised as a major figure in architecture of the late 20th and early 21st centu ...
, who said:
"We salute the creativity, intelligence, and generosity of the Danish pavilion".
Henrik Valeur was himself a member of the jury for the 7th
International Architecture Biennale of São Paulo,
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
, in 2007. That year he also founded UiD Shanghai Co., Ltd in China
and was the co-curator, with Professor Pan Haixiao of
Tongji University
Tongji University () is a comprehensive public research university located in Shanghai. Established in 1907 by the German government together with German physicians in Shanghai, Tongji is one of the longest-standing, most selective, and most pr ...
, of the exhibition ''Harmonious City'', which included examples of Danish experiences with sustainable urban development
[Wang Yanlin]
''Global wisdom can craft solutions to urban woes''
Shanghai Daily
''Shanghai Daily'' (Chinese: 上海日报, Pinyin: Shànghǎi Rìbào) is an English-language newspaper founded in 1999 and owned by the Shanghai United Media Group, a state media company under the Shanghai committee of the Chinese Communist Party. ...
, September 26, 2007. Retrieved on September 16, 2015. and projects by students from Tongji University and was exhibited at
Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center
The Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center () is located on People's Square, Shanghai, adjacent to the municipal government building.
The Exhibition Center is a six-story building, with two basement levels, which displays Shanghai's urban plan ...
.
Among the projects Henrik Valeur created while living in China was the ''Bicycle Tower'', a design for vertical bicycle parking developed jointly by UiD in Shanghai and Malmö, and exhibited by the
City of Malmö as part of the Urban Best Practice Area at the
2010 World Expo in Shanghai.
India
![Henrik Valeur with Chief Architect of Chandigarh](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9a/Henrik_Valeur_with_Chief_Architect_of_Chandigarh.JPG)
In 2010 Henrik Valeur gave the ''
Le Corbusier Memorial Lecture'' in
Chandigarh
Chandigarh () is a planned city in India. Chandigarh is bordered by the state of Punjab to the west and the south, and by the state of Haryana to the east. It constitutes the bulk of the Chandigarh Capital Region or Greater Chandigarh, which a ...
, in which he noted that:
“The problem with modernist architecture
Modern architecture, or modernist architecture, was an architectural movement or architectural style based upon new and innovative technologies of construction, particularly the use of glass, steel, and reinforced concrete; the idea that form ...
is not only that it tries to erase the past; it also obstructs the future!”
In the following years he worked with Indian students and researchers, activists and bureaucrats, developers and entrepreneurs, and participated in public discussions about the urban transition of India. His book
''India: the Urban Transition - a Case Study of Development Urbanism'', which is based on his teaching, researching and practicing, primarily in Chandigargh in
North India
North India is a loosely defined region consisting of the northern part of India. The dominant geographical features of North India are the Indo-Gangetic Plain and the Himalayas, which demarcate the region from the Tibetan Plateau and Central ...
and
Bangalore
Bangalore (), List of renamed places in India, officially Bengaluru (), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan area, metropolitan population of a ...
in
South India
South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union territ ...
, was published in 2014. "The book contextualises city making as a complex highly political process and contends that it is the Indian city that can truly be the landscape on which the idea of India, with its diversity, flourishes".
[Mukta Naik]
''Book Review - India: The Urban Transition- A case study of Development Urbanism''
, Urban India Vol. 34, Issue 1, January–June 2014 (pp.235-239), ISSN 0970-9045. Retrieved on September 18, 2015.
The Indian architect
Rahul Mehrotra
Rahul Mehrotra is Founder Principal of architecture firm RMA Architects (founded in 1990 as Rahul Mehrotra Associates) of Mumbai + Boston, and is Professor of Urban Design and Planning and Chair of the Department of Urban Planning and Design a ...
, Professor and then Chair of Urban Planning and Design at
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...
, called the book “an important contribution” because of its “fine grain reading of issues in the Indian city” and its “attempt to connect so many dots to make sense of the moving targets we encounter in Urbanism in India".
One of the projects featured in the book is a proposal to make one of the sectors of Chandigarh
car-free. Though initially commissioned by the Chief Architect of Chandigarh for the new master plan of the city, the proposal was not realized despite the fact that the
Punjab and Haryana High Court
Punjab and Haryana High Court is the common High Court for the Indian states of Punjab and Haryana and the Union Territory of Chandigarh based in Chandigarh, India. Sanctioned strength of Judges of this High Court is 85 consisting of 64 ...
subsequently directed the City Administration to make one of its sectors car-free.
A project for the businessman and environmentalist
Kamal Meattle uses
natural ventilation
Passive ventilation is the process of supplying air to and removing air from an indoor space without using mechanical systems. It refers to the flow of external air to an indoor space as a result of pressure differences arising from natural forces ...
and “growing fresh air” with plants in a vertical greenhouse to improve indoor air quality in an office building.
[Preeti Chopra]
''Review of Valeur, Henrik, India: The Urban Transition - A Case Study of Development''
H-Asia, H-Net
__NOTOC__
H-Net ("Humanities & Social Sciences Online") is an interdisciplinary forum for scholars in the humanities and social sciences. It is best known for hosting electronic mailing lists organized by academic disciplines; according to the o ...
Reviews, December, 2015. Retrieved on February 10, 2016
Other projects include a proposal for ''vertical kitchen gardens'' in a colony of rehabilitated
slum dwellers in Chandigarh, developed in collaboration with a local NGO, and a proposal for
self-built low-cost ''garden flats'' for current slum dwellers in Bangalore, developed with a local developer.
[Henrik Valeur. '' India: the Urban Transition - a Case Study of Development Urbanism'', Architectural Publisher B, 2014, .] In Chandigarh the lack of open space in the colony led to the idea of placing community kitchen gardens on top of each other.
In Bangalore residents would be provided an open frame structure to be filled out by themselves according to individual preferences and possibilities. The reasoning for both projects, i.e. to provide poor people in urban settings with opportunities to produce their own food and to create their own dwellings respectively, owes a debt to the Indian economist
Amartya Sen
Amartya Kumar Sen (; born 3 November 1933) is an Indian economist and philosopher, who since 1972 has taught and worked in the United Kingdom and the United States. Sen has made contributions to welfare economics, social choice theory, econom ...
’s
capability approach
The capability approach (also referred to as the capabilities approach) is a normative approach to human welfare that concentrates on the actual capability of persons to achieve lives they value rather than solely having a right or freedom to d ...
.
With experiences from both China and India, Henrik Valeur asks whether India can “use urbanization as a driver of economic, human and social development like China has done?”
Concerns
Natural environment
![Fredens Havn - panoramio](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f6/Fredens_Havn_-_panoramio.jpg)
According to Henrik Valeur, city and nature should be mixed.
In a feature article in
Politiken
''Politiken'' is a leading Danish daily broadsheet newspaper, published by JP/Politikens Hus in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was founded in 1884 and played a role in the formation of the Danish Social Liberal Party. Since 1970 it has been indepe ...
(2009) he argued that in response to
climate change
In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to ...
, i.e.
extreme weather
Extreme weather or extreme climate events includes unexpected, unusual, severe, or unseasonal weather; weather at the extremes of the historical distribution—the range that has been seen in the past. Often, extreme events are based on a loca ...
,
sea level rise
Globally, sea levels are rising due to human-caused climate change. Between 1901 and 2018, the globally averaged sea level rose by , or 1–2 mm per year on average.IPCC, 2019Summary for Policymakers InIPCC Special Report on the Ocean and Cry ...
and
stormwater etc., ecology and urbanity must be integrated. But rather than moving the city out into the countryside, as
Ebenezer Howard
Sir Ebenezer Howard (29 January 1850 – 1 May 1928) was an English urban planner and founder of the garden city movement, known for his publication ''To-Morrow: A Peaceful Path to Real Reform'' (1898), the description of a utopian city in whic ...
had proposed with his
garden city concept more than a hundred years earlier, Henrik Valeur suggested that nature be incorporated in the city both physically, for instance in the form of soil and vegetation that can absorb excess water, and conceptually, in the way we think about cities. Ten years later, in another feature article in Politiken, he used Fredens Havn (Harbour of Peace), a spontaneously evolved and self-organized floating settlement in the central parts of Copenhagen, as an example of climate adapted living in the city.
The book ''
India: the Urban Transition'' (2014) provides a number of proposals, including the revitalization and integration of an existing system of water canals with a new network of pathways for pedestrians in the city of Bangalore,
the replacement of asphalt with natural surfaces, so-called ''green streets'', in the city of Chandigarh and the use of plants and natural ventilation to create fresh air inside an office building,
in which the plants are also used as movable space dividers with the interior planning being based on principles of
self-organization
Self-organization, also called spontaneous order in the social sciences, is a process where some form of overall order arises from local interactions between parts of an initially disordered system. The process can be spontaneous when suff ...
.
Smart city
While in favor of urban development, as a means of creating development in the so-called "
developing" world, Henrik Valeur has voiced concern about the concept of
smart city
A smart city is a technologically modern urban area that uses different types of electronic methods and sensors to collect specific data. Information gained from that data is used to manage assets, resources and services efficiently; in retur ...
floated by Prime Minister
Narendra Modi
Narendra Damodardas Modi (; born 17 September 1950) is an Indian politician serving as the 14th and current Prime Minister of India since 2014. Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014 and is the Member of Parliament fro ...
in India. According to Henrik Valeur the "concerns related to the concept of smart city have to do with the issues of control and surveillance, the risk of corruption, misuse and mismanagement, and the prospect of smart cities becoming exclusive enclaves for the rich".
Concepts
Parallel processing
In response to the tradition of central control and the associated principle of
determinism in Scandinavian planning, Henrik Valeur, in collaboration with Fredrik Fritzson, developed the concept of ''parallel processing'' in
urban planning
Urban planning, also known as town planning, city planning, regional planning, or rural planning, is a technical and political process that is focused on the development and design of land use and the built environment, including air, water, ...
,
which was discussed at the ''6th European Biennal of Towns and Town Planning'' in 2005
and implemented in the development of
Musicon Musicon is a district of the city of Roskilde on the Danish island of Zealand. It is being developed south of Roskilde Station in an area of where a cement factory once stood.
Roskilde Municipality
Roskilde municipality ( da, Roskilde kommune) is ...
in 2007.
“The objective of parallel processing is not only to
democratize
Democratization, or democratisation, is the transition to a more democratic Regime, political regime, including substantive political changes moving in a democratic direction. It may be a hybrid regime in transition from an Authoritarianism, auth ...
the planning process, but also to let mutual understanding and inspiration generate results, which are more than the sum of the individual interests.” This should be achieved by “establishing planning processes that engage all of the parties involved throughout the entire sequence”.
Rather than involving the various actors and stakeholders one after the other at various stages of the process (a serial process) they should all be involved from the very beginning and be able to interact with each other and with the relevant authorities throughout the process (open-ended planning processes were proposed).
To this end, and in order to promote flexibility and experimentation, new planning methods and instruments, such as the 1:1 sketch model, the 4D+ model, the Change Design Model, role plays and scenario games, were introduced along with the use of new
information and communications technologies
Information and communications technology (ICT) is an extensional term for information technology (IT) that stresses the role of unified communications and the integration of telecommunications (telephone lines and wireless signals) and computers, ...
.
Co-evolution
In biology, “the term
co-evolution
In biology, coevolution occurs when two or more species reciprocally affect each other's evolution through the process of natural selection. The term sometimes is used for two traits in the same species affecting each other's evolution, as well ...
is used to describe cases where two (or more) species reciprocally affect each other's evolution”.
Henrik Valeur introduced the concept of co-evolution in architecture in 2006 as curator of the project ''CO-EVOLUTION: Danish/Chinese Collaboration on Sustainable Urban Development in China'' for which he asked four young architecture offices from Denmark to work together with planners and researchers from four Chinese universities to answer the question: "How can China proceed with its ambitious project to improve living conditions for its population without exhausting the very resources needed to sustain a better life?"
By creating a framework for collaboration between academics and professionals representing two distinct cultures, it was hoped that the exchange of knowledge, ideas and experiences would stimulate “creativity and imagination to set the spark for new visions for sustainable urban development".
[Henrik Valeur (ed.). ''CO-EVOLUTION: Danish/Chinese Collaboration on Sustainable Urban Development in China'', ]Danish Architecture Centre
Danish Architecture Center (Danish: Dansk Arkitektur Center), (DAC), is Denmark’s national center for the development and dissemination of knowledge about architecture, building and urban development.
DAC’s objective and legitimacy consist in ...
, 2006, .
Henrik Valeur later argued that: "As we become more and more interconnected and interdependent,
human development Human development may refer to:
* Development of the human body
* Developmental psychology
* Human development (economics)
* Human Development Index, an index used to rank countries by level of human development
* Human evolution
Human evoluti ...
is no longer a matter of the evolution of individual groups of people but rather a matter of the co-evolution of all people".
Development urbanism
In 2010, Henrik Valeur wrote an op-ed in the Danish newspaper
Information
Information is an abstract concept that refers to that which has the power to inform. At the most fundamental level information pertains to the interpretation of that which may be sensed. Any natural process that is not completely random ...
. In the English translation of the article the term “development urbanism” appears for the first time.
In the book
''India: the Urban Transition - a Case Study of Development Urbanism'', which can be seen as a "call for action to everyone who wants to make a positive and concrete difference to the urban environments of developing societies",
Henrik Valeur describes development urbanism as “a multidisciplinary field that is focused on sustainable urban development as a means of combating
poverty and its related illnesses and of protecting the
environment
Environment most often refers to:
__NOTOC__
* Natural environment, all living and non-living things occurring naturally
* Biophysical environment, the physical and biological factors along with their chemical interactions that affect an organism or ...
, the
climate
Climate is the long-term weather pattern in an area, typically averaged over 30 years. More rigorously, it is the mean and variability of meteorological variables over a time spanning from months to millions of years. Some of the meteorologi ...
and the
resources
Resource refers to all the materials available in our environment which are technologically accessible, economically feasible and culturally sustainable and help us to satisfy our needs and wants. Resources can broadly be classified upon their av ...
. It addresses basic human concerns in urban settings, seeing cities not as “dumb”
machines but rather as sophisticated
ecologies in which people are adapting to a constantly changing environment”.
The concept of development urbanism can be seen as an alternative to the concept of
smart city
A smart city is a technologically modern urban area that uses different types of electronic methods and sensors to collect specific data. Information gained from that data is used to manage assets, resources and services efficiently; in retur ...
. Said Henrik Valeur: “There are obviously too many unresolved problems in our cities today, but my point is that many of these problems can be solved by very simple and inexpensive means. Smart technologies are rarely necessary and may, in fact, create more problems than they solve”.
Selected works
Books
''An-other City'' Architectural Publisher B, 2023, (author)
''The floating community'' Architectural Publisher B, 2021, (author)
''India: the Urban Transition'' Architectural Publisher B, 2014, (author)
''CO-EVOLUTION'' Danish Architecture Centre, 2006, (editor)
''A NEW FUTURE FOR PLANNING'' Architectural Publisher B, 2005, (editor)
99'' Architectural Publisher B, 1999, (editor)
Exhibitions
* ''The Harmonious City'',
Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center
The Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center () is located on People's Square, Shanghai, adjacent to the municipal government building.
The Exhibition Center is a six-story building, with two basement levels, which displays Shanghai's urban plan ...
, China, 2007 (co-curator)
*
CO-EVOLUTION',
Venice Biennale of Architecture
Venice Biennale of Architecture (in Italian
Mostra di Architettura di Venezia) is an international exhibition of architecture from nations around the world, held in Venice, Italy, every other year. It was held on even years until 2018, but 202 ...
, Italy, 2006; 2nd China International Architectural Biennial in Beijing, China, 2006: Xi’an International Conference of Architecture and Technology, China, 2006;
Tongji University
Tongji University () is a comprehensive public research university located in Shanghai. Established in 1907 by the German government together with German physicians in Shanghai, Tongji is one of the longest-standing, most selective, and most pr ...
, China, 2006;
Danish Architecture Centre
Danish Architecture Center (Danish: Dansk Arkitektur Center), (DAC), is Denmark’s national center for the development and dissemination of knowledge about architecture, building and urban development.
DAC’s objective and legitimacy consist in ...
, Denmark, 2006-2007;
AROS Aros may refer to:
*Aros (Middle-earth), a river in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium
* Aros, Mull, the location of Aros Castle, a ruined 13th-century castle on the Isle of Mull, Scotland
*AROS Research Operating System, a free software i ...
, Denmark, 2007;
North Jytland Art Museum, Denmark, 2007;
International Architecture Biennale of São Paulo, Brazil, 2007;
Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center
The Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center () is located on People's Square, Shanghai, adjacent to the municipal government building.
The Exhibition Center is a six-story building, with two basement levels, which displays Shanghai's urban plan ...
, China, 2007;
Cube Gallery
The CUBE (Centre for the Urban Built Environment) Gallery on Portland Street, in Manchester city centre, England, was a gallery for architecture and the built environment. It hosted regular exhibitions featuring mostly photography and architectur ...
, UK, 2008;
American Institute of Architects
The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to su ...
New York Center for Architecture, USA, 2008;
London Festival of Architecture
The London Festival of Architecture is a festival specialized in architecture. It takes place annually in London, United Kingdom usually through the month of June. It features an extensive range of activities that focus on design and architectur ...
, UK, 2008 (curator)
* ''A New Future for Planning'', the 6th European Biennal of Towns and Town Planning, Denmark, 2005 (co-curator)
* ''Check-in Öresund'', the
Danish Architecture Centre
Danish Architecture Center (Danish: Dansk Arkitektur Center), (DAC), is Denmark’s national center for the development and dissemination of knowledge about architecture, building and urban development.
DAC’s objective and legitimacy consist in ...
, Denmark, 2004 (co-curator)
* 99'', Arkitekturgalleriet, the
Danish Architecture Centre
Danish Architecture Center (Danish: Dansk Arkitektur Center), (DAC), is Denmark’s national center for the development and dissemination of knowledge about architecture, building and urban development.
DAC’s objective and legitimacy consist in ...
, 1999 (curator)
Projects
* ''Low cost garden flats'', development project, 2013 (principal architect)
* ''Self-organizing office space: green spaces'', interior planning project, 2011 (principal architect)
* ''Vertical kitchen gardens'', development project, 2010-13 (principal architect)
* ''Car-free Sector 19'', master plan project, 2010-13 (principal architect)
''Bicycle Tower'' design project, 2008 (principal architect)
* ''
Musicon Musicon is a district of the city of Roskilde on the Danish island of Zealand. It is being developed south of Roskilde Station in an area of where a cement factory once stood.
Roskilde Municipality
Roskilde municipality ( da, Roskilde kommune) is ...
'', urban development project, 2007 (lead planning consultant)
* ''CO-EVOLUTION: the Collaboration'', documentary film, 2006 (producer)
* ''Tensta collective house'', competition entry, 2005 (principal architect)
* ''Parallel processing'', urban planning methodology, 2005 (principal architect)
* ''Real-time-living'', conceptual project, 2004 (principal architect)
* ''Garden flats'', development project, 2003-04 (principal architect)
* ''
Trekroner
Trekroner is a district in the north-eastern outskirts of Roskilde on the Danish island of Zealand.
The Trekroner district has been a major growth area of the city, expanding in the fields surrounding the campus of Roskilde University
Roskild ...
East'', urban planning project, 2002-03 (lead planning consultant)
* ''4D+ model'', planning tool, 2002-03 (principal architect)
* ''Flex-bo'', competition entry, 1998 (principal architect)
* ''U97'', competition entry, 1996-97 (principal architect)
* ''ZOO'', competition entry, 1995 (principal architect)
Awards
* The Golden Lion at the 10th International Architecture Exhibition in Venice, 2006 (curator).
* The
Nykredit Encouragement Prize, 2004.
Press release
, Nykredit
Dating back to 1851, Nykredit ( en, New Credit) is one of Denmark's leading financial services companies with activities ranging from mortgage, retail and investment banking to insurance, leasing and fixed income trading and asset management.
T ...
, April 25, 2004 (in Danish). Retrieved on September 16, 2015.
Notes
i. Participating architects: Alex Wall, Christophe Cornubert, MIKAN, njiric+njiric, West 8
West 8 is an urban planning and landscape architecture firm founded by Adriaan Geuze and Paul van Beek in Rotterdam, Netherlands in 1987. It is known for its contemporary designs and innovative solutions to urban planning problems using lighting, ...
and UiD.
ii. Participating architecture offices: Copenhagenoffice, Kollision, Plan B, Plot and UiD.
iii. Participating artists: Jonas Maria Schül, Ane Mette Ruge, Kerstin Bergendal, Katja Sander and Åsa Sonjasdotter.
iv. Participating architecture offices: Blankspace, Copenhagenoffice, Effekt, Force4, Mutopia, Nord, Testbedstudio and UiD.
v. Participating architecture offices: Cebra, Cobe, Effekt and Transform.
vi. Participating universities: Chongqing University
Chongqing University (CQU; , colloquially abbreviated as ChóngDà) is a public research university located in Chongqing, China. It is a National Key University directly funded by the central government of China as part of the Double First Class ...
, Tongji University
Tongji University () is a comprehensive public research university located in Shanghai. Established in 1907 by the German government together with German physicians in Shanghai, Tongji is one of the longest-standing, most selective, and most pr ...
, Tsinghua University
Tsinghua University (; abbr. THU) is a national public research university in Beijing, China. The university is funded by the Ministry of Education.
The university is a member of the C9 League, Double First Class University Plan, Projec ...
and Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology
Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology (XUAT) is a joint venture between the People's Government of Shaanxi Province, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development of the People's Republic of China and the Ministry of Education. "It ...
.
vii. Team members: Uwe Wütherich, Zhang Meng, Annelie Håkansson, Christoffer Pilgaard, Haydar Al-Khatib, Karin Lindgren, Lea Bolvig and Ma Liang.
viii. Collaborating institutions: Chandigarh College of Architecture
The Chandigarh College of Architecture (CCA) is a college imparting education and research in the field of architecture. It covers the north-western region of India including the states of Punjab, Haryana, and Himachal Pradesh as well as the Un ...
, Eco & Agro Resource Management, Indian Institute of Human Settlement, Indian Institute of Science
The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) is a public, deemed, research university for higher education and research in science, engineering, design, and management. It is located in Bengaluru, in the Indian state of Karnataka. The institute was ...
(Center for Infrastructure, Sustainable Transportation and Urban Planning), Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee (Department of Architecture and Planning), Itinerant Permaculture and Shristi Space™.
References
External links
* Henrik Valeur'
website
* Henrik Valeur'
blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Valeur, Henrik
21st-century Danish architects
Danish architects
Danish urban planners
Urban theorists
Danish curators
Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts alumni
1966 births
Living people
People from Gribskov Municipality