Comwell Copenhagen Portside: The best of Denmark

THE BEST OF DENMARK

The book is printed on PEFC-certified paper with a sustainable matte lamination cover finish.

THE BUCKLES ARE MADE OF BRASS, THE STRAPS OF LEATHER Two of architect Børge Mogensen’s favourite materials, which are also represented in the master’s design classic – the Spanish Chair from 1958 – with a back and seat crafted from vegetable-tanned saddle leather and fastened with brass buckles. See the chair in our lobby.

Take a seat and enjoy the experience!

The best of Denmark. An ambition that was music to our ears from the first time we heard the architect and interior designer’s plans for our hotel. And it is with pride that we can now welcome you to a chic international vibe that pulsates with Nordic coolness. Classic, elegant and timeless.

Outside and inside, the architect and interior designer have drawn their inspiration from the surroundings and the area’s history as a bustling free port. The muted palette of earth tones poses a delicate contrast to the water just outside and matches beautifully with the selection of stylish Danish design classics that you will find everywhere on the hotel’s five floors.

Our white facade now makes us part of The White City – a tradition created by one of the grand masters, architect Jørn Utzon, when he designed the white Paustian House in 1987. Experience this masterpiece, which is just a few metres’ walk from the hotel on Kalkbrænderiløbskaj.

“YOU SHOULD NOT BE IN DOUBT THAT YOU HAVE COME TO A COUNTRY THAT EXCELS IN DESIGN, FASHION AND MATERIALS.” Mette Faarup Jørgensen, interior & industrial designer, AM PM

Experience Comwell Copenhagen Portside and our 25,145 m2 of space distributed across 445 rooms, 5 floors, 17 meeting and conference rooms, 1200 m2 of raw event space, restaurant, bar, café, and urban gardens. And lovingly and elegantly decorated with iconic pieces designed by Mogensen, Wegner, Klint and Risom.

Welcome!

ABOUT THE INSPIRATION

FROM STARBOARD AND PORT SIDE TO DRAFTING TABLE Denmark is a proud, old maritime nation, and Copenhagen was originally a lively trade centre crowded with inbound and outbound merchant ships, all loading and unloading cargo with huge cranes at the many warehouses along the quay and wharf. Amidst all this activity were all the associated trades and crafts that were essential to the operation of the ships, including shipbuilders, coopers and rope makers.

Nordhavn was certainly not a neighbourhood for children. Things were gritty here. And the windows of the warehouses were fitted with shutters that were bolted at night to prevent the theft of goods.

The more than 200-year-old maritime history of Nordhavn is a fascinating tale. And it is from this history that our architects from Arkitema Architects have drawn their inspiration. In fact, Arkitema has an affinity for ports. They are also the studio behind Sluseholmen in Copenhagen’s South Harbour and the new district, Lynetteholm, an artificial island development in Copenhagen Harbour.

ABOUT THE HOTEL

SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW, SOMETHING BORROWED AND SOMETHING RAW The industrial look of the hotel was inspired by the port’s raw character with its warehouses, silos and quays – complemented by aesthetic details in refined materials, such as copper-toned shutters on the facade, which create a sublime interaction with the light from the quay in front of the hotel.

A SHIP FULL OF LANDLUBBERS The district’s zoning stipulates that the maritime references must characterise the area’s visual identity in future.

The neighbourhood around the hotel at Orientkaj, Trælastholmen and Sundholmen is known as The White City (Den hvide by). And the pioneer here was our world-famous Danish architect, Jørn Utzon, who in 1987 designed the Paustian House furniture showroom on Kalkbrænderiløbskaj. The Japanese-inspired architecture of the newly opened metro station, Orientkaj, follows suit in grand style. And so do we. The hotel is constructed of polished concrete. A material that can withstand the constant exposure to salt and seawater that is naturally inevitable in a location so close to the water. But a concrete that also provides a superb white finish.

In the evening, the hotel’s dramatic concrete columns are illuminated in a range of colours to create an impressive welcome home.

The front facing the canal is wrapped with wires which enable vines to climb up and envelop the building in the lush, green foliage of silver lace vine, Fallopia baldschuanica. The plants in our roof gardens will eventually spill over the facade to become entwined with the vines.

GARDEN HEAVEN The hotel’s two green atrium courtyards are true garden sanctuaries. Here, you can put the sounds of the city on hold and breathe in deeply: all the way down to your toes. The courtyards were designed as an homage to the open crane rooms of the old warehouses.

All of the outdoor furniture has been designed by HAY, the shooting star of the Danish design scene. The furniture is a modern classic.

ABOUT THE DECOR

STYLISH NORDIC COOLNESS WITH A DASH OF ITALIAN SIZZLE The architect wanted the entire lobby to be ‘a Nordic invitation’ that you encounter the moment you walk in the door.

The hotel is decorated with 95% Danish design – and 5% from countries in the European Union. In some places, we’ve added a dash of Italian sizzle to the decor in the form of stunning lamps by FLOS. Savour the stylish Nordic tranquillity, simplicity and balance of all that you survey. Danish design classics from companies such as Fredericia Furniture and Carl Hansen & Søn. Quality furniture that is renowned and loved for its long life and which is often passed down through generations.

In the hotel lobby and restaurant you’ll find classics designed by Børge Mogensen, one of the most important architects of the post-war period and Fredericia Furniture’s first in-house designer. Alongside iconic names like Hans Wegner, Arne Jacobsen and Jens Risom, the very founder of one of our nation’s proudest traditions: Danish design.

Note, for instance, Børge Mogensen’s J39 Dining Chair and the Spanish Chair. The architect’s lifelong ambition was to create simple, functional furniture that could enrich everyday life. And he more than succeeded. Børge Mogensen viewed limitation as part of the creative process, but he was not always quite so true to his own dogmas.

However, without deviating from his intentions.

The lobby is also home to the A Chair, designed in 1961 by Jens Risom, who burnished his reputation in the USA and thrilled the Americans with his Scandinavian take on furniture design. The elegant A Chair embodies New York’s style and confidence – and in Playboy Magazine’s July issue in 1961, Risom was showcased for his role in the furniture revolution in an article entitled ‘Designs for Living’ alongside Charles Eames, Eero Saarinen and others.

In our Co-Working area you can enjoy Hans Wegner’s CH25 Lounge Chair from Carl Hansen & Søn. The back and seat are made of woven paper cord, a material that was developed during the Second World War as a substitute for seagrass. Wegner was enamoured by the look of the material, and by its non-stretching and optimal durability. But his choice of material was quite revolutionary when the chair was introduced in 1950!

It takes a skilled weaver 10 hours to hand-weave the seat and back in a unique pattern using 400 metres of paper cord. Wegner designed four chairs exclusively for Carl Hansen & Søn – a collaboration that began in 1949.

“COMWELL COPENHAGEN PORTSIDE IS NOT A HOTEL WITH DETAILS AND BRIC-A-BRAC. IT IS A HOTEL THAT ACCOMMODATES BUSINESS GUESTS, CONFERENCES, TOURISTS AND LOCALS, WHICH IS WHY IT HAS TIMELESS AND FUNCTIONAL DECOR. IN BRIEF… WE HAVE EMBRACED ALL THE BEST OF DENMARK.” Mette Faarup Jørgensen, interior & industrial designer, AM PM

All furniture has been made and finished especially for Comwell Copenhagen Portside so that it can withstand much more wear and tear than our furniture and textiles usually receive here in Denmark. All suppliers have therefore been involved in the process from the start. And it has been a pleasure to work with like-minded people who wouldn’t dream of anything other than thinking sustainably. This is not least important for the direct environmental impact of the production phase of the furniture, where responsibility is incorporated into the selection of raw wood, leather, skins and textiles.

STAND ON IT (AND SEE IF YOU CAN RESIST IT!) The flooring in the hotel lobby and elsewhere is made from stunning natural limestone, a living material extracted from various deposits in the original Tethys Sea. The sea was located between present-day Europe and Africa but disappeared as the African continent moved north. The limestone is actually the old seabed, embedded with many small imprints of fossilised fungi and seagrass, just as you will also find imprints of extinct crustaceans and sea lilies. The limestone is more than 100 million years old and was excavated in the eastern part of the present-day Mediterranean Sea.

ABOUT THE GUEST ROOMS

RAW AND RUSTIC In some of the guest rooms we have preserved the raw concrete wall in its original state as a decorative, urban element. Partly because it reflects the architect’s vision, and partly because it refers to the area’s rustic history.

Small work tables function as bedside tables. Everyone works in bed with the TV on anyway. And you can stream to your heart’s content from your own device via Chromecast.

ABOUT THE ART

MAGIC IN LITHOGRAPHY, WOOD AND BRONZE Danish sculptor and graphic artist Jan Agerbo (born 1971) created the figurative and expressive sculptures in wood and bronze found in the lobby, meeting rooms and atrium courtyard. He was also behind the beautiful lithographs in the guest rooms and in the restaurant. All based on old archive photos taken in Nordhavn from 1930 to 1970. The coordinates of each artwork show exactly where the picture was taken.

MASTER PAINTER Peter Skovgaard (born 1960) is an renowned artist at home and abroad and a true living master of abstract painting.

His captivating paintings can be experienced in selected guest rooms.

ABOUT RESPONSIBILITY

HOLISTIC SUSTAINABILITY Comwell Copenhagen Portside belongs to Denmark’s most sustainable hotel chain and carries the Green Key and DGNB Silver environmental certifications. DGNB is a sustainable building certification that ensures balance between environment, costs and social sustainability, so that the construction becomes as sustainable as possible in its entirety.

RECYCLED FISHING NETS All rugs in the restaurant and meeting rooms have been woven from old fishing nets, and the backs of the rugs have been made from used plastic bottles. So not only do the rugs help cultivate a pleasant acoustic experience, they are also very good for the environment.

SUSTAINABILITY WITH CHARRED WOOD Jan Agerbo’s wood sculptures outside the hotel and in the reception area have been hewn from 120-year-old oak trees and treated using the Shou Sugi Ban method, a natural weatherproofing technique that is new to Denmark but which has been used in Japan for centuries. The method burns away the sugar and shrinks the cells in the wood that absorb water. It does not leave the microorganisms with anything to live on, and the wood becomes impermeable to water. It results in a deep black, charred and very beautiful surface.

DESIGN THAT SHINES All of our elegant designer lamps are equipped with LED bulbs, which in addition to their energy-saving function also boast a much longer lifespan – up to 30–50,000 hours, in fact.

THERE’S JUST NO PLACE LIKE HOME The Safari Chair. The Spanish Chair. Inspiration often came from abroad for the great furniture designers, and their desire for simplicity and functionalism founded the Danish design aesthetic and put Denmark on the world map. And since then, the whole world has wanted to sit on Denmark.

For us at the hotel, it is very inspiring to walk among these remarkable Danish design classics every day. Take a seat and you’ll see why. Find legendary chairs such as Kaare Klint’s classic, the Safari Chair, in our Co-Working area on the ground floor. And Børge Mogensen’s Spanish Chair in the lobby.

Kaare Klint designed the Safari Chair in 1933, inspired by his wife’s African safari trip.

While travelling in Spain, Børge Mogensen was inspired by a traditional Moorish chair with wide armrests and created the Spanish Chair in 1958. But his affinity for medieval Spanish furniture can be seen in a number of his pieces of furniture, including the Hunting Chair.