Søetatens Pigeskole now has new interior doors
with triangular panels made according to traditional craftsmanship principles.
Located in Nyboder, Copenhagen, Søetatens Pigeskole is an architectural monument in the historicist style characterized by uniform surfaces and strict architectural symmetry that runs from brickwork to doors. The building is listed and is currently owned by Realdania By & Byg, which in the period 2020-22 has carried out a thorough, gentle interior restoration.
Some of the original doors, made to the highest quality with beautiful carvings, have survived since the building was constructed in 1859.
Other doors have been replaced with Vahle panel doors, which are made with triangular panels like the original ones and have been given the special surface treatment of graining, an old and technically difficult craftsmanship tradition.
Søetatens Pigeskole was built in 1859 by architect Bernhard Seidelin
with beautiful detailing in architecture and materials.
The new panel doors are delivered in unfinished pine,
and has later developed a graining that makes the wood look like a noble, dark wood species.
Panel doors are manufactured
based on historic craftsmanship principles.
Wall and door colours
is completely original.
The new panel doors mirror the old
completely symmetrical.
The doors are here grained on one side,
and white painted on the other side.
The white painted panel doors
are made exactly like the others.
The symmetrical design of the panel doors
reflects the beautiful artistically crafted wall mosaics in the auditorium.
Door design comes through
three different variants.
Some of the panel doors
is made with glass in some of the panels.
The large auditorium with doors leading into the old classrooms,
is the heart of the impressive building.
The panel doors are made according to traditional craftsmanship principles.
The original wooden doors are made with an enormous amount of detail in the woodcarving. In many rooms, the original panel doors had been replaced with standard doors, ceilings had been lowered and floors had been replaced. The new Vahle panel doors are made according to traditional craftsmanship principles, which has made it possible to recreate the original design of the original doors with triangular panels.
The new panel doors are produced in pine wood and delivered unfinished from our factory in Mørke, Djursland. The doors have subsequently been given a surface treatment called “graining”, which transforms the light wood into something resembling a dark and noble wood. The graining technique was often used to imitate another wood species in color and grain structure, especially in the 19th century when precious woods were very expensive.
Decorative and colorful details
The original dark colors in the old classrooms have been recreated to look like the originals according to the National Museum of Denmark’s color charts. The beautiful colors together with the doors create a very special, warm and unique atmosphere.
“Just as at the birth of historicism there was joy and excitement in rediscovering the old craft traditions and their rich detailing after a period of pure classicism, so today, after many years of the austere and cool buildings of modernism, we are delighted to rediscover the architectural and decorative diversity of historicism in materials, surfaces and colors.” Quote: Realdania By & Byg.
A historic, listed building preserved
Søetatens Pigeskole was bought by Realdania By & Byg in 2003 to secure the building, which was listed in 1992.
Read more about the project here.
Photo: Kurt Rodahl Hoppe/Realdania By & Byg.
Project details
Interested?
Contact us for a no-obligation quote.
See more options with panel doors
Classic panel doors produced according to traditional craftsmanship principles.
