House of Grain wins the DOGA Award!
The DOGA award for design and architecture is given to established businesses that create value through “outstanding use of design and architecture” and we at Reiulf Ramstad Arkitekter are proud to announce that The House of Grain "Kornets Hus", a center for the dissemination of the region’s rich food and farming culture in Jutland Denmark, has been awarded in the field of design and architecture this year!
Norwegian architecture enriches the Danish grain landscape
Jørn and Inger Ussing Larsen have for many years been eager for organic farming and the reintroduction of old Nordic grains. With the help of Reiulf Ramstad Arkitekter, they have now built an experience center for grain, food culture and activities.
The Danish couple wanted to highlight the grain's historical significance for society and people. They also wanted an education and dissemination center devoted to today's global challenges of food supply.
Reiulf Ramstad Arkitekter was invited to participate in a limited, international architectural competition to design Kornets Hus. They won the assignment with "a Norwegian look at Danish landscapes and building traditions".
Neighbour with mill, bakery and grain
The architects sat down with local enthusiasts, farmers, bakers and historians to get to know the region's landscape, temperament, people and traditions. Throughout the project, the architects emphasised being present locally and having a close dialogue with clients and important interest groups.
Kornets Hus was built in a cornfield, closely linked to a facility consisting of a mill, farm and bakery. It is a project in the borderland between landscape architecture, urban planning, industrial design and architecture.
The visitor centre unites Norwegian idioms and Danish countryside. The cultural landscape forms both the prerequisite for and the extension of Kornets Hus. Since opening in December 2020, the center has been filled with exhibitions, courses, teaching programs and other activities.
Farmers and architects love the place
Kornets Hus has become a focal point for locals and schools, and an attraction for visitors. Architects have made pilgrimages here, as have farmers and others with an interest in organic and biodynamic cultivation. This has had both cultural and economic repercussions for the local population, and Kornets Hus is referred to as a role model project in Danish media. The project was also nominated for the prestigious architecture award, Mies van der Rohe in 2022.
As a result of the high visitor numbers, the architects have already been asked to help develop an outdoor facility, Kornets Hage (the Garden of Grain) , specifically aimed at families with children and school students.
The DogA jury states:
Danish architecture has long made itself felt in the world. And now Norwegian architecture has given the Danes a new look at their own building traditions.
We are thrilled with the light, bright quality of Kornets Hus in North Jutland. Reiulf Ramstad Arkitekter has given the experience centre a touch of bakery ovens, windmills and Danish cultural history. What could be a better fit?
Kornets Hus is awarded the DOGA Award for Design and Architecture for a beautiful project that communicates well with the surroundings. Both the aesthetics and the craftsmanship are excellently executed. The architecture plays alongside the values and messages the centre conveys.
In today's worldview, we are particularly pleased that Norwegian architects contribute to increased awareness of the local food supply.
Design and architecture add value
The projects that receive the DOGA Award for Design and Architecture are our foremost role models, and show how the strategic use of design and architecture creates important value for society, the environment and the economy.
Here are three reasons why this project is a role model:
• It conveys the importance of grain: The project focuses on food production and sustainable agriculture, and the importance of grain both for Jutland and for human civilization. The architecture interacts with those values and reinforces this message.
• A focal point in the countryside: The building has become a new focal point that gives visitors, locals and employees a diverse offer with baking art and Danish nature in the city center. This has had both cultural and economic repercussions for the local population.
• Outstanding architecture: The architecture draws inspiration from the region's rich landscapes, folk culture and agricultural heritage. The interior directs its gaze out to the surrounding cornfields, making the centre a good place to be for both visitors and staff.
About the DOGA award
The DOGA Award for design and architecture (originally "Merket for god design") is an annual competition for Norwegian practices and practitioners that “excels through outstanding use of design and architecture”. The prize has been awarded since 1965, and the projects that receive it are role models that show how good use of design and architecture creates important values for society.
As early as 1998, Reiulf Ramstad won Norsk Forms (DogA) award for young aspiring designers, in 2015 the "Jacob Prize" which has been awarded since 1957 and is the "most highly valued award” DOGA gives to designers and architects who “move boundaries and carry the subjects further".
In 2021, Reiulf Ramstad Arkitekter project for Chemin des Carrières in Alsace France, was also awarded with the DogA Award for its architecture highlighting the history and the landscape of the place, and binding the local community together.