Wonderful Copenhagen is under immense pressure to expand and, to protect the fabric of the old city centre, the formerly almost deserted island of Amager is becoming a new and vital part of the city

Architectural Review, The, March, 2004 by Timothy Brittain-Catlin, Henriette Steiner

And, out of town, some rather more gentle and old-fashioned social manipulation may be under way at Trekroner, just east of Roskilde. RUC, Copenhagen's post-1968 (and non-traditional) university, was relocated here from Copenhagen city centre in 1972, when it was expected that Roskilde would expand eastwards. In spite of a new railway station, the town never came to Trekroner, and the site has retained its idyllic rural setting. Over the last few years, plans have been drawn up for an expanded semi New Town, with 2500-3000 new homes, and a further 5000 jobs in new industrial and service areas to complement the existing 10 000 university-related workplaces. Artists Jeppe Aagaard and Kerstin Bergendal have been given the task of making a so-called 'operational art plan' for the area, in order to create a living and working environment somewhat superior to that of the average dormitory suburb. This will be a long process, and a great deal of work has already been exhibited to the public. Bergendal's own manifesto for the art plan presents an almost utopian vision of combining permanent and transient artworks as complement to daily life. It is a modern-day evocation of the great arts-and-crafts vision of a hundred years ago, although (with the problems of the Copenhagen Metro in mind) it also raises the question as to whether there is a reasonable limit to the degree of aesthetic saturation that can be imposed upon a hard-working and travelling public.

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