VILLUM Window Collection documents and communicates the history of the window and its significance to the quality of human life and access to light, air and view.
VILLUM Window Collection
Maskinvej 4
2860 Søborg
Denmark
Opening hours:
October - March
Tuesday 10 am - 4 pm
Thursday 10 am - 7 pm
April - September
Tuesday and Thursday from 10 am to 4 pm
or by request
July closed
Free Admission
For additional information please contact:
Dorthe Bech-Nielsen
+45 23614260
dbn@vkr-holding.com
VILLUM Window Collection was established in 2006 on the initiative of Lars Kann-Rasmussen. The collection is named after his father, civil engineer Villum Kann Rasmussen, who founded the VKR Group in 1941 and developed the VELUX roof window in 1942.
The VILLUM Window Collection houses approximately 300 historical windows that date from the 17th century until today. The exhibition is unique, as it is a comprehensive physical collection of technical, artisanal and historical examples of the development of the window.
It is located in the VKR Group's first headquater at Maskinvej 4 in Søborg, which was inaugurated in 1951. The main building was designed by the architect Dan Fink, and the workshop areas are VELKIN halls – Denmark’s first pre-fabricated modular industrial hall system, which was developed by Villum Kann Rasmussen in 1945.
VELFAC façade windows, the fittings for VELUX roof windows and other products were manufactured at Maskinvej 4. The last of the commercial functions moved off of the premises in 2007.
The exhibition includes five themed stories about the window.
Window personalities
Twelve people who have had an important impact on the development of windows and glass are presented in cartoons.
Technology and elements
With a broken window, glass, frames and fittings, the components of the window are presented, as well as how the individual components are produced. And lots of good window words are introduced with the broken window.
The window in architecture
Architectural models, architecture photography and, of course, an impressive array of windows showcase the window’s importance to architecture and people’s access to light, air and views.
Mechanics of the window
There are different types of windows in sturdy stands on exhibition that visitors can view and try out. The different mechanisms are also illustrated with short animated films.
The window’s materials
What is a window really made of? The materials used to manufacture a window are exhibited on a table around which is a series of windows in different materials.
In the exhibition’s time tunnel, visitors are guided through the history of the window in a spatial sequence that stages the streaming of light through various historical windows, from the great mosaic panes of Paris' Sainte-Chapelle to large, contemporary, energy efficient windows. The time tunnel allows visitors a tangible and sensuous experience of the window's central role in human beings' access to light, air and views.
The warehouse wall is a chance for visitors to explore more than sixty different windows from different eras. The windows are organised in chronological and stylistic order and colour-coded to correspond to the timeline, and arranged according to their historical time period.
A six-metres long timeline recounts the history and development of windows and glass, from the first apertures in roofs and façades to contemporary, climate-friendly windows. Every stylistic period on the timeline has been assigned a colour. The colours are consistent throughout the entirety of the exhibition so that visitors can date the exhibited windows with ease.
