Diplomprosjekt
Vår 2024
Institutt for arkitektur
This diploma, The Atlantic Wall Archive, suggests an archive and research centre for documents from World War II in the coastal dune landscape of Blåvand, Denmark.
The Atlantic Wall, built by German forces from 1940-1944, unified Europe’s coastline militarily, legitimizing antidemocratic ideology. This megastructure of interconnected bunkers, now abandoned, resembles a linear city facing the Atlantic, slowly eroding and highlighting nature’s relentless power over human structures.
As World War II moves from memory to history, its documents tend to disperse among governmental offices, and consolidating them into a single archive fosters global dialogue, allowing researchers to exchange insights and resources, ensuring unified preservation of the war’s impact.
Placing the archive among the bunkers and coastal dunes immerses it in the very environment where historical events transpired. This proximity fosters a deeper connection to the past, highlighting the significance of these landscapes as direct witnesses to history. Here, the story unfolds without theatrical embellishments or curated displays. Instead, visitors witness the slow-paced deterioration of the remnants, while the physical documents are safely stored and preserved nearby.
As a guest to the dynamic landscape, the building is lifted from the ground, making space for the grass dunes to gently drift under. Only the constructive shafts peeks through the ground. Due to the program’s duality, the archive with its sensitive, private functions is situated underground, while the visitor centre above extend outward into the open landscape. Like a bunker, archives are designed to protect their contents; bunkers withstand bombings, while archives safeguard fragile documents.
Viktoria Moe Dalen / Viktoria.moe.dalen@stud.aho.no
The Atlantic Wall, built by German forces from 1940-1944, unified Europe’s coastline militarily, legitimizing antidemocratic ideology. This megastructure of interconnected bunkers, now abandoned, resembles a linear city facing the Atlantic, slowly eroding and highlighting nature’s relentless power over human structures.
As World War II moves from memory to history, its documents tend to disperse among governmental offices, and consolidating them into a single archive fosters global dialogue, allowing researchers to exchange insights and resources, ensuring unified preservation of the war’s impact.
Placing the archive among the bunkers and coastal dunes immerses it in the very environment where historical events transpired. This proximity fosters a deeper connection to the past, highlighting the significance of these landscapes as direct witnesses to history. Here, the story unfolds without theatrical embellishments or curated displays. Instead, visitors witness the slow-paced deterioration of the remnants, while the physical documents are safely stored and preserved nearby.
As a guest to the dynamic landscape, the building is lifted from the ground, making space for the grass dunes to gently drift under. Only the constructive shafts peeks through the ground. Due to the program’s duality, the archive with its sensitive, private functions is situated underground, while the visitor centre above extend outward into the open landscape. Like a bunker, archives are designed to protect their contents; bunkers withstand bombings, while archives safeguard fragile documents.
Viktoria Moe Dalen / Viktoria.moe.dalen@stud.aho.no
