SLETH’s transformation of Møllevang Church is deeply rooted in the site’s history and in C.F. Møller’s original vision from the 1950s. We asked ourselves how the church was first conceived, and how time, tradition, and the city’s growth have since shaped it. Out of these reflections, we have reimagined the church as a communal space – a place that can hold both the spontaneous and the ceremonial, the everyday and the exceptional. Møllevang Church becomes The Church in the City – a gathering point for daily life, festive occasions, and moments of deep significance.
The transformation is formed from the existing architecture, where the essence of the church buildings is worked for with care for the qualities already present. The red brick, the timber, the art, the spaces and the traces of decades of lived life are highlighted and given their rightful place in the church’s future. The strength lies in simplicity and harmony, a language we have preserved and clarified across the complex.
At the heart of the project is a new central crossroads tying together all buildings and the Garden. It becomes a welcoming arrival and meeting point, visually uniting church and landscape and is the most significant intervention of our transformation. Inspired by C.F. Møller’s design, warm wooden details extend outside, while large windows pull the Garden in. Two horizontal roofs and a shared staircase create a new architectural heart.
The landscape has been carefully adapted to the terrain and history by integrating C.F Møller’s original sloping terrain. Terraces connect the forecourt to the green City Garden, a setting for both daily life and rituals. Each area has its own character: villa-style gardens to the west, restored woodland to the northeast, and a parish garden for play, reflection, and outdoor activities. Edges, trellises, and avenues open the church to the city and invite the surroundings in.
The program of the church has been reshaped so that the existing buildings are better used and able to house new functions. The crypt has become a large gathering hall; the former parish house now holds an open administration; and along Fuglsangs Allé, the former structures have been transformed into a community house for scouts, residents, and local associations.
Through the transformation of Møllevang Church, SLETH has created an architecture that connects past and present. A living and inclusive meeting place now unfolds – one that preserves the quiet strength of simplicity, honors the existing, and stands open to the city as The Church in the City.
