Freja and Magnus Bak Josias were expecting their first child within weeks when they were given the keys to their new home in Frederiksberg, near the center of Copenhagen. The top floor of a two-story, turn-of-the-19th century structure built as workers’ apartments, it appealed to them because of its age and location, hidden behind a street-fronting grand house. And because Freja, an architect specializing in historic preservation, saw how to cast it in a new light.
“I work with listed buildings and with these you tend to do as little as possible,” she explains. “In our case, we had to do a little more than restoration: we changed the original by taking down the ceiling and one of the walls.” This makeover—done in a mere two months—created an open aerie for the family, with a double-height living area and a new kitchen built to fit the building’s wonky measurements.
There’s also wall space for the couple’s growing collection of contemporary Danish furniture and art, which like the soaring spaces, lend new life to formerly humble quarters. Join us for a tour and scroll to the end for a glimpse of the construction in progress.
Photography by Theo Theo Agency, unless noted, all courtesy of Freja Bak Josias.
