Harpa

The glass

The glass façade was inspired by the basalt landscape of Iceland

Harpa is a concert hall and conference centre in Reykjavík. A steel framework is clad with geometric glass panels of different colours. Henning Larsen Architects designed it with the artist Olafur Eliasson.

The crisis

Building stopped in the financial crisis and the state paid to finish it

Construction started in 2007 but was halted by the Icelandic financial crisis. In 2008 the government decided to fund the rest of the half-built hall. For several years it was the only construction project in Iceland.

Opening

The first purpose-built concert hall in Reykjavík opened on 4 May 2011

The Iceland Symphony Orchestra played the opening concert under Vladimir Ashkenazy, with the pianist Víkingur Ólafsson as soloist. It was broadcast live on RÚV. The hall was named Harpa on 11 December 2009.

The lights

The façade has 714 LED lights that show works by artists

The glass façade holds 714 LED lights, which display a video work designed by Olafur Eliasson. In 2014 other artists were first given access to the lighting system, and an interactive piece based on the game Pong was shown.

714LED lights in the glass façade

The cellist

A cellist's statue stands in the water beside Harpa

The sculpture The Musician, from 1970, is by Ólöf Pálsdóttir. It shows a cellist playing and is modelled on the Danish cellist Erling Blöndal Bengtsson. In 2013 the building won the European Union's Mies van der Rohe award.