Brolæggerstræde 2


Brolæggerstræde 2 is a 4-storey apartment building situated at the corner of Brolæggerstræde and Badstuestræde in the Old Town of Copenhagen, Denmark. The building was listed on the Danish registry of protected buildings and places in 1950. Otto Frello, who owned it from 1966 until his death, has painted a trompe l’oeil mural of a door on the first floor.

History

The building was constructed in 1797 for tea merchant Knud Steenberg after the previous building at the site had been destroyed in the Copenhagen Fire of 1795. Stenberg ran a tea store from the high cellar.
The building was refurbished in 1960 under supervision of the architect Svend Lindholm. The artist Otto Frello purchased the property in 1966 and members of his family owned and lived in it until 2016. The new owner, Ejendomsselskabet V.S. Larsen A/S, a property company, carried out a comprehensive restoration of the building. In 2018 it was sold for DKK 32.5.

Architecture

The building consists of three floors over a high cellar. It has six bays towards Brolægggerstræde, a corner bay and five bays towards Badstuestræde.
The building has a total floor area of 622 square metres. Many original doors, panels, floors and other details in the building have been preserved.
The first floor features a trompe l’oeil mural of a door paintedby Otto Frello. He has also created other eclectic details, including a glazed niche in one of the bathrooms with coins and banknotes and a built-in clock.

Cultural references

The art gallery in the basement, then Gallerie Toulouse, was used as a location in the 1961 film Een blandt mange.