LALINA CAFÉ
April 2023
Very Lina, was the heading of my short recent piece on goldsmith Lina Christensen, which I wrote after taking some photographs for her website.
The heading was apt. This time around, it might be more apt to use Very, Very Lina, although lalina CAFÉ with the subheading Connection, Culture & Coffee would have been her own personal pick.
Allow me to explain:
For the past six months, lalina CAFÉ has represented the combination of everything Lina Christensen has been interested in and practicing, both in her personal life and in her professional career as a designer. She has a refreshing appetite for change and development – over and over, in ways that are both recognizable and surprising, always graceful, beautiful and characterized by a warm and welcoming attitude.
Lina Christensen, born 1961, completed her training as a goldsmith in 1985 and opened her first gallery, Galerie Tactus, on Ny Østergade in Copenhagen in 1991. Since then, she has had several jewellery galleries and workshops, designed jewellery for Georg Jensen and held numerous exhibitions in Denmark and abroad. Today, she has a workshop space in Lyngby and sells her jewellery from lalina.
When Lina and her husband returned to Denmark a few years ago, after living in Scotland for some time, they landed temporarily – or so they thought – in the award-winning housing development Basecamp in Lyngby, north of Copenhagen.
Basecamp Lyngby was designed by Lars Gitz Architects as a community-oriented housing development with a focus on co-living. Under the international brand ‘Basecamp’, it welcomes researchers, expats and others across age groups, functions and nationalities.
The organically shaped structure was inspired by the natural setting, and all flats have access to the integrated park and wooden patios. On top of the building, a roughly 800-metre-long footpath overlooking Lyngby Lake and planted with perennials offers a space for strolling or running
https://www.instagram.com/linachristensen.jewelry/?hl=daAn empty space calls for a purpose, and Lina’s idea was to establish a goldsmith’s workshop. However, she discovered the space came with a stipulation: she could use it to sell jewellery, but it also had to contain a café.
Why not? With her keen grasp of both details and the larger whole and with her uncompromising sense of quality, Lina has designed the café as a salon that offers coffee and cake as well as warm and cold dishes, perhaps accompanied by a glass of specially imported biodynamic wine.
Food and drink are served in or on carefully curated craft products, including glasses by the design and glassblowing couple Gerner Jahncke, olive wood serving boards by Andrea Brugi and cups by ceramicist Christian Bruun. The café’s custom-made tablecloths, napkins, tea towels and aprons are designed by Marie Louise Rosholm and made in Italy.
Some of these products are available for sale, and varying selections will be added over time. Right now, the café has a display of gorgeous Japanese vintage kimonos.
One room serves as a stunning gallery dedicated to Lina’s own jewellery collection.
Lalina CAFÉ has proven popular, both with the residents of Basecamp and nearby neighbours and with visitors from farther afield. In other words, the 20 seats inside are in high demand, says Lina. Fortunately, the warmer weather now lets her expand by adding outdoor seating.
The concept has found its form, but that does not mean it is meant to be static. On the contrary, Lina is continuously testing new set-ups for culinary offerings and cultural events – you can stay updated through the café’s Instagram account.
Very Lina, var overskriften på min seneste lille artikel om guldsmed Lina Christensen.
Den udkom i kølvandet på, at jeg fotograferede til hendes hjemmeside.
Den overskrift gav mening. Denne gang kunne det give mening at skrive Very, Very Lina, hvis ikke lalina CAFÉ, med underrubrikken Connection, Culture & Coffee var hendes egen fortrukne.
Lad mig forklare:
lalina CAFÉ har det seneste halve år forenet alt, hvad Lina Christensen interesserer sig for og har praktiseret gennem sit liv som (med)menneske og formgiver. Hun besidder en forfriskende drift imod at forandre og nyetableret – gang på gang, på samme tid genkendeligt og overraskende, altid åndfuldt og smukt, altid med afsæt i omsorgsfuldt værtskab.
Lina Christensen f. 1961 uddannet guldsmed i 1985 har siden hun åbnede sit første Gallerie Tactus i Ny Østergade i København i 1991, stået bag flere smykkegallerier og værksteder, designet smykker for Georg Jensen, og haft utallige udstillinger i ind og udland. Hun har nu værkstedsplads i Lyngby og sælger sine smykker fra lalina
Da Lina og hendes mand for et par år siden vendte hjem efter et par år i Skotland, landede de lidt tilfældigt, midlertidigt troede de, i Lyngby i den prisbelønnede bebyggelse Basecamp.
Basecamp ‘Skovbrynet Lyngby’, som er tegnet af Lars Gitz Arkitekter, er et fællesskabsorienteret byggeri udformet med co-living i højsædet. Byggeriet favner studerende under det internationale brand ‘Basecamp’, forskere, expats og borgere på tværs af aldersgrupper, funktioner og nationaliteter.
Den organisk formede bebyggelse er inspireret af den omkringliggende natur og alle lejligheder har adgang til det grønne parkanlæg, der blandt andet omfatter træterrasser og en ca. 800 meter lang staudebeplantet gå-/løbebane på taget af byggeriet, med udsigt over Lyngby Sø.
Et tomt lokale kaldte på at blive taget i brug, og Linas tanke var guldsmedeværksted. Der skulle dog vise sig at være en klausul på lokalet. Hun måtte gerne sælge smykker der, men lokalet skulle også rumme en cafe.
Hvorfor ikke? Med sans for både detalje og helhed, og med en kompromisløs fornemmelse for kvalitet har Lina indrettet cafeen som en salon, der foruden kaffe og kage også tilbyder varme og kolde retter, hvortil man kan for eksempel kan nyde et glas biodynamisk vin af egen import.
Mad og drikke serveres på omhyggeligt kuraterede håndværksprodukter, her kan nævnes glas fra designer og glaspusterparret Gerner Jahncke, oliventræsbrædder fra Andrea Brugi
kopper fra keramiker Christian Bruun foruden duge, servietter, viskestykker, forklæder som er specialfremstillede, designet af Marie Louise Rosholm og produceret i Italien.
Nogle af de omtalte produkter kan man købe med sig hjem, lige som der løbende vil blive udstillet andre. Netop nu de smukkeste japanske vintagekimonoer.
Cafeens ene rum fungerer formidabelt som smykkegalleri for Linas egen smykkekollektion.
lalina CAFÉ har vist sig at have appel til både Basecamps beboere, til beboere fra det øvrige nærområde, men også til ligesindede fra et større opland – der er med andre ord rift om de 20 siddepladser, fortæller Lina, som heldigvis, nu hvor solen har vist sig, har mulighed for at udvide med adskillige pladser udendørs.
Konceptet har fundet sin form, men er ikke statisk, tværtimod, så testes hele tiden nye formater for både servering og kulturelle arrangementer, hvilet cafeens Instagramkonto opdaterer om.