The main feature of the harbour area, where Harpa now stands, was obviously the piers. They have now been incorporated into the landscaping of the area, in a beautiful blend of the old and the new. The landscape architects at Landslag designed the area surrounding Harpa, in collaboration with Batteríið and in consultation with Henning Larsen Architects and artist Ólafur Elíasson. The engineering side was in the hands of Mannvit and Verkís. The developments on the lot, which is mostly on top of the Harpa Car Park, will be finished before the building's inauguration in August.
The Reykjavík coastline has changed quite a lot over the last hundred years or so. The pier, where people used to gather waiting for the ships to come in, was much closer to the Arnarhóll hill. When designing the landscape the architects paid a tribute to the area's former role, recreating the atmosphere in mirrored ponds along the Kalkofnsvegur road.
Harpa will therefore stand in a kind of islet, connecting to land via gangways – a reference to the old piers. The area on the islet is divided into three parts. To the east is where people, cars and bicycles can access Harpa. To the south is a nice square connected to the restaurants and open spaces within the building, and to the south-west is a square that can be used for temporary events such as large outdoor concerts, markets, skating rinks etc. This part of the square might develop somewhat in relation to future developments of the area. To the west of Harpa there will be a pond, cascading into the sea. The pond will be surrounded by a pier-veranda, with the possibility of an outdoor restaurant or seating areas.
The landscaping was all designed to facilitate walking / cycling traffic and to connect the area to the centre of town and to the coastline. Arrangements are now being made to slow down the traffic in the area, and to build pedestrian overpasses across the road.