Check out these Creative Writing Ideas images:
erik korshagen, korshagehus, architect’s own summerhouse, 1960, 1965 & 1986
Image by seier+seier
korshagehus, architect’s own summerhouse, korshage, denmark, 1960, 1965 & 1986.
architect: erik korshagen, 1926-2005.
parallels drawn between traditional Japanese houses and modernist architecture have formed a recurring theme since wright. mies developed it, his black painted steel standing in for the wooden post and beam construction. and during the 1950′s, the Japanese influence found its way to denmark, though a common response here was to marvel at the similarities between Japanese and Danish vernacular, an angle no doubt born out of fisker’s regionalism taught at the academy.
what other architects talked about, korshagen built. the steep thatched roof of his 1960 summerhouse, korshagehus, refers equally to asian and local vernacular, as do the black posts supporting the floating wooden deck. the cantilevered walkway that connects the rooms – the house was born with no interior doors – can only be read as a traditional Japanese engawa or kure-en but its use is entirely in keeping with the simplicity, even primitivism, of Danish summerhouse life at the time.
utzon wrote of the japanese house that its raised wooden floor was like a tabletop and that was why people took off their shoes – they treated it like furniture. korshagehus should be understood in that spirit, except here you take your shoes off because you’ve worn them all week to work.
there is a lesson in how korshagen was able to allude effortlessly to several building traditions within the abstract idiom of 1960′s minimalism, while his 1986 postmodernist annex only really connects with the local farm buildings and despite the surgical precision of its architect only does so with considerable nostalgia. but even if the annex suggests a weakening of the architect’s powers – as of architecture in general in the 1980′s – korshagen made no mistakes when situating it: the informal ensemble of highly formal buildings is one of the paradoxical pleasures of the place, as is the idea of highly formal buildings that propose an informal lifestyle.
when I first met erik korshagen about ten years ago through my father-in-law, I never used a camera, so I have no interiors to show you from my visits, but the black exterior is well balanced by the warmth of untreated wood inside. currently, korshagehus is for sale – about a million euros will buy you its three buildings that were all listed while their designer and owner was still alive. I think they fulfill one of the promises of true architecture, that you can live in a work of art, but I am less certain there is an appreciative market for it. today, Danes expect their one million euro summerhouses to come with underfloor heating, flatscreen TVs, and jacuzzis – korshagehus needs a buyer who can see through all that.
when my wife and I were married nearby, erik korshagen turned up for the reception – out of respect for my in-laws, mind you – but when he saw the number of people there, he walked up to us and offered the keys to his guest house. you’ll never find any privacy here, he said. and so, he made it possible for us to leave our own wedding when we had had enough which felt just right, as did the trip through the dark, cool forest to korshagehus – a classic that aimed at being one and succeeded, and where, of all places, we spent our wedding night.
more words, yada, yada, yada.
jørn utzon, first stage of school centre, herning, model 1968-1970
Image by seier+seier
first stage of school centre, herning, denmark 1968-1970.
model from from the 2008 utzon exhibition in palazzo franchetti, venice.
architect: jørn utzon, 1918-2008.
utzon’s herning school, an export school for the then thriving textile industry, is one project we must have a closer look at after going through bagsværd church. they both belong to the architect’s post-sydney career which yielded so many exceptional projects and so little built work. and they share an important trait:
while utzon’s trademark, expressive roofs are still there, the monumental platforms and plateaus are gone from both herning and bagsværd and the counterpoint to the roofshapes is simply the flat Danish landscape.
there is an equally significant difference. the church, a monument, was cast in concrete, while the school, a utilitarian structure intended for perpetual change, was to be built from cheap, light-weight materials. utzon could do both, a fact somewhat obscured by the problems in sydney.
the inherent modesty of utzon’s later works has been lost on the kind of architectural writers who like to say ‘semperian earthworks’ for foundation and herning remains a neglected project in writing, despite the fact that – unlike his other cancelled projects – a prototype was built.
here and here are my reactions from my first visit, back when this little house was all but forgotten.
the project has also been referred to as a school town and is probably best understood as the successful translation of utzon’s personal urban ideal at the time, the islamic cities of iran and north africa, in which domes of varying sizes were combined with great freedom to form any urban ensemble needed. the courtyards-within-courtyards shown in the model support that the inspiration was eastern, but would have made perfect sense in flat and windy herning regardless.
utzon called it additive architecture and brought with that term the idea of continuous growth from traditional architecture into the world of prefabricated modern building. other architects tried the same at the time, but while most open-ended systems looked equally awful at all stages of construction, utzon’s prototype more than suggested that would not have been the case in herning.
more utzon here.