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Portrait of

HalldorGunnlgsson

KAB

Halldor Gunnlgsson was son of the

merchant Halldor Johannes

Gunnlgsson and the actress Else

Sten. He graduated from senior

school in 1937 and continued at the

Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts,

School of Architecture, in

Copenhagen, from which he graduated

in 1942. Among his teachers wereKay Fisker and Steen Eiler

Rasmussen. Just after his final

examinations during the Second

World War he left for Sweden and

stayed in the neighbouring country

during the years 1942-44. > NEXT

Biography

born in Frederiksberg. 1918

graduated from senior school. 1937

graduated from the Royal Danish Academy

of Fine Arts, School of Architecture,

in Copenhagen.

1942

sojourn in Sweden. 1942-44

Lecturer at the Royal Danish Academy of

Fine Arts, School of Architecture, in

Copenhagen.

1956

appointed professor in building arts at

the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts,School of Architecture, in Copenhagen.

1959

Dean at the Royal Danish Academy of

Fine Arts, School of Architecture, in

Copenhagen.

1969

Visiting Professor at Massachusetts

Institute of Technology in the United

States.

1961-62

died in Rungsted. 1985

http://www.meamnet.polimi.it/archive/029/029m1.htmlhttp://www.meamnet.polimi.it/archive/029/029m1.html

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During his career he travelled to North and South America, Japan, and the Near East, and the

inspiration found on these trips are delicately conditioned to a Scandinavian design fundamental to

his buildings. He spent his teaching career at the School of Architecture of the Royal Danish Academy of

Fine Arts in Copenhagen, where he was initially employed as an instructor, before becoming a lecturer in

1956. He was appointed professor in the building arts in 1959, and dean in 1969. From 1961-62 he was

employed as a Visiting Professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the United States.

Gunnlgsson was one of the leading figures in the Danish modernist architecture, especially in the field

of detached houses. His personal interpretations of the modernist Western-Americanand the

traditional Japanese architectural traditions were shaped by a consciousness of specific local qualities

and demands. Using materials like wood and stone combined with a limited range of coloursthe

impression of his works is simple and minimalist, though at the same time very precious.

Gunnlgsson's own home on Rungsted Strandvejwas built to house himself and his wife Lillemor

Gunnlgsson, and since they had no children the house consists of only two rooms with a bathroom

anda kitchen. The house is typical of the individualistic modern lifestyle of the 1950s, characterised by

simplicity and functionality and ideally placed in the middle of beautiful natural surroundings

overlooking resund. The isolated and undisturbed location makes outer shielding walls unnecessary,

and the outside is left to penetrate the rooms by means of "glass walls".The feeling of being inside

the house is thus close to the feeling of being outside, or rather to the feeling of being on a protected

terrace, since it is possible to get a glimpse of the Sound from almost every spot in the house. The

floating impression of the building, caused by the large windows and the simple wooden construction

between the end walls, underline the floating atmosphere of the interior with its open and

continuous rooms. An interesting fact about Gunnlgsson's house is the way it is adapted to serve the

needs of two people. The splendid view of the ever-changing resund, combined with the isolated

location, allowed the window-facades towards the Sound and to the other side towards the sunny

garden protected against the wind and the road by a fence. The building is erected as a wooden

framework between the two end walls. The end walls are made in stone and are white-washed, while

the wooden construction is stained in dark shades. In front of the house on the eastern sidefacing the

Sound is a terrace made of salt-impregnated boards. The "glass-walls" on this side have two sliding

doors, also in glass, which form the entrance to the terrace. The interiors are typicalof Gunnlgsson's

work: simple materials and very few colours. The ceilings are constructed by means of untreated deal

battens. The visible beams are stained in dark shades in the same manner as the supporting timber

described above. The interior walls are made of wood and varnished black and have a polished

surface. The sliding doors, which separate the main room from the kitchen and the bedroom, are

painted in a light grey while the chimney brickwork is treated as the outer walls and white-washed. To

keep the simplicityand the minimalistimpression even the heating pipes are invisible,embedded in

the floor and covered by heat-conducting Swedish marble also, in a light grey tone. For extra heating

the living room is supplied with a chimney and a fireplace situated in the middle of the room. The

windows can be covered by Venetian blindsin the same light colouras the untreated wood of the

ceiling. Approaching the house from the main road one needs to walk along the garden following the

sloping terrain. The difference in altitude between the road-level and house-level is almost two

meters.The garage is situated in the northern part of the building, while the living facilities are placed

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towards the south. Entering from the western side of the building through a door leading to a narrow

part of the main room behind the kitchen, one continues directly into the main room with the free-

standing chimney in the middle. The bathroom and the kitchen lie parallel to the facades, and can be

entered either from the bedroom or the main room. Gunnlgsson's own house on Rungsted Strandvej

is a brilliant example of the new style characteristic of the modernistmovement in Denmark in the1950s and 1960s. Traditionally the whole areaalong the coast of resundnorth of Copenhagen was characterised by large, prestigious villas with

many rooms, placed in parks and surrounded by garages, barns, etc. Gunnlgsson's home is modest in

comparison to these. The parks were divided up intosmaller sites of 1000-1500 m2 according to the

new ideal of a more functional and individual wayof living, without the staff necessary to maintain the

house and the surroundings. In the case of Gunnlgsson, the trimmed gardens are replaced by the

natural flora of the coast itself, while the house is limited to the specific needs of a couple.

Gunnlgsson's own house thus resembles Farnsworth Houseby Mies van der Rohe or Phillip Johnson's

Glass House, and in its overall impression the building clearly shows an original Japanese inspiration.The Nordic materials - bricks, wood, and Swedish marble- turn the house into an indisputably

Scandinavian interpretation of these styles. His detached housesin general, and his own house in

particular, h. The same attitude towards materials and simplicity also characterises his other major

works. In the case of the City Hall ofTrnby or Fredericiathe precious materials and the severe and

rhythmic structure of the facades are remarkable. Working in the southern part of Jutlandhe used the

local red brickso the new buildingscould match the existing traditional ones. He often underlined the

function and importanceof the building by making large steps leading up to official buildings like city

halls or museums. Likewise, in his project for the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in Copenhagen, he tried to

make the new buildings correspond to the old monumental and enclosed warehouses dating back to the

eighteenth century. His oeuvre is characterised by an overall aesthetic close to that of Asplund, definedby the idea of an architectural whole, functionalityand regard for the surroundings, thorough

construction and a delicate attention to detail.< BACK

Kira Pedersen