Modernism

The period in architectural history we call modernism began abroad in the early 20th century, particularly in Germany and France.

Modernism represents above all a break with the past. Architects no longer wanted to use historical forms. The new architectural language had to be completely different. Shapes were to be as simple as possible, stripped of symbolic meaning. This way, a uniform architectural language could be created for people everywhere – an international style.

Characteristic features

The most distinctive traits of modernism are clean forms, straight lines, and functionality. Unlike earlier periods, modernist architecture includes very little decoration. The few ornaments that exist are integrated into the structure itself, not simply attached to the facade.

The design language had to differ completely from that of earlier eras. Everything was to be reduced to the simplest possible form, and symbolic meanings that had once been attached to architecture disappeared in favor of a sober, functional style.

Architecture was meant to reflect modern society and the industrial age.

New construction possibilities and materials such as glass, reinforced concrete, and steel – which emerged in the 19th century – now began to take hold in building.

New building types appeared, such as airports, sports facilities, and crematoriums. Since there were no traditions for these types, new solutions, new constructions, and thus a new architecture had to be created to match their functions.

From abroad came the slogan: form follows function.

Steel and concrete bring new techniques

The modern building style developed slowly before achieving a breakthrough. By the late 19th century, new building techniques offered new possibilities.

At B&W’s iron foundry, prefabricated building parts were cast for many of the structures that rose at the time. Working conditions were poor, but the metals could be shaped freely. Masonry walls were no longer required, since buildings could now be constructed around a steel skeleton. Another crucial innovation was concrete, invented in the late 19th century.

Concrete was solid yet lightweight. Combined with steel frames, it allowed for many stories to be stacked without excessive pressure on the lower levels. The same plot of land could now be exploited optimally by building upward – a key solution in crowded, growing cities.

The new materials also made prefabrication possible. Elements could be assembled quickly, and buildings rose at a pace unknown to traditional construction.

At first, metal was hidden behind plaster columns and similar coverings. Gradually, architects dared to let the material stand exposed. With modernism, steel and concrete became the most fashionable building materials imaginable.

Modules in every direction

Modernist buildings were constructed from modules of concrete, iron, and glass. A wall was one module, a window another, a roof a third, and so forth. Each module was simple and easy to mass-produce in factories. They could be adapted to many contexts, assembled quickly, cheaply, and efficiently. Modular construction became like playing with oversized Lego bricks.

The Swiss-French architect Le Corbusier was one of the leading figures behind modern architecture.

The idea of modular building was largely his. He developed a system called Le Modulor, which he used to calculate the size of all modules in his designs. Le Modulor was based on the proportions of a human figure. From this model, the dimensions of an entire building could be derived.

But Le Corbusier’s theory worked better on paper than in practice. Not everyone is the 1.75 meters that his Modulor Man was based on. Later he changed the height to 1.83 meters when he realized that average human height had shifted.

Freedom, equality, and housing

A central idea in modernist architecture was that since the modern age had transformed society, housing also had to be reimagined. Homes were not to display wealth and status, but to be practical and express equality.

By means of modular construction, good housing could be provided for as many people as possible. Dwellings looked alike, without dividing society into classes. Modernist architecture thus became a symbol of progress, equality, and democracy.

Architects also reimagined the modern city itself. They believed that people could become better if they lived well – in surroundings suited to modern life.

One such proposal was Le Corbusier’s Plan Voisin, envisioning a city of high-rise towers with light and air between them.

Streets were to be broad and straight. Traffic, shopping, housing, and recreation were separated, yet everything was within reach. In this setting, Le Corbusier imagined, the modern person could live a modern, happy life.

Concrete – from praised to despised

In modernist construction, concrete was the hottest material. It was light, strong, moldable, and cheap – enabling good housing for the masses.

Concrete became so fashionable that even non-concrete buildings were disguised to look like it. Just as marble and granite are imitated today, brick walls were once plastered and painted to resemble concrete.

Edvard Thomsen’s Lagkagehuset (1930) is a prime example, with bricks treated to appear as though the building were made of concrete.

It is striking to recall concrete’s popularity then, given that today concrete construction is often seen as undesirable.

Soft and sculptural buildings

Alongside the harder lines of functionalism, another modernist style emerged. The forms were still simple, but softer and more rounded.

These buildings were designed to merge with their surroundings and landscapes, unlike functionalism’s uniform modules that could be placed anywhere.

An example is Jørn Utzon’s Sydney Opera House. Standing by the harbor, its sail-shaped shells harmonize with their setting. It was designed for this specific site – it could not have looked the same elsewhere.

Modernism in Denmark

In Denmark, modernism spans from about 1930 to the 1970s.

Only around 1930 did new architectural trends take hold among Danish architects.

In Denmark, modernism is often called functionalism. Function was the primary purpose of a building. Everything beyond clean, simple forms was to be eliminated. Decoration without function was removed. Architecture had to reflect the industrial age through its pure forms and modern materials like concrete and steel.

The simple building components could be mass-produced, making large structures quick to erect. Housing blocks, factories, and office buildings multiplied.

Architecture from the 1930s to the 1970s

The House of the Future

In 1929, a major building exhibition was held at Forum in Copenhagen, where the international modernist influence on Danish architecture was first displayed.

Here, Flemming Lassen and Arne Jacobsen presented their project The House of the Future. It was strikingly modern, with an unconventional form and layout.

It even included a rooftop helipad, a berth for a boat, and an underground garage. Though never built, the design signaled the coming of a new architectural era.

The true breakthrough for modernism in Denmark came with the 1930 Stockholm Exhibition. Several of its buildings were designed by Swedish architect Gunnar Asplund, whose work deeply impressed Danish architects. In the following years, his influence could be clearly seen in Denmark.

French modernism – Le Corbusier

Danish architects were inspired not only by Swedish modernism and Asplund, but also by international figures such as the Swiss-French architect Le Corbusier.

He was known for his white modernist villas, such as Villa Savoye outside Paris.

Among Danes, Mogens Lassen was perhaps the most inspired by Le Corbusier, especially his white villas, which from the late 1920s became models for European architects.

Lassen was a convinced functionalist. Poorly proportioned spaces bothered him as much as false notes disturb a composer.

In Le Corbusier’s vision, modern houses were to be lifted on pilotis (columns), with open floor plans. Facades were to be freely composed, unlike the rigid schemes of earlier styles like classicism.

Buildings were to include ribbon windows and rooftop gardens. These principles are visible in Mogens Lassen’s own reinforced-concrete home at Sølystvej 5, which he rebuilt multiple times, treating it as a testing ground for new ideas.

The white modernist aesthetic is also seen in Arne Jacobsen’s Bella Vista housing complex.

Danish functionalism

Danish architects did not merely copy international models. They soon developed their own version of modernism, adapted to Danish landscapes, materials, and social needs.

One of the most important was Kay Fisker, who described his own architecture as »a functional tradition.«

Fisker helped design some of Denmark’s most significant 20th-century buildings, including Aarhus University and Vestersøhus in Copenhagen. In both, the dominant elements are form, material, and placement – not style.

The postwar years

After World War II, shortages were everywhere – not just of food, fuel, and coffee, but also of housing, schools, and hospitals.

In the decade following the war, the Danish welfare state began to leave its mark on society. Architects were urgently needed to design the required buildings.

Many schools were built, among them Arne Jacobsen’s Munkegård School in Gentofte, one of the finest examples of 1950s school architecture. Its design integrated contemporary educational principles directly into its layout.

Industrialized building

To meet demand, construction had to be industrialized, inspired by the American auto industry’s methods.

Public housing became the driver of this industrialization. The need for homes could only be met by building quickly, on a large scale, and efficiently.

One of Denmark’s first industrialized housing projects was Bellahøj in Copenhagen. Several architects collaborated on this striking high-rise development, with large green spaces between the towers. Each block consists of twin towers connected by glass-clad elevators and stairwells. The complex contains 1,300 apartments.

The single-family house

Postwar building was not limited to large housing blocks. The single-family home also developed rapidly.

Open-plan houses appeared as early as the 1950s, such as Jørn Utzon’s own home in Hellebæk and Erik Christian Sørensen’s in Ordrup.

Industrialization and standardization soon played a central role, especially in the 1960s and 70s. At first, only smaller details such as windows, doors, fittings, and cladding were standardized. Soon, however, prefabricated load-bearing wall elements were manufactured for on-site assembly.

Danish architects were also inspired by Japanese and American residential architecture and by renowned figures like Frank Lloyd Wright and Mies van der Rohe.

Organic modernism

In 1956, Jørn Utzon won the competition to design the Sydney Opera House.

The building represents a more organic variant of modernism. Its architecture is still simple and functional, but the forms are softer and more sculptural.

This branch of modernism emphasized harmony with the surroundings. Buildings were designed for specific sites, not from mass-produced modules usable anywhere.

The Opera House is inseparable from its location – it could not have looked the same in Denmark or Austria.