Neoclassicism

Architecture changed greatly in Europe at the beginning of the 20th century. Despite developments in Germany and France, modernism did not truly take hold in Danish architecture until around 1930. Until then, Danish architects once again looked backward to the architecture of antiquity, and also to Danish classicism from the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

This period in Danish architectural history is known as neoclassicism.

Characteristic features

The hallmarks of this period closely resemble those of classical architecture. Some of the most significant traits are simplicity, pure forms, straight lines, and a symmetrical, harmonious layout. Architects aimed to create grand and pure architecture after the historicist period, which had produced buildings with highly mixed expressions.

They sought to design each building around a single idea and form, to which all details had to conform. As in antiquity and classicism, geometry was the central principle. Unlike the 19th century’s classicism, however, greater attention was now given to materials and the way they were experienced.

This can be seen, for example, in both the Faaborg Museum and the Police Headquarters in Copenhagen.

Faaborg Museum

Faaborg Museum was designed by Carl Petersen, the most famous architect of neoclassicism. He admired C. F. Hansen, the most celebrated Danish architect of classicism, as well as the Italian Andrea Palladio and especially Roman antiquity.

Petersen’s best-known work is Faaborg Museum (1912–15). The museum is located on a small street, which posed a major challenge during construction. The building needed to fit into the street while still being noticed.

It is a single-story structure with a modest yet imposing facade. Unlike many other museums, its facade is set back from the street in a concave curve with a gable containing the entrance portal, framed by columns.

The building is composed of contrasts. The exterior facade is completely gray, while the museum’s galleries are painted in different colors. A bright room is followed by a dark one, and so on. This interplay of contrasts is characteristic of neoclassicism. Petersen’s use of contrast can also be seen in another major neoclassical building: the Police Headquarters in Copenhagen.

The Police Headquarters in Copenhagen

Built between 1918 and 1924, the Police Headquarters involved several architects. Hack Kampmann was chief architect, assisted by his sons and their friend Aage Rafn. Today, Rafn is considered to have designed most of the building.

Seen from outside, the building appears dull, monotonous, even intimidating. It is inaccessible, and its facade reveals nothing of the interior. Inside, however, it is quite different. The building’s central features are its large round courtyard and a slightly smaller square one.

Viewed from above, the building looks as if the architects took a massive block and carved out two voids – one round, one square. It reflects neoclassical ideals: simple geometric forms, clean lines, and harmony. The building’s form also supports the concept of surveillance, fundamental to the function of the police.

The round courtyard recalls the idea of a panopticon, though it does not fully follow its plan. The panopticon, designed by philosopher Jeremy Bentham in the late 18th century, was a type of prison where one guard could observe all inmates without them knowing whether they were being watched. The result was preventive: believing they were under surveillance, prisoners behaved differently.

A long facade – residential buildings

Neoclassicism was not limited to monumental works – it also shaped housing construction, guided by the same ideals of simplicity, pure forms, and clean lines. After World War I, many new public housing projects were built. Typically, these were large perimeter blocks surrounding shared courtyards, giving families direct access to green space.

Neoclassicism’s demand for simplicity and rhythmic unity in facades aligned perfectly with the era’s rational and economic requirements for housing.

A good example is Hornbækhus (1923) in Copenhagen. Characteristic of Hornbækhus, as with other contemporary projects, is the absence of dormers, balconies, and bay windows. Instead, the facade is strict, smooth, and uniform, divided into regular sections.

Today these somewhat monotonous and formalistic housing blocks may appear dull, but at the time their well-proportioned, functional apartments represented a major improvement in living standards for ordinary people.