Grundtvig's Church ( da, Grundtvigs Kirke) is located in the

Bispebjerg Bispebjerg, more commonly referred to as Nordvest (English: North-West), is one of the 10 official districts of Copenhagen, Denmark. Located on the northern border of the municipality, it covers an area of 5.39 km² and a population of 40,03 ...

district of Copenhagen,

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , established ...

. It is a rare example of

expressionist Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it r ...

church architecture. Due to its originality, it is one of the best known churches in the city.

History

The commission for the construction of a church to be named after the Danish philosopher, pastor and hymn writer

N. F. S. Grundtvig Nikolaj Frederik Severin Grundtvig (; 8 September 1783 – 2 September 1872), most often referred to as N. F. S. Grundtvig, was a Danish pastor, author, poet, philosopher, historian, teacher and politician. He was one of the most influential peo ...

was decided through a competition, won by

Peder Vilhelm Jensen-Klint Peder Vilhelm Jensen-Klint (21 June 1853 – 1 December 1930) was a Danish architect, designer, painter and architectural theorist, best known for designing Grundtvig's Church in Copenhagen, generally considered to be one of the most importan ...

in 1913. The foundation of the new church was only laid after World War I, on 8 September 1921, Grundtvig's birthday. Building took place mainly from 1921 to 1926 when the tower section was completed, leading to the initial inauguration of the so-called Tower Church in 1927. Further work on the interior and on adjacent buildings continued until 1940 and was completed by Klint's son

Kaare Klint Kaare Klint (15 December 1888 – 28 March 1954) was a Danish architect and furniture designer, known as the father of modern Danish furniture design. Style was epitomized by clean, pure lines, use of the best materials of his time and supe ...

after his father's death in 1930. The church stands at the centre of a residential development (1924–36), also in yellow brick, designed by Jensen-Klint in harmony with the church.

Architecture

Jensen-Klint's design for Grundtvig's Church is a synthesis of architectural styles. In preparation for the project, the architect studied many Danish village churches, particularly those on the island of

Zealand Zealand ( da, Sjælland ) at 7,031 km2 is the largest and most populous island in Denmark proper (thus excluding Greenland and Disko Island, which are larger in size). Zealand had a population of 2,319,705 on 1 January 2020. It is the ...

with

stepped gables A stepped gable, crow-stepped gable, or corbie step is a stairstep type of design at the top of the triangular gable-end of a building. The top of the parapet wall projects above the roofline and the top of the brick or stone wall is stacked in a ...

. Their traditional building techniques, materials and decoration inspired his design. Klint merged the modern geometric forms of

Brick Expressionism The term Brick Expressionism (german: Backsteinexpressionismus) describes a specific variant of Expressionist architecture that uses bricks, tiles or clinker bricks as the main visible building material. Buildings in the style were erected mos ...

with the classical vertical of

Gothic architecture Gothic architecture (or pointed architecture) is an architectural style that was prevalent in Europe from the late 12th to the 16th century, during the High and Late Middle Ages, surviving into the 17th and 18th centuries in some areas. It ...

. The most striking feature of the building is its west façade, reminiscent of a

westwork A westwork (german: Westwerk), forepart, avant-corps or avancorpo is the monumental, often west-facing entrance section of a Carolingian, Ottonian, or Romanesque church. The exterior consists of multiple stories between two towers. The interior ...

or of the exterior of a

church organ Carol Williams performing at the United States Military Academy West Point Cadet Chapel.">West_Point_Cadet_Chapel.html" ;"title="United States Military Academy West Point Cadet Chapel">United States Military Academy West Point Cadet Chapel. ...

. It includes the 49 m (160 ft) tall bell tower. The imposing façade with its strong verticality guides one's eyes towards the sky. The bottom half of the tower is simple brick while the upper reaches present the appearance of one solid, rippling surface.. Klint decorated the nave with a version of the

common on Danish churches, but reinterpreted by doubling the apex. The nave was designed with generous dimensions: the triple-aisled

hall church A hall church is a church with a nave and aisles of approximately equal height, often united under a single immense roof. The term was invented in the mid-19th century by Wilhelm Lübke, a pioneering German art historian. In contrast to an arch ...

is 76 m (259 ft) long in total and 35 m (115 ft) wide; the nave has a height of 22 m (72 ft).

Interior

The interior, inspired by Gothic architecture and comparable in size to

Copenhagen cathedral The Church of Our Lady ( da, Vor Frue Kirke) is the cathedral of Copenhagen. It is situated on the Frue Plads public square in central Copenhagen, next to the historic main building of the University of Copenhagen. The present-day version of the ...

, holds a congregation of 1,440. Some five million yellow

brick A brick is a type of block used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a block composed of dried clay, but is now also used informally to denote other chemically cured cons ...

s, a typical Danish building material, were used for the edifice. In its floor plan, the interior resembles that of a typical Gothic church with a nave, two lateral

aisle An aisle is, in general, a space for walking with rows of non-walking spaces on both sides. Aisles with seating on both sides can be seen in airplanes, certain types of buildings, such as churches, cathedrals, synagogues, meeting halls, parl ...

s and a small

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform (" cross-shaped") building wi ...

. Its proportions are also Gothic: a long, narrow nave, an extremely high ceiling, the columns which rise up to pointed arches and the ribbed

groin vault A groin vault or groined vault (also sometimes known as a double barrel vault or cross vault) is produced by the intersection at right angles of two barrel vaults. Honour, H. and J. Fleming, (2009) ''A World History of Art''. 7th edn. London: Lau ...

s above the nave and aisles. But it is the yellow brick and the lack of ornamentation which contribute to the Gothic verticality while adhering to the minimalist modern aesthetic.

The two organs

The church has two organs. The one on the north side of the nave near the chancel was built in 1940 by

Marcussen & Søn Marcussen & Søn, also known as Marcussen and previously as Marcussen & Reuter, is a Danish firm of pipe organ builders. They were one of the first firms to go back to classical organ-building techniques, and have been producing mechanical-action ...

, the façade being designed by Kaare Klint. It has 14 stops, two manuals and a pedalboard. The much larger Marcussen instrument at the western end of the nave was added in 1965 with a façade designed by Kaare Klint's son, Esben Klint. It has 55 stops, four manuals and a pedalboard. The largest of its pipes weighs 425 kg (937 lb) and, with a length of 32 feet (11 m), is the longest organ pipe in Scandinavia.

Integration and flanking buildings

The scheme also included the construction of a number of buildings collectively known as ''On the Hill'' (da. ''På Bjerget'') on each side of the church, placing it in a symmetrical context to enhance its visual impact. Designed by Jensen-Klint in collaboration with Vilhelm Wittrup, Charles I. Schou and Georg Gøssel, the buildings contain the parish hall and apartments and were built from 1924 to 1926. A long tree-lined road leads through

Bispebjerg cemetery Bispebjerg Cemetery (Danish: Bispebjerg Kirkegård), established in 1903 on the moderately graded north slope of Bispebjerg Hill, is the newest of five municipal cemeteries in Copenhagen, Denmark. The main entrance to the cemetery is located nex ...

directly towards the church and the flanking buildings, creating a viewing axis similar to those of the

Baroque period The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including th ...

Grundtvig's church today

The church is open to visitors all year, not just at the times of services. The great Marcussen organ is regularly used for concerts. The church is equipped with a wheelchair stair lift for the disabled people.

Gallery

File:Pv jensen-klint 05 grundtvig memorial church 1913-1940.jpg, Façade file:Grundtvigskirken - Church chairs.jpg, Nave, looking towards choir File:Grundtvigskirken-grundsten-2005.jpg, Foundation stone File:Grundtvigskirken-lysekrone-2005.jpg, Chandelier file:Grundtvigskirken-vest-2005-3.jpg, West façade File:P.v. jensen-klint 09, grundtvig memorial church.jpg, Vaulting detail File:Grundtvigskirken-alter-2005.jpg, Altar file:Grundtvigskirken-nord-2005.jpg, Nave, north side File:Grundvig church nave vaulting.jpg, Vaulting in the southern section of the nave File:Pv jensen-klint 10 grundtvig memorial church 1913-1940.jpg, Interior

References

20+C+M+B+20

Bibliography

* .

External links

Renderings
in the

Danish National Art Library The Danish National Art Library is the national research library for architecture, art history, visual arts and museology in Denmark. It was founded in 1754 as part of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and has been located at Charlottenborg ...

Source
{{Copenhagen Churches in Bispebjerg Lutheran churches in Copenhagen Churches completed in 1940 20th-century Lutheran churches 20th-century Church of Denmark churches Brick Expressionism Landmarks in Copenhagen Churches in the Diocese of Copenhagen N. F. S. Grundtvig