Kaare Klint (15 December 1888 – 28 March 1954) was a
Danish
Danish may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark
People
* A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark
* Culture of Denmark
* Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...
architect
An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...
and
furniture designer
This is a list of notable people whose primary occupation is furniture design.
A
* Alvar Aalto (1898-1976)
* Eero Aarnio (born 1932)
* Robert Adam (1728-1792)
* Thomas Affleck (1745-1795)
* Franco Albini (1905-1977)
* Davis Allen (1916-199 ...
, 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 superb craftsmanship.
He was the son of the equally influential architect
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 ...
whose monumental
Grundtvig's Church
Grundtvig's Church ( da, Grundtvigs Kirke) is located in the Bispebjerg district of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is a rare example of expressionist church architecture. Due to its originality, it is one of the best known churches in the city.
History ...
he completed after his father's death in 1930.
Early life and education
Kaare Klint was born on 15 December 1888 in the
Frederiksberg
Frederiksberg () is a part of the Capital Region of Denmark. It is formally an independent municipality, Frederiksberg Municipality, separate from Copenhagen Municipality, but both are a part of the City of Copenhagen. It occupies an area of ...
district of
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
, the son of
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 ...
, then a struggling painter about to abandon his artistic career in place of a more secure career in architecture.
Klint apprenticed as a furniture maker in
Kalundborg
Kalundborg () is a Danish city with a population of 16,211 (1 January 2022),Artists' Studio Schools under
Johan Rohde
Johan Gudmann Rohde (1 November 1856 – 18 February 1935) was a Danish painter, lithographer and designer. He was the principal founder of Den Frie Udstilling, established in 1891 to allow artists to exhibit works which did not fall within the Ac ...
. He was then articled to Carl Petersen and was also taught the architectural trade by his father, who had completed his first architectural project in 1896.
Design career
In 1914, Klint designed his first piece of furniture, the Faaborg Chair, for Carl Petersen's Faaborg Museumbr> in 1914. He went on to create furniture and fittings for a number of other museums.
From 1921 to 1926 he was responsible for the conversion of
Frederiks Hospital
The royal Frederiks Hospital was Denmark's first hospital in the present-day meaning of the word. It was founded by king Frederik V and financed by the earnings from the Norwegian Postal Service.
The buildings, situated in Bredgade in Copenh ...
into the
Danish Museum of Art & Design
The Designmuseum Denmark () is a museum in Copenhagen for Danish and international design and crafts. It features works of famous Danish designers like Arne Jacobsen, Jacob Jensen and Kaare Klint, who was one of the two architects who remodeled ...
together with Thorkild Henningsen and Ivar Bentsen. In 1927 he also created a chair in mahogany for the museum which was inspired by English 18th-century chairs.
Klint's carefully researched furniture designs are based on functionality, proportions adapted to the human body, craftsmanship, and the use of high-quality materials. Notable examples of his work include the Propeller Stool (1927), the Safari Chair and the Deck Chair (both 1933), the Church Chair (1936), and the Circle Bed (1938) featuring curved sides and rounded ends, with hand-woven textiles by Lis Ahlmann.Mussari, Mark. ''Danish Modern: Between Art and Design''. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2016, pp. 84-87.
As a result of the furniture school he founded at the
Royal Academy
The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...
in 1924, Klint had a strong influence on Danish furniture, inspiring designers such as
Poul Kjærholm
Poul Kjærholm (1929 – 1980) was a Danish designer. Born in Østervrå, Denmark, Kjærholm began his career as a cabinetmaker's apprentice with Gronbech in 1948, attending the Danish School of Arts and Crafts in Copenhagen in 1952. I ...
and
Børge Mogensen
Børge Mogensen (13 April 1914 – 5 October 1972), was a Danish furniture designer.
He was one of the most important among a generation of furniture designers who made the concept of “Danish Modern” known throughout the world. Together with ...
.
He also designed textiles, lamps, and organs.
Completion of his father's unfinished works
After his father's death in 1930, Kaare Klint completed his monumental
Grundtvig's Church
Grundtvig's Church ( da, Grundtvigs Kirke) is located in the Bispebjerg district of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is a rare example of expressionist church architecture. Due to its originality, it is one of the best known churches in the city.
History ...
in Copenhagen. Construction had started in 1921 but was not completed until 1940. He also designed the Bethlehem Church, also in Copenhagen, on the basis of his father's sketches. It was built from 1935 to 1937.
Awards and distinctions
* 1949
Honorary Royal Designer for Industry
Royal Designer for Industry is a distinction established by the British Royal Society of Arts (RSA) in 1936, to encourage a high standard of industrial design and enhance the status of designers. It is awarded to people who have achieved "sustained ...
Danish modern
Danish modern is a style of minimalist furniture and housewares from Denmark associated with the Danish design movement. In the 1920s, Kaare Klint embraced the principles of Bauhaus modernism in furniture design, creating clean, pure lines based ...