Klintegarden is an apartment complex and a number of
listed buildings in Aarhus, Denmark. The complex was built in 1938 and was listed in the Danish registry of protected buildings and places by the
Danish Heritage Agency
The Danish Agency for Culture and Palaces ( da, Slots- og Kulturstyrelsen) is an agency under the aegis of the Danish Ministry of Culture. The agency carries out the cultural policies of the Danish government within the visual and performing arts, ...
on 9 December 2013.
The buildings represent one of the most significant and important examples of early 20th-century functionalist architecture in Aarhus.
The complex is situated on a hill slope immediately south of the
Riis Skov urban forest in the
Skovvejskvarteret neighbourhood of the inner city. It consists of two 6-floor apartment buildings facing the road ''Skovvejen'' and the
Bay of Aarhus respectively, with two older villas placed between them in an atrium garden. The villas are from 1896 (Villa Højbo) and 1900 (Villa Sunhill) and were remodeled in the years 1936–38 when the apartment blocks were built. The complex is today a
condominium
A condominium (or condo for short) is an ownership structure whereby a building is divided into several units that are each separately owned, surrounded by common areas that are jointly owned. The term can be applied to the building or complex ...
.
History
In the early 20th century the ideals of
historicism were replaced by functionalism which in Denmark became popular after the
Stockholm Exhibition of 1930. Functionalism broke with the former historical imitations and use of decorations to focus on materials and their function. Attention was paid to use of materials that could be mass-produced and tying form, function and technique together. In Aarhus the style is best exemplified by the
University by
C.F. Møller and
Kay Fisker
Kay Otto Fisker, Hon. FAIA (14 February 1893 – 21 June 1965) was a Danish architect, designer and educator. He is mostly known for his many housing projects, mainly in the Copenhagen area, and is considered a leading exponent of Danish Functi ...
, the
City Hall
In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...
by
Arne Jacobsen and
Erik Møller
Svend Erik Møller (7 November 1909 – 24 March 2002) was a Danish architect.
Møller used to work with the famous Danish architect and designer Arne Jacobsen. Together they won the competition to design the new City Hall in Aarhus, which was ...
and Klintegaarden by Hans Ove Christensen.
Today the complex fits into the surroundings with many buildings of similar size but at the time it was built it towered above the city as one of the tallest buildings in it on a hill high above it. Architecturally the buildings were unique for the time with simple features and a clean white exterior. The engineer Ove Christensen had previously designed four other functionalist developments in the city and he made Klintegaarden one of the most modern residential buildings at the time.
Facilities
The complex is designed with community and
collectivism in mind. The two villas on the property were remodeled and fit into the new complex as community units with banquet room,
billiard rooms, playrooms for children and guest rooms. There was a small restaurant where it was possible to eat or order food to the apartments and a cleaning service. The space between the apartment blocks and around the central villa was made into a garden with fountains and trees from the former gardens of the villas.
The interior was modern for the time with refrigerators, garbage chutes for every unit, central heating in all rooms and both hot and cold water in both kitchen and bathroom – a luxury in the interwar period. In the building facing the
Bay of Aarhus there was elevators and in the basements electrical washing facilities and an underground parking garage so cars and bicycles were removed from the street. The overall vision with the many communal facilities was to create a community where the residents lived close and had a clean safe, environment to play in while everyday life wasn't hampered by daily chores. The cost of the facilities was covered through the rent which added a collectivist aspect.
Over time the public facilities have disappeared. The villas have been made into private homes and the apartments changed from rents to condos. The original ideals were unique for the time and an experiment which drew much attention but it did not last.
Architecture
The apartment complexes are 6 stories of concrete elements topped with a flat roof. The windows sit flush with the facade in vertical rows broken by exterior or interior balconies. On the side facing the water, the balconies are round while they are rectangular towards the courtyard and street. The apartment complexes are made of thin elements which is very visible in the exterior, giving the massive buildings a lightness.
On the water-facing side, the buildings have many maritime elements highlighting the relationship with the water and
port below. On the roof height differences have been used to create a displacement reminiscent of a ship's bridge and the long communal rooftop terrace is guarded by a slender rail with round windows on the walls behind, inspired by the sundeck on an ocean liner. The narrow hallways inside have rounded windows to the outside given the feel of a cabin hallway.
References
External links
Danish Center for Architecture page for Klintegaarden*
{{Coord, 56.16813, 10.21935, region:DK_type:landmark, display=title
Listed buildings in Aarhus
Residential buildings completed in 1938
Functionalist architecture in Aarhus
1930s architecture in Denmark