Otto Valdemar Koch (20 October 1852 – 24 February 1902) 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 ance ...

architect and local politician. He designed a number of churches in

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 ...

Early life and education

Valdemar Koch was born in the parish of Sønder Kirkeby on the island of

Falster Falster () is an island in south-eastern Denmark with an area of and 43,398 inhabitants as of 1 January 2010.

, Denmark. His parents were pastor Hans Peter Gyllembourg Koch (1807–1883) and his second wife Anna Oline F. Parelius (1823–1861). In 1871, he joined the drawing school of

C. V. Nielsen Christian Vilhelm Nielsen (26 August 1833, in Copenhagen – 26 April 1910, in Copenhagen) was a Danish architect, furniture designer, and professor of perspective. Many aspiring architects attending his drawing school in preparation for admissio ...

. He was then admitted to the

Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts ( da, Det Kongelige Danske Kunstakademi - Billedkunst Skolerne) has provided education in the arts for more than 250 years, playing its part in the development of the art of Denmark. History The Royal Dani ...

from which he graduated in 1879. The following year, he travelled to

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, which he repeated in 1883, 1885 and 1886.

Career

Koch initially worked as a

draughtsman A draughtsman (British spelling) or draftsman (American spelling) may refer to: * An architectural drafter, who produced architectural drawings until the late 20th century * An artist who produces drawings that rival or surpass their other types ...

for

Ludvig Fenger Ludvig Peter Fenger (7 July 1833 – 9 March 1905) was a Danish architect. He was a proponent of the Historicist style, and from 1886 to 1904 he held the title of City Architect in Copenhagen. Among his works are several churches, the Centra ...

and

Hermann Baagøe Storck Hermann Baagøe Storck (18 February 1839 – 4 December 1922) was a Danish architect and heraldist. As an architect, he is mainly known for the restoration of historic buildings. Among his own designs, his building for the Hirschsprung Collect ...

. He participated independently in the competition for the new

Copenhagen City Hall Copenhagen City Hall ( da, Københavns Rådhus) is the headquarters of the Copenhagen City Council as well as the Lord mayor of the Copenhagen Municipality, Denmark. The building is situated on City Hall Square in central Copenhagen. Architect ...

which was held in early 1889. Despite support from the influential

Ferdinand Meldahl Ferdinand Meldahl (16 March 1827 – 3 February 1908) was a Danish architect best known for the reconstruction of Frederiksborg Castle after the fire in 1859. Meldahl was one of the leading proponents of historicism in Denmark. Biography He was ...

he failed to win but later admitted that

Martin Nyrop Martin Nyrop (11 November 1849 18 May 1921) was a Danish architect. Early life and education Nyrop was born on 11 November 1849 at Holmsland, Ringkøbing, the son of parish priest Christopher Nyrop (1805–1879) and Helene Ahlmann (1807–1874). ...

's winning proposal was more modern. Instead he entered local politics in Copenhagen, where he was a member of the

City Council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...

from 1891 to 1897. As an architect, Koch specialised in the design of churches. In 1896 he also surveyed the limestone churches in the area around

Grenå Grenaa (or Grenå) is a Danish town and seaport on the east coast of the Jutlandic peninsula. Tourism, education and commerce are important sectors in the economy of Grenaa. It is the only larger town on Djursland. Grenaa is the municipal seat, an ...

. Valdemar Koch received the

Eckersberg Medal The Eckersberg Medal (originally the ''Akademiets Aarsmedaille'' or Annual Academy Medal) is an annual award of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. It is named after Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg, known as the father of Danish painting. The Ec ...

in 1898 and 1900. Koch exhibited at the

Exposition Universelle (1900) The Exposition Universelle of 1900, better known in English as the 1900 Paris Exposition, was a world's fair held in Paris, France, from 14 April to 12 November 1900, to celebrate the achievements of the past century and to accelerate developmen ...

at which he won the Grand Prix. Koch also designed a memorial to

Svend Svend is a Danish and Norwegian given name that may refer to: * King Svend * Svend Aagesen (c.1145–?), Danish historian * Svend Asmussen (1916–2017), Danish jazz violinist known as "The Fiddling Viking" * Svend Auken (1943–2009), Danish po ...

at Grathe Heath in

Jutland Jutland ( da, Jylland ; german: Jütland ; ang, Ēota land ), known anciently as the Cimbric or Cimbrian Peninsula ( la, Cimbricus Chersonesus; da, den Kimbriske Halvø, links=no or ; german: Kimbrische Halbinsel, links=no), is a peninsula of ...

(1892) and another one to

Canute Lavard Canute Lavard ( Danish: Knud Lavard; cognate with English Lord) (12 March 1096 – 7 January 1131) was a Danish prince. Later he was the first Duke of Schleswig and the first border prince who was both a Danish and a German vassal, a position ...

at Haraldsted just north of

Ringsted Ringsted is a city located centrally in the Danish island of Zealand. It is the seat of a municipality of the same name. Ringsted is situated approximately 60 km from Copenhagen. Tourism and transport Ringsted is one of Denmark's busiest ...

on central

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 1 ...

(1902).

Style

Koch belonged to

Johan Daniel Herholdt Johan Daniel Herholdt (13 August 1818 – 11 April 1902) was a Danish architect, professor and royal building inspector. He worked in the Historicist style and had a significant influence on Danish architecture during the second half of the 19th an ...

's Italian-Danish school as opposed to

's more internationally inclined, "European" school. His work demonstrates a thorough knowledge of architectural archaeology and history with

Romanesque architecture Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of medieval Europe characterized by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque style, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 11th century, this lat ...

as his main source of inspiration. The

Church of Christ Church of Christ may refer to: Church groups * When used in the plural, a New Testament designation for local groups of people following the teachings of Jesus Christ: "...all the churches of Christ greet you", Romans 16:16. * The entire body of Ch ...

in the Vesterbro district of Copenhagen is an example of the Italian inspiration while the use of red brick in the interior of the Apostle Church demonstrates Danish influence.

Personal life

Koch was married to Anina Jensine Ludvigsen (1857–1910), daughter of Berthel Reinholdt Ludvigsen (1814–1879) and Sophie Louise Stoltze (1824–1869). They had one son, Knud Christian Koch (1888–1952). Koch died in 1892 and was buried at

Vestre Cemetery Vestre Cemetery ( da, Vestre Kirkegård, meaning "Western Cemetery") is located in a large park setting in the Kongens Enghave district of Copenhagen, Denmark. With its 54 hectares it is the largest cemetery in Denmark. The cemetery is landscape ...

in Copenhagen.

Selected works

Capernaum Church Capernaum Church (german: link=no, Kapernaum-Kirche) is one of the two places of worship of the Lutheranism, Lutheran Capernaum Congregation, a member of the Evangelical Church of Berlin-Brandenburg-Silesian Upper Lusatia, an umbrella comprising ...

, Nørrebro, Copenhagen (1896) * Zion's Church, Østerbro, Copenhagen (1896) * St. Luke's Church, Frederiksberg, Copenhagen (1897) *

, Vesterbro, Copenhagen (1900) * Apostle Church, Vesterbro, Copenhagen (1901) * Reersø Church,

Kalundborg Municipality Kalundborg Municipality ( da, Kalundborg Kommune) is a municipality in Region Sjælland on the west coast of the island of Zealand in Denmark. The municipality covers an area of , and has a total population of 48,368 (1. January 2022). Its mayor i ...

, Denmark (1904) * Church of Our Saviour,

Vejle Vejle () is a city in Denmark, in the southeast of the Jutland Peninsula at the head of Vejle Fjord, where the Vejle River and Grejs River and their valleys converge. It is the site of the councils of Vejle Municipality ('' kommune'') and the R ...

, Denmark (1904)

Gallery

File:Sions Kirke Copenhagen.jpg, Zion's Church
(1896) File:Sankt Lukas Kirke Copenhagen.jpg, St. Luke's Church
(1897) File:Kristkirken Copenhagen.jpg, Christ Church, Copenhyagen File:Reersoe Kirke.jpg, Reersø Church
(1904) File:VejleVorFrelsers.jpg, Church of Our Saviour,

(1907) File:Kapernaumskirken Copenhagen.jpg, Kapernaum Church, Copenhagen
(1895)

References

External links

Otto Valdemar Koch
at geni.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Koch, Valdemar 19th-century Danish architects 19th-century Copenhagen City Council members Danish ecclesiastical architects Architects of Lutheran churches People from Falster People from Guldborgsund Municipality 1852 births 1902 deaths Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts alumni Recipients of the Eckersberg Medal