St. Lukas Church () is a church in
Aarhus
Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Århus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus municipality, Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and app ...
,
Denmark
Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...
. The church is situated in the
Frederiksbjerg neighbourhood on Skt. Lucas Kirkeplads by
Ingerslevs Boulevard. St. Lukas Church is a parish church under the
Church of Denmark
The Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Denmark or National Church ( , or unofficially ; ), sometimes called the Church of Denmark, is the established, state-supported church in Denmark. The supreme secular authority of the church is composed of ...
, the Danish state church, under the
Diocese of Aarhus
The Diocese of Aarhus (Danish language, Danish: ''Århus Stift'') is one of 10 dioceses in the Church of Denmark, with headquarters in the city of Aarhus. The diocese covers a large district of northeast Jutland and comprises 14 deanery, deanerie ...
. It is the parish church of St. Lukas Parish which has some 11.000 parish members. The church was designed by architects
Anton Frederiksen and
Kaj Gottlob
Niels August Theodor Kaj Gottlob, usually known as Kaj Gottlob, (9 November 1887 – 12 May 1976) was a Danish architect who contributed much to Neoclassicism and Functionalism both as professor of the School of Architects at the Royal Danish Aca ...
in
neoclassical style with a 35 meters tall tower. It was constructed between 1921 and 1926 but the crypt under the church, with room for 200 graves, was opened before the church itself, in 1923.
History
During the late 19th century the city of Aarhus was growing rapidly and the central St. Pauls Parish had become the largest in
Jutland
Jutland (; , ''Jyske Halvø'' or ''Cimbriske Halvø''; , ''Kimbrische Halbinsel'' or ''Jütische Halbinsel'') is a peninsula of Northern Europe that forms the continental portion of Denmark and part of northern Germany (Schleswig-Holstein). It ...
. It was decided to divide the parish and establish a new church and at the same time, in 1896, the city bought the
Marselisborg estate, intending to develop it into a new city neighbourhood. The state engineer of
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
,
Charles Ambt, and the royal surveour
Hack Kampmann was commissioned to draw plans for what would become the
Frederiksbjerg neighbourhood and the result was a large residential area with Ingerslevs Boulevard as a central, open boulevard to accommodate markets and recreational spaces. Construction of the church began in 1921 and was finished in 1926.
Architecture
The church was designed by Kaj Gottlob and Anton Frederiksen and situated by the central
Ingerslevs Boulevard in Frederiksbjerg on the axis of ''Stadion Allé''. It is designed to fit into the overall plan of the neighbourhood and the surrounding areas are reflected in the architecture. The boulevard and Stadion Allé are defined by stringent straight lines and the neoclassical
Atletion
Aarhus Stadium ( Danish: Aarhus Stadion) known for sponsorship reasons as the Ceres Park is an association football stadium in Aarhus, Denmark which has been the home ground of Aarhus Gymnastikforening since the 1920s. With a current capacity o ...
stadium at the southern end of Stadion Allé. The straight lines and symmetry are repeated in the design of the neoclassical church. Surrounding buildings are 5-6 stories which roughly corresponds to the height of the church tower but while the area is dominated by red brick buildings, the church is made of light gray
limestone
Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...
from
Faxe.
The structure architecturally presents a monumental appearance with a tall superstructure, dominating tower, large windows,
baluster
A baluster () is an upright support, often a vertical moulded shaft, square, or lathe-turned form found in stairways, parapets, and other architectural features. In furniture construction it is known as a spindle. Common materials used in its ...
and wide granite stairs. It has a clean, puritanical appearance with few decorations and an open tower with free hanging bells. The church interior is minimalist with few decorations, a wide hall in the nave and a small elevation to the baptismal font.
See also
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List of churches in Aarhus
References
External links
*
*
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{{Aarhus
Lutheran churches in Aarhus
Churches in the Central Denmark Region
Churches completed in 1926
Neoclassical architecture in Aarhus
Churches in the Diocese of Aarhus
Neoclassical church buildings in Denmark