Askingabouticelands Architecture and Its Future
Iceland and Architecture?
After the Crash 11.08 © Gudmundur Ingolfson / 1October – 13 November 2011
Deutsches Architekturmuseum DAM
Schaumaninkai 43, Frankfurt am Main
OPENING:
Fri, 30September 2011, 19.00
PRESS CONFERENCE:
Fri, 30September 2011, 17.00
OPEN:
Tues., Thurs.-Sat. 11 a.m. – 6 p.m. / Wed. 11 a.m. – 8 p.m. / Sun. 11 a.m. – 7 p.m.; closed Mondays
ABOUT THE EXHIBITION / 2
MATERIALITY AND ARCHITECTURAL TYPOLOGIES / 3
PUBLICATION / 4
IMPRINT / 5
COINCIDING PROGRAM / 5
COMING SOON / CONTACT / 6
ASKINGABOUTICELANDS ARCHITECTURE AND ITS FUTURE
For the Icelanders, the financial crisis in October 2008 changed everything – their banks collapsed, the exchange rate of the Icelandic krona sagged, and home-owners found themselves hopelessly in debt. The people rose up, kicked out the government, and ostracized the few key players in the scandal who will forthwith have to lead a life of exile – along with their foreign currency reserves. Yet life of course goes on, and the Icelanders who for centuries led a poor life as full of deprivation as it was with invention are now having to unearth the character traits that originally made them strong. In shortened interviews (long version inside catalog) with selected experts, this exhibition by DAM paints a picture of the mood, combining a consideration of the path and one of the future in an attempt to find a basis for a post-crisis life. Positive impulses may even emanate from such a small but flexible country. And now these seem to be even more relevant for others as well.
The exhibition is accompanied by photographs from Guðmundur Ingólfsson. The documentary “Future of Hope” by the British director Henry Bateman presents with different meanings approaches for the future of Iceland after the crisis.
In addition an abstract from the preface of the catalogue by Peter Cachola Schmal:
The architects hold a key position here, as in the short boom years they were willing service providers for New Money and built the gigantically-scaled complexes relying on customary international methods but with new materials. The former architecture critic Hjalmar Sveinsson, today Reykjavik’s Municipal Planning Officer, exposes the urban planning sins of the boom days and outlines the burden of an urban-planning heritage that was driven by an ideology of the superiority of the market over the public sector. The financial crisis destroyed not only the property market, with architects subsequently losing their jobs, but also severely pruned cultural funding. The country’s only architecture collection (at the ReykjavikArt Museum at Hafnarhus) was recently closed and the only curator for architecture sacked. The collection’s founder, architect and publicist Petur Armansson, has written not only a history of Icelandic architecture for this volume, from turf houses via concrete structure through to the new topographical trends, but also describes the structure of the collection and the foundation of Iceland’s first college for architects, where he currently teaches.
Iceland’s most famous buildings, such as the Hallgrims Church in Reykjavik, were designed by Gudjón Samúelsson, the country’s first State Architect. One of Iceland’s leading architects, Ögmundur Skarphédinsson of Hornsteinar Architekten describes how he concerned himself with the oeuvre of that illustrious role model and what influence Samúelsson had on him. Consultant structural engineer and planner Sigurdur Gunnarsson (who now lives in exile in Oslo) and light planner Rogier van der Heide (now a Philips Board member) teamed up with Hornsteinar to plan the future Saga Institute, and discuss the impact the Icelandic sagas and Icelandic light should have on an architecture of the future if it is to be authentic and original.
The Icelandic architectural office best known outside the country is Studio Granda. Margrėt Hardardóttir and Steve Christer cast a glance at their development over the last two decades and offer a blunt account of the future of their profession. Sigrídur Sigthorsdòttir (who currently teaches in Norway) has found a successful niche for herself. She explains how the construction of the famed Blue Lagoon incisively changed her life and led to other spa buildings be erected in Iceland and Norway. German architect Jörn Frenzel and his interdisciplinary team vatnavinir (friends of water) are widely considered the symbolic trailblazers of a new Icelandic Modesty. Their studies on small solutions in connection with thermal water point an optimistic path into the future.
MATERIALITY AND ARCHITECTURAL TYPOLOGIES
Buildings of Turf and Stone
The absence of a tangible building heritage is one of the decisive facts about Icelandic architecture. Due to Iceland’s insular position, both the volcanic geology and the harsh climate conditions for constructing buildings are distinctly different from those of Scandinavia and mainland Europe. Before the introduction of concrete around 1900, Iceland did not have easy access to suitable materials to make permanent buildings. Mortar, brick, and masonry construction were not an option for geological and climatic reasons. There were limitations to wood supply, no local forests existed, only small birch trees and driftwood. From early on, structural wood for larger buildings was transported by sea from Scandinavia and mainland Europe.
The first Viking settlers came to Iceland around AD 870, mainly from Norway. They brought with them a method of building houses out of soil, wood, and uncut stone, which was the predominant way of building in Norway at that time. The turf houses gradually became a local tradition in Iceland. Archaeological excavations have revealed early buildings in the form of so-called long-houses or halls (skáli). These were single-room dwellings in different sizes, with roofs supported by two rows of posts. The posts divided the space into three aisles, with an open fire pit in the centre.
The long-lasting development of vernacular turf architecture is without doubt Iceland’s most important contribution to world architecture. The transitory nature of the materials meant that each building had to be rebuilt regularly, every twenty-five to fifty years, depending on the location. Rocks and intact timber supports could be reused, but more often than not new material needed to be added. The separate buildings (units) of each farmhouse could be renewed in phases, given the short time in summer that was available for doing so. The farm as a whole underwent gradual changes in the course of time, reflecting the materials used and local conditions.
Buildings of Wood
Wood-frame buildings with tarred walls and pitched roofs became common in the early nineteenth century, mainly in Reykjavík and other small trading centers along the coast. As the nineteenth century progressed, the architecture of wooden houses became more elaborate. From 1870 onwards, influence of prefabricated timber houses brought to Iceland by Norwegian herring merchants and whalers became widespread. This influence was manifested in the so-called Schweizerstil (Swiss-style) that characterized the final phase of timber construction, lasting until about 1915.
A Century of Concrete
The introduction of concrete construction around 1900 was a turning point in Icelandic architecture. For the first time, an economical method was found to make long-lasting and fire-proof buildings out of local materials. From early on, concrete was used for technically advanced structures. A notable example is the arch-bridge crossing the river Fnjóská in North Iceland. The concrete arch, measuring fifty-five meters, was for many years the longest spanning structure of its kind in the Nordic countries.
When the influence of modern or functionalist architecture came to Iceland around 1930, concrete construction was a well-established trade. By that time, the use of concrete in all types of buildings was more common in Iceland than in the other Nordic countries. With new architectural ideas, more attention was given to the structural and spatial possibilities of concrete, taking a local building trade one step further.
Another wave of new architectural trends arrived in Iceland after 1960, taking open-plan layout and flexible utilization of space one step further. Influence from postwar modern American architecture is evident in many single family houses of the nineteen-sixties. Emphasis was placed on expressing the structure as a main feature in the exterior form of a building.
In recent years, several architects have managed to capture in their work the poetic qualities of the Icelandic landscape: its vastness, the quality of light, and the shelter from harsh weather. In light of contemporary environmental concerns and growing interest in ecological solutions in architecture the Icelandic tradition of building with the landscape is of particular relevance.
The Arctic Oasis
The use of geothermal water for heating and bathing is an important aspect of Icelandic culture. As a tradition in architecture, hot pools go back to the thirteenth century.
Geothermal heating of houses became common in Iceland during the nineteen-twenties and -thirties. In that period, small outdoor pools for swimming instruction were built around Iceland in locations where hot springs were to be found. A well-known example is the Seljavellir pool at Eyjafjöll, South Iceland, built in 1928 by volunteer members of a local youth organization. Located in a narrow mountain creek, the cliff rock forms one side of the pool. The white, cubic forms of the modest concrete structure make a powerful contrast with the dramatic landscape setting.
PUBLICATION
/Peter Cachola Schmal (Ed.)
Iceland and Architecture?Jovis Publisher, Berlin / 2011
German / English, 256 pages, 150 coloured images,
24 x 30 cm, Hardcover
ISBN: 973-3-86859-121-7
Bookstore prize 38 EUR, museum shop prize 29,95EUR.
IMPRINT
Iceland and Architecture?
1October - 13November 2011 at the Deutsches Architekturmuseum (DAM)
Curator Peter Cachola Schmal
Exhibition concept and film camera interviews Mario Lorenz, Deserve Wiesbaden/Berlin
Consultants Sigurdur Gunnarsson, Oslo; Matthias Wagner K, Berlin
Film editing and postproduction Christian Lerch
Public relations Brita Köhler, Stefanie Lampe
Poster, banner and invitation card Gardeners, Frankfurt am Main
Office staffInka Plechaty
Administrative staff Yvonne Künstler
Exhibition setup and hanging under the direction of Christian Walter
We like to thank Spier Films UK for the kind permission for the screening of “Future of Hope” by Henry Bateman.
On the occasion of the Icelandic presentation as the Guest of Honor at Frankfurt Book Fair, the exhibition
is part of the art and culture program and in cooperation with Fabulous Iceland.
Kindly supported by:
Lecture: STUDIO GRANDA ARCHITECTS
Wed, 26October 2011 \ 19.00 –5 Euro
Margrét Hardardóttir, Steve Christer (Studio Granda Architects, Reykjavík \ Island)
Studio Granda was founded 1987 by Margrét Hardardóttir and Steve Christer, both studied at the Architectural Association in London. The work of the office, based in Reykjavík, is characterized by a respectful use of traditional islandic materials like stone, sheet metal and brick as well as a sensitive grasp for the local context.
/ Press images for announcements and reports during the exhibition period at19 November 2011 – 15 January 2012
Eminent Architects. Seen by Ingrid von Kruse
2December2011– 29April 2012
WOHA. Breathing Architecture
10December 2011 – 29April 2012
schneider + schumacher
DEUTSCHES ARCHITEKTURMUSEUM
Press & Public Relations
Schaumainkai 43, 60596 Frankfurt am Main, Germany,
Brita Köhler, Dipl.-Ing. (FH)
T +49 (0)69 212 36318 \ F +49 (0)69 212 36386
Stefanie Lampe, B.A. / Assistence
T +49 (0)69 212 31326 \ F +49 (0)69 212 36386
PRESS INFORMATION page1