Sverre Fehn

Sverre Fehn
Born	(1924-08-14)14 August 1924 Kongsberg, Buskerud, Norway
Died	23 February 2009(2009-02-23) (aged 84) Oslo, Norway
Nationality	Norwegian
Occupation	Architect
Awards	Heinrich Tessenow Gold Medal Pritzker Prize
Buildings	Norwegian Glacier Museum

Sverre Fehn (14 August 1924 – 23 February 2009) was a Norwegian architect.^[1]

Life

Fehn was born at Kongsberg in Buskerud, Norway. He was the son of John Tryggve Fehn (1894–1981) and Sigrid Johnsen (1895–1985). He received his

In 1949, Fehn and architect Geir Grung (1926–1989) won the competition for the Museum Building for the Sandvig Collections at Maihaugen in Lillehammer. In 1950, Fehn joined PAGON (Progressive Architects Group Oslo, Norway). The group, which was led by Arne Korsmo, had the goal of implementing and promoting modern architecture.^[3]

In 1952–1953, during travels in Morocco, he discovered vernacular architecture , which was to deeply influence his future work. Later he moved to Paris, where he worked for two years in the studio of Jean Prouvé, and where he knew Le Corbusier. On his return to Norway in 1954, he opened a studio of his own in Oslo. ^[3]

At the age of 34, Fehn gained international recognition for his design of the Norwegian Pavilion at the

He was a professor at Oslo's School of Architecture from 1971 to 1995 and principal from 1986–1989. He additionally lectured throughout Europe including at

Projects

Fehn designed over 100 buildings;^[6] Some of the most notable are:

• 1958 – Norwegian Pavilion at the Brussels World's Fair, Belgium
• 1962 – Nordic Pavilion at the Venice Biennale, Italy
• 1963 – Villa Schreiner, Oslo
• 1963-64 – Villa Norrköping, Sweden
• 1967 – Casa Bødtker House, Oslo
• 1967-79 –
  Hedmark Museum
  in Hamar, Norway
• 1990 – Villa Busk, Bamble
• 1991-2002 – Norwegian Glacier Museum, Fjærland
• 1993-96 – Aukrust Centre in Alvdal
• 2000 – Ivar Aasen-tunet in Ørsta
• 2007 – Gyldendal House, Oslo
• 2003-08 –
  National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design
  , Oslo

• 
  Norwegian Glacier Museum in Fjærland
• 
  Aukrust Centre in Alvdal
• 
  National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design
• 
  Storhamar barn at Hedmark
• 
  Økern Nursing Home in Oslo

Awards

In 1961, he was awarded the Houen Foundation Award, jointly with Geir Grung, for the design of the Økern Nursing Home in Oslo. He received the Houen Foundation Award for his design of the Hedmark Museum at Hamar in 1975. In 1994 he was appointed Commander in the Order of St. Olav.^[4]

In 1998, he was awarded the

His highest international honour came in 1997, when he was awarded both the Pritzker Architecture Prize and the Heinrich Tessenow Gold Medal (Heinrich-Tessenow-Medaille). ^{[9] [10]}

Personal life

In 1952, he married Ingrid Løvberg Pettersen (1929–2005). Fehn died in his Oslo home at the age of 84.^[11] He was survived by his son Guy Fehn and four grandchildren.^[12]

References

Other sources

• Olaf Fjeld (2009) Sverre Fehn: The Pattern of Thoughts (The Monacelli Press)
  ISBN 978-1580932172
• Gennaro Postiglione; Christian Norberg-Schulz (1997) Sverre Fehn (The Monacelli Press)
  ISBN 978-1885254641
• Per-Olaf Fjeld (1983) Sverre Fehn on the Thought of Construction (Rizzoli International)
  ISBN 978-0847804719

Related reading

• The Secret of the Shadow: Light and Shadow in Architecture, 2002 with writings by Sverre Fehn
• Sverre Fehn, The poetry of the straight line =: Den rette linjes poesi, 1992
• Yukio Futagawa, Sverre Fehn. Glacier Museum. The Aukrust Centre, in "GA Document 56", 1998
• Sverre Fehn. Studio Holme, in "GA Houses 58", 1998

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sverre Fehn.

• Sverre Fehn Arkitekt. Online catalog of works and architecture map guide
• Presentation of Sverre Fehn's built projects
• Profile on the Pritzker Prize media site

Awards
Preceded by Liv Ullmann	Recipient of the Norsk kulturråds ærespris 1998	Succeeded by Finn Carling