Jorn Utzon

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Jorn Utzon
Jorn Utzon is an artist and an architect whose roots extend back into history touching on the Mayan, Chinese, Islamic, and many other cultures, including his own Scandinavian legacies. In architecture, Utzon stands for the right of expression as the supreme law, as it had been for all creative spirits. He combines the more ancient heritages with his own balanced discipline; a sense of architecture as an art and a natural instinct, for the organic structures related to the site conditions.

Life History
Born on April 9,1918 in Copenhagen, Denmark. Utzons father was director of shipyard in Alborg (Denmark) and was a brilliant navel-architect. Utzon studied at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen in 1942. In 1945, he studied with Alvar Aalto and Gunner Asplund. In 1948, he came in contact with Fernand Ledger and Le Corbusier in Paris and came in contact with the sculptor Henri Laurens. In 1949, a scholarship took him to U.S. and then to Mexico. He spent a short time with F.L.Wright & came in contact with Mies van der Rohe. Jorn Utzon established his own practice in 1950. In 1957, he won the competition for the Sydney Opera House in Australia. After 1957, he found many opportunities to visit China, Nepal, India, and Japan; to experience the varieties of their cultures. In March 1963, Utzon went to Sydney to oversee the difficult construction of his Opera House. In 1964, he won the first prize for a new building for the Zurich Theater.

PHILOSOPHIES
THE HORIZONTAL PLANE : (AS A CONSTITUTIONAL ELEMENT) THE RIGHT EXPRESSION EMPATHY WITH THE SITUATION IMAGINATION & IMPLEMENTATION

THE HORIZONTAL PLANE :

(AS A CONSTITUTIONAL ELEMENT)
Utzon was inspired by the great scale of the terraced buildings of the Aztecs & Mayas According to him; The horizontal plane or the platform as an architectural element, is a very fascinating feature. There are many variations both in size & idea of the platforma great strength radiates from them. He feels the horizontal plane the platform to be the backbone of the architectural compositions.

THE RIGHT EXPRESSION

At the present moment, only a master architect can dare to manifest the independence of expression from function. For example, he transformed the abstract verticality of the glass into a dynamic flexible form, made-up of separate glass panes, each one overlapping the one below.

Glass Fascad

The real secret of Utzons success is his obedience to the eternal architectural law : the close relations of architecture and geometry; vaults of his opera house present the best example. When seen in totality, the building itself shows how it fulfills its human-purpose.

VAULTS OF SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE

EMPATHY WITH THE SITUATION

One of the traits of the third generation is a strong feeling for landscape and the architectural environment. In Utzons opinion too, environment & architecture should be interlocked as intensively as possible. For instance, in Sydney, this meant correlating a high-rise building with the cosmic expanse of sea and sky.

IMAGINATION & IMPLEMENTATION

Jorn Utzon combines a rare power of spatial imagination with the ability to express this graphically. Behind this imaginative power stands a primary impulse to depart from the two-dimensionality of the drawing board and come to three dimensional sculptural forms. Thus, full-scale models play an important role in his work.

SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE

INTRODUCTION
The opera house is located in Sydney, New south Wales, Australia. It is situated on Bennelong point in Sydney harbor, with parkland to its south and close to the equally famous Sydney harbor bridge.

SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE BACKED BY THE SYDNEY HARBOUR BRIDGE

DISCRIPTION
The Sydney opera house is an expressionist modern design, with a series of large precast concrete shells, each taken from the same hemisphere forming the roof of the structure. The opera house covers 1.8 hectares of land. It is 183m long and about 120m wide. It is supported on 580 concrete piers sunk up to 25m below sea level. Its power supply is distributed by 645km of electrical cables.

SERIES OF LARGE PRECAST CONCRETE SHELLS

The roofs of the house are covered with 1.056 million glossy white and matte cream tiles. The concert hall and opera theatre are each contained in the two largest groups of shells, and the other theatres are located on the sides of the shells groupings. The form of the shells is to reflect the internal height requirements, rising from the low entrance space, over the seating areas and upto the high stage towers.

GROUP OF SHELLS

A much smaller group of shells set to one side of the monumental steps and houses the restaurant. The roof structures of the Sydney opera house are commonly referred to as shells but in fact they are not shells in a structural sense, they are precast concrete panels supported by precast concrete ribs. The buildings interior is composed of pink granite.

PRECAST CONCRETE RIBS

PERFORMANCE VENUES AND FACILITIES

The Sidney opera house contains:5 Theatres 5 Rehearsal studios 2 Main halls 4 Restaurants 6 Bars and numerous souvenir shops

Sectional view

PLAN OF SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE

DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION OF OPERA HOUSE

The formal construction of the Sydney opera house began in march,1959. The project was built in three stages i.e.:Stage:-1 (1959-1963) consisted of building upper podium. Stage:-2 (1963-1967) consisted the construction of outer shells. Stage:-3 (1967-1973) consisted of interior design and construction. The five theatres consist of :Concert hall, with 2679 seats. Opera theatre, with 1547 seats. Drama theatre, with 544 seats. Play house, with 398 seats. Studio theatre, with 364 seats. Besides theatrical productions, the opera house are also used for functions such as weddings, parties and conferences.

INTERIOR OF OPERA HOUSE

 LOCATION NEAR COPENHAGEN, DENMARK. DATE 1974 TO 1976. BUILDING TYPECHURCH. CONSTRUCTION SYSTEMCORRUGATED SIDING. CLIMATECOLD TEMPERATURE . STYLEMODERN.

BAGSVAERD CHURCH

 MAIN FEATURES- Dramatic exterior/interior distinction, crisp simple industrialesque exterior, day lighting through soft curving section.

MATERIALS Aluminium roofing , glass , concrete elements and ceramic tiles. The exterior walls are clad in white glazed tiles that reflect the light. The aluminium roof gives the church an industrial, almost austere appearance. The ambulatories and connecting pathways are covered with glass roofs.

Industrialesque exterior, aluminium roofing, cladding with white glazed tiles.

 The main sanctuary dominates the tight geometry of the plan , three sections and a courtyard between two parallel corridors.

PLAN OF BAGSVAERD CHURCH

BAGSVAERD CHURCH (AERIAL VIEW)

 The sculptural concrete ceiling in the church is sublime and always changing with a blend of directed and reflected light that filters through floating clouds. Jorn utzon planned the interior vaults after being inspired by blanks of clouds.His sketches evolved from nature images to hanging overhead vaults.

REFLECTED LIGHT BY CONCRETE CEILING

 The interior of the church is almost all white,the wall are specially treated with white concrete,the floors are white concrete tiles,and the trellies like alter screen is glazed white tiles. The vaulted ceiling is supported by the glass topped ambulatories.

WHITE INTERIOR,THE VAULTED CEILING ABOVE THE ALTER

Utzon's House in Hellebk

Utzon's House in Hellebk is a one-storey private home in Hellebk, not far from Helsingr, in Denmark's northern Zealand. Built by the worldfamous architect Jorn Utzon for his family and himself in 1952, its innovative design was welcomed by the world of architecture.

A long, narrow, one storey building with a flat-roof, it rises slightly above the gently sloping site on a brick platform. The southern facade consists solely of windows, allowing lots of light into the open-plan living room with a freestanding fireplace. The bedrooms have no windows apart from skylights.

After experimenting with a few models, Utzon tells us he first built a full-size wooden version of the house in order to gain an impression of how a house with 130 square metres of living space would look in practice. Careful consideration was given to the surroundings: sun, view and shelter from the wind. The result was that he decided to have a completely closed wall along the northern side and an open glass wall for
the southern facade.

The north wall was first completed so as to establish the basic geometry. The kitchen and bathroom were then added and the remaining rooms were arranged with movable pinewood partitions and doors in order to facilitate any subsequent alterations

The materials used inside and outside are the same: yellow-white bricks, Oregon pine and aluminium. Yellow tiling is used both at the top of the walls with hard-baked tiles and in the kitchen, grill niche and shower as well as for the fireplace. The absence of windows in the children's rooms along the north wall has been mentioned as a possible disadvantage but they were lit by skylights. Utzon's summed up his ideas about the house when he commented: "What is important for me is that the architectonic approach or system behind a house should not limit the house's function and thereby hamper life inside."

Kingo Houses
General information Architectural style Modernism Town or city Helsingor Country Denmark Construction started 1956 Completed 1958 Structural system Masonry

Kingo Houses is a housing development designed by architect Jorn Utzon in Helsingor, Denmark. The development consists of 63 Lshaped houses based upon the design of traditional Danish farmhouses with central courtyards and that of Chinese and Islamic dwellings.

History
The design of the Kingo Houses was based on a competition project Utzon had developed for the south of Sweden in 1953. Although he did not obtain a commission in Sweden, the mayor of Helsingr liked his idea and provided land for Utzon to realize his project. Named after the developer Boligselskabet Kingo, the housing is currently known as Romerhusene (English: Roman houses)

Design
The development is based on Utzon's additive approach, starting modestly with one unit and proceeding from there, taking into account the lie of the land and the surroundings. Utzon described the arrangement of the houses as "flowers on the branch of a cherry tree, each turning towards the sun.

Each unit has an area of 15 by 15 meters (49 49 ft), enclosed on two sides by the Lshaped house, and by walls on the other two sides. The small size of the units makes them not only economical but also easily adaptable to the natural terrain. The limited size of the private area is compensated by the provision of a large landscaped communal space.

Each house has a courtyard with two wings, one

for living, the other for sleeping. Utzon set the exact amount of bricks to be used for the courtyard walls but he told the bricklayers they should build each house individually, catering for privacy, shade, view and enclosure. Built with state funding, the houses were limited to 104 m2 (1,120 sq ft) per three-bed unit.

Interiors

Svaneke Water Tower

The Svaneke Water Tower in the small town of Svaeke on the Danish island of Bornholm was designed by awardwinning architect Jrn Utzon and completed in 1952. It was the first successful project of the architect who would later design the Sydney Opera House.

History
In 1951, the Svaneke town council was considering having a water tower built. The mayor, Emil Andersen, had just been discussing the matter with Preben Vistesen from Aalborg who had previous experience in the area. On his way back to Aalborg, Vistesen happened to meet Jrn Utzon in Copenhagen where they were both waiting for their return flight and had some time on their hands. Over a cup of coffee, Vistesen told him about Svaneke's intention to build a water tower and asked whether he would be interested in helping with the design. Utzon immediately sketched out his innovative idea on a paper serviette. Vistesen put the serviette in his pocket and presented it soon afterwards to the mayor, who was enchanted with the design.

Despite strong opposition, Andersen managed to convince the town council that Utzon's design was worthwhile. In his own words, "It is the only water tower in Denmark that was agreed by a town council when all the votes were against the proposal." Utzon's design was finally accepted in April 1951 and the tower was completed in November 1952. The surprisingly shaped water tower was inspired by the old sea marks used for assisting the navigation of ships at sea. The marks were used in the west of Jutland and in the Swedish archipelago from the end of the 16th century . The pyramidal water tank is supported by three slender ferro-concrete legs which meet at the top of the tower. The centrally placed steps, also made of concrete, wind up elegantly from the ground. The water tower was taken out of service in 1988 when alterations to the water supply system were introduced. Since 1990, it has been a listed building

Centrally placed steps made of concrete.

Slender ferro -concrete legs

 The water tower in Svaneke was the first of five works by Utzon which can be characterized as concrete architecture. The water tower's tank supported by three sloping concrete legs make the structure thin but powerful. The other works which demonstrate Utzon's creativity with concrete are: the Sydney Opera House, Bagsvrd Church, the Kuwait National Assembly and the Paustian Furniture House.

Elineberg Housing
The Elineberg Housing development consists of five high-rise apartment buildings located in the residential area of Elineberg in Helsingborg, south-western Sweden. Completed in 1965, the 13 to 15 storey towers were designed by the Danish award-winning architect Jrn Utzon who, at the time, was working in Helsingborg with the Swedish architectural firm Arton in conjunction with architects Erik and Henry Andersson.

 In 1954, Helsingborg launched a competition for a development plan including housing for the Elineberg district. There were 19 proposals, three of which were purchased by the city. However, deeming that none of them qualified directly as the basis for a new development, the competition committee launched a second competition, the results of which were presented at the H55 housing exhibition in 1955. After the revised proposal from Arton was accepted, construction began in 1957. The five tower blocks are positioned on a common concrete platform along the edge of a grassy slope running down to a main road. Placed in slightly different orientations, they enclose the Elineberg Square parking area on the eastern side. The three most northerly blocks have balconies facing west and south while those to the south have balconies facing east and south.

The buildings are in yellow brick with some brown detailing, the vertical windows being the only feature to break the otherwise smooth facades. The effect is enhanced by the fact that each building is broken into sections depending on the varying widths of the balconies. Despite their considerable height, the towers have an impressively light appearance. The apartments, which were quite small in the original plans, were later enlarged, contributing to the slender, vertical appearance of the buildings.
Inside, the apartments on the higher storeys are terraced into slightly different levels, the floor being raised on the entrance side, the lower level leading through to the balcony. As Utzon commented: "You can stand on the 14th floor and look at the beautiful sea two kilometres away." He felt that if the floor was flat, the view would draw attention to the often dull and dreary sky over the resund. Another interesting feature is the strutting of the balconies in order to reduce vertigo .The number of vertical struts increases as the towers rise.

Wind power
In 2009, four of the five Elineberg towers were permitted to install small wind turbines, up to 10 metres tall, on their roofs to supply the apartments below. The equipment was to be installed on an experimental basis for up to five years.