Scan Magazine | Feature | Nordic Starchitecture
The Utzon Center was Danish architect Jørn Utzon’s last building. Utzon is most famous for having designed the Sydney Opera House. Photo: Visit Denmark.
What will happen to the Nordic starchitect? Architectural superstars, often called ‘starchitects’, might be a foregone phenomenon, but some Nordic masters still loom large. Are their legacies, combined with Nordic consensus culture, holding back young architects from reaching their full potential? Or has ‘starchitecture’ already been outdated by youthful idealism and new forms of collaboration, leaving cooperative Nordics primed for the future? By Eirik Elvevold
When world famous architect Zaha Hadid died earlier this year, several journalists seized the moment to proclaim the ‘death of starchitecture’. This was not the first time the end of the era of architectural superstars had been predicted. Ever since the financial crisis of 2008, budgets for spectacular buildings with experimental form had taken a hit. Naturally, people started questioning if times had changed forever. 20 | Issue 93 | October 2016
But what about Nordic starchitects? Are they also a dying breed? Judging by this year’s Nordic Pavilion at the Venice Biennale of Architecture, most of them might already be dead. The curators of the pavilion, David Basulto and James Taylor-Foster, question whether the legacy of classic Nordic starchitects such as Sverre Fehn, Alvar Aalto, Sigurd Lewerentz and Jørn Utzon is restraining younger generations. Have they become
more like haunting ghosts than inspiring forefathers?
Be careful not to copy According to Professor Philip Tidwell at Aalto University’s Department of Architecture, the Nordic heritage can influence young architects both ways. “We have to be careful. A community of likeminded architects sharing the same historical perspective can be a strength for the Nordic region. But when does it become introverted close-mindedness?” Tidwell asks. The most important thing, in Tidwell’s opinion, is to actively interrogate old works through a modern lens. “Going back to a great work of architecture is