bagsværd kirke - bagsvaerd church, copenhagen, denmark 1967-1976.
architect: jørn utzon, 1918-2008.
the curved shell vaults of bagsværd church are not mere shapes, but rather their shapes demonstrate an idea of how to span space elegantly and with the use of very little material.
utzon made the bold claim that reinforced concrete acts much like paper, to which we might add: in his hands, it did. he would fold it like origami for strength or he would simply bend it, as in bagsværd where a
sheet of just twelve centimeters of concrete - about five inches - spans the 18 meters across the nave.
utzon was not alone in making the comparison. in
the stones of venice, ruskin described how the forces of construction could be understood with a piece of thin bristol board. even if the connection is not as direct as I make it appear, I do not believe it to be a coincidence.
this is 0.25 mm bristol board, by the way, my favourite.
more utzon
here
more words,
yada, yada, yada.