31.January 2013

Finn Juhl 1912 - 2012

One of the leading figures in the creation of Danish Design, architect and designer Finn Juhl would have turned 100 in 2012. Experience the true spirit of Juhl in his private home in Denmark – a textbook example of his project as an architect and as a furniture designer. His private home built in 1942 - right next to Ordrupgaard in the wealthy Copenhagen suburb of Charlottenlund - is open to the public.

The home of Finn Juhl in Charlottenlund is a timeless time capsule. Upon entering one gets the sensation that Juhl just left for a stroll in the garden. The gentle Scandinavian light pours in from the wide terrace doors and large windows and is reflected off the soft white walls. By the open fire place The Chieftain Chair is accompanied by the love seat The Poet - furniture which Danes and foreign guests alike recognize from glossy magazine pages, television programmes, shop windows – and from their own private homes. Finn Juhl furniture is experiencing a booming renaissance as Denmark celebrates what would have been the creator’s 100th birthday. 

Meet the Finn Juhls fans
Elise and Darren Bradley have a home full of Danish design ikons. They travelled to Ordrupgaard to see the Juhl home. This is their story: http://video.denmark.dk/video/2073243/finn-juhls-house

From the inside out
Finn Juhl designed the house north of Copenhagen as a private home for his new family. At the same time it is a perfect example of his theories. Finn Juhl ‘thought’ in rooms, i.e. he thought from the inside to the outside. The facades were secondary and were to express the ideas behind the floor plan. Furthermore there had to be a balance between walls and windows. Finn Juhl had an excellent sense of how to integrate rooms with each other and how the light should work. The interaction between the rooms in the house and its outside surroundings were also important to the architect. 

The open-plan home
Finn Juhl’s house is composed of two blocks standing at right-angles (creating an L-shaped house). In one block there is a large living room and a small study, while the second block houses the kitchen, dining room, bedrooms and bathroom. The two blocks are joined by an entrance hall which opens to the garden. The house is an early example of an open-plan house, with a characteristic view through its rooms. Although each room has its own clear function, it is always possible to look from one room to the next as you walk through the house and there is always a view of the garden. The ceilings are painted in pale light yellow and when they reflect the light from outside, they resemble the roof of a tent with light shining through. The house is brick-built and the façade is plastered in a grey-white shade which offers it a soft, matt effect. Therefore the house appears light against the contrasting dark woodland backdrop. 

The importance of art
The young Juhl couple had a profound interest in art and the home was decorated with works by some of the Danish painters of the time: Lundstrøm, Richard Mortensen, Eigill Jacobsen, Robert Jacobsen and others. Finn Juhl always saw his furniture as a part of the expression of the room and applauded the thought that furniture, handicraft and art created a completeness of the house, his own house being a school example of this idea.

Facts: Home of Finn Juhl
The home was built in 1942, designed by Finn Juhl as a family home. The home of Finn Juhl forms part of the Art museum Ordrupgaard due to a generous private donation to the Danish Government. The house opened to the public in April 2008.

Facts: Opening hours
The home of Finn Juhl is open to the public weekends and hollydays 11 am - 5 pm and in July and August Tuesday - Friday 3 pm - 5pm.

Facts: Denmark celebrating Finn Juhl
Finn Juhl became world famous after he designed the Trusteeship Council Chamber in the UN building in New York in 1951-52. Together with the Realdania Foundation, the Danish Ministry of Culture and the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the UN is restoring the Trusteeship Council Chamber. The Heritage Agency of Denmark will be responsible for ensuring that the restoration will in all ways stay true to the spirit of Finn Juhl. In conjunction with the restoration, five Danish designers will be invited to compete for the commission to design new conference tables and a new chair for the chamber.