Adolf Schirmer (1 October 1850 – 11 August 1930) was a Norwegian architect.

Personal life

Adolf Schirmer was born in Christiania (now Oslo), Norway. He was the son of architect

Heinrich Ernst Schirmer Heinrich Ernst Schirmer (27 August 1814 – 6 December 1887) was a German-born architect most noted for his work in Norway. Schirmer worked in Norway from 1838 to 1883 and left his mark on a number of public buildings. He contributed significant ...

and Sophie Ottilia Major (1821–1861). He was a brother of

Herman Major Schirmer Herman Major Schirmer (20 June 1845 – 11 April 1913) was a Norwegian architect, educator and historian of art. He has been described as "one of the chief ideologues" of Norwegian romantic nationalism. He was also a diligent writer and Norway's ...

and nephew of

Herman Wedel Major Herman Wedel Major (23 February 1814 – 26 September 1854) was a Norwegian psychiatrist. He is regarded as the father of the first Norwegian psychiatric hospital, Gaustad Hospital (''Gaustad sykehus'') and of the Norwegian Mental Health Act ...

. In November 1878 in

Braunschweig Braunschweig () or Brunswick ( ; from Low German , local dialect: ) is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in Lower Saxony, Germany, north of the Harz Mountains at the farthest navigable point of the river Oker, which connects it to the ...

he married Hildur Koch (1856–1914). He died in August 1930 in

Bærum Bærum () is a list of municipalities of Norway, municipality in the Greater Oslo Region in Akershus County, Norway. It forms an affluent suburb of Oslo on the west coast of the city. Bærum is Norway's fifth largest municipality with a populatio ...

Career

His initial training was with his father's practice and at the Royal School of Drawing under sculptor Julius Middelthun. He stayed a short period in Germany in 1870, before being employed by

Georg Andreas Bull Georg Andreas Bull (26 March 1829 – 1 February 1917) was a Norwegian architect and chief building inspector in Oslo, Christiania (now Oslo) for forty years. He was among the major architects in the country, and performed surveying studies and ...

in Christiania from 1871 to 1872. He then took lessons at the

Bauakademie The Bauakademie (Building Academy, also known as the ''Schinkelsche Bauakademie'') in Berlin, Germany, was a higher education institution for the art of building to train master builders. Founded on 18 March 1799 by King Frederick William II ...

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

and

École des Beaux-Arts ; ) refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The term is associated with the Beaux-Arts architecture, Beaux-Arts style in architecture and city planning that thrived in France and other countries during the late nineteenth centu ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, graduating in 1874. Schirmer ran his own company in Christiania until 1886. In 1887, he was appointed the state's building inspector with responsibility for the state-owned properties. He has designed several public buildings, however for most major projects he was responsible for regulation and planning. Among Schirmer's most known work is the

New Renaissance New Renaissance Records is an American record label founded in 1984 by Ann Boleyn, who also is the lead singer of the group Hellion. History New Renaissance Records was created by Ann Boleyn after her band Hellion had a No. 6 record on ...

central section of the

National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of more than 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current di ...

, which was started by his father, but taken over by Adolf after his father had a disagreement with the owner. Other prominent works include the Trondhjems Sparebank building (1882), today the head office of

Sparebanken Midt-Norge SpareBank 1 SMN is a Norwegian savings bank based in Trøndelag. The bank has 71 branches in 51 municipalities in Central Norway and is part of the bank alliance SpareBank 1. In Nord-Trøndelag and Sør-Trøndelag the bank is branded SpareBank ...

, Privatbanken i Trondhjem (1883), parts of

Ullevål University Hospital Ullevaal Stadion () is an all-seater football stadium located in Oslo, Norway. It is the home ground of the Norway national football team, and the site of the Norwegian Cup Final. From its opening in 1926 to 2009 it was the home ground of F ...

(1886) and the Customs House (''Tollboden'') in Oslo (1896). One of his first known works was a stabbur built at

Frognerseteren Frognerseteren is a neighborhood of Oslo, Norway, located within Nordmarka. It is a popular starting point for recreational hiking and skiing in Oslo. Frognerseteren (station), Frognerseteren Station is the terminal station of the Holmenkollen Lin ...

outside Oslo, and an early example of

national romanticism Romantic nationalism (also national romanticism, organic nationalism, identity nationalism) is the form of nationalism in which the state claims its political legitimacy as an organic consequence of the unity of those it governs. This includes ...

. Schirmer was also a judge in several architectural competitions and an active member of the Norwegian Engineer and Architect Association. He was appointed a Knight of the

Order of the Dannebrog The Order of the Dannebrog () is a Denmark, Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V of Denmark, Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the Order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single cla ...

in 1888 and Knight of the

Order of St. Olav The Royal Norwegian Order of Saint Olav (; or ''Sanct Olafs Orden'', the old Norwegian name) is a Norwegian order of chivalry instituted by King Oscar I on 21 August 1847. It is named after King Olav II, known to posterity as St. Olav. Just be ...

in 1896.

Gallery

File:Nasjonalgalleriet oslo.jpg, National Gallery in Oslo, with Heinrich Ernst Schirmer (1882) File:Hopen.kirke.JPG, Hopen Church at Smøla in Møre og Romsdal (1892) File:Støle kirke.jpg, Støle Church at Kragerø in Telemark (1892) File:Naustdal Kyrkje.jpg, Naustdal Church in Sogn og Fjordane (1891) File:Oslo Tollbod stenpakkhuset rk 117572 IMG 2583.JPG, Oslo Customs House (1896)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schirmer, Adolf 1850 births 1930 deaths People from Bærum Architects from Oslo Knights of the Order of the Dannebrog