Holger Jacobsen (30 October 1876 – 27 March 1960) was a Danish architect. His best known work is Stærekassen, an extension to the

Royal Danish Theatre The Royal Danish Theatre (RDT, Danish: ') is both the national Danish performing arts institution and a name used to refer to its old purpose-built venue from 1874 located on Kongens Nytorv in Copenhagen. The theatre was founded in 1748, first s ...

Kongens Nytorv Kongens Nytorv (literal translation, lit. "The King's New Square") is a town square, public square in Copenhagen, Denmark, centrally located at the end of the Pedestrian zone, pedestrian street Strøget. The largest square of the city, it was l ...

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

Biography

Holger Jacobsen was born on 30 October 1876 in

Odense Odense ( , , ) is the third largest city in Denmark (after Copenhagen and Aarhus) and the largest city on the island of Funen. As of 1 January 2025, the city proper had a population of 185,480 while Odense Municipality had a population of 210, ...

. He apprenticed as a carpenter and furthered his studies at Odense Technical School before attending the

Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts () has provided education in the arts for more than 250 years, playing its part in the development of the art of Denmark. History The Royal Danish Academy of Portraiture, Sculpture, and Architecture in Cope ...

from 1898 to 1905 where he was a pupil of

Hans Jørgen Holm Hans Jørgen Holm (9 May 1835 – 22 July 1916) was a Danish architect. A pupil of Johan Daniel Herholdt, he became a professor at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and a leading Danish proponent of the National Romantic style. Biograp ...

for whom he also worked as an assistant. After his graduation he worked abroad for a couple of years, and was influenced by the

Mannerism Mannerism is a style in European art that emerged in the later years of the Italian High Renaissance around 1520, spreading by about 1530 and lasting until about the end of the 16th century in Italy, when the Baroque style largely replaced it ...

and

Baroque architecture Baroque architecture is a highly decorative and theatrical style which appeared in Italy in the late 16th century and gradually spread across Europe. It was originally introduced by the Catholic Church, particularly by the Jesuits, as a means to ...

which he saw in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

and

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. Another source of inspiration was Vilhelm Wanscher's lectures on

Michelangelo Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (6March 147518February 1564), known mononymously as Michelangelo, was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Born in the Republic of Florence, his work was inspir ...

. He later described himself as the "last Italian in Danish architecture". Jacobsen had his breakthrough with Bispebjerg Crematorium which was built from 1905 to 1906. Another early work was

Taastrup New Church Taastrup (or Tåstrup) () is a Denmark, Danish railway town and suburb of Copenhagen – 18 km west of Copenhagen's city centre. The town forms a twin urban area with neighbouring suburb Høje Taastrup, Taastrup rising since 1859 and Høje Ta ...

(1907) which was inspired by the architecture of northern Italy but in its details and interiors shows

Jugendstil (; "Youth Style") was an artistic movement, particularly in the decorative arts, that was influential primarily in Germany, Austria and elsewhere in Europe to a lesser extent from about 1895 until about 1910. It was the German and Austrian cou ...

influences. He also undertook the rebuilding of the Circus Building in

after it was devastated by fire in 1914 and led the completion of the new

Copenhagen Police Headquarters The Copenhagen Police of Denmark, Police Headquarters building () is located on Polititorvet southwest of the centre of Copenhagen, Denmark. Designed by Hack Kampmann and Aage Rafn in 1924 in the Neo-Classical architecture, Neoclassical style, of ...

(1922–24) after

Hack Kampmann Hack Kampmann (6 September 1856 – 27 June 1920) was a Danish architect, Royal Inspector of Listed State Buildings in Jutland and professor at the architecture department of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. Marselisborg Palace in Aarhus, ...

's death. In 1925, Jacobsen published a proposal for an extension to the

which had been suffering from lack of space ever since its inauguration in 1874. He was rewarded with the C. F. Hansen Medal the same year and when an architectural competition was held he won it with a modified entry which included two extra stories with facilities for the new National Danish Broadcasting Company. The building, which became known as the Nesting Box, was met with strong criticism, especially by

Poul Henningsen Poul Henningsen (9 September 1894 – 31 January 1967) was a Danish author, critic, architect, and designer. In Denmark, where he often is referred to simply as PH, he was one of the leading figures of the cultural life of Denmark between the Wor ...

and his consorts in the influential magazine Critical Review. From its opening in 1931, it was also challenged in terms of functionality. His later works consists of mainly residential and some office buildings.

Selected buildings

* Missionshus, Reerslev (1906) * Bispebjerg Crematory, Nispebjerg, Copenhagen (1906–07, extended in 1905-06 and 1932–34) *

Taastrup Taastrup (or Tåstrup) () is a Denmark, Danish railway town and suburb of Copenhagen – 18 km west of Copenhagen's city centre. The town forms a twin urban area with neighbouring suburb Høje Taastrup, Taastrup rising since 1859 and Høje Ta ...

(1907) * Forstædernes Bank,

Glostrup Glostrup is a Denmark, Danish town in Capital Region of Denmark, Region Hovedstaden, forming one of the Western suburbs (Copenhagen), western suburbs of Copenhagen. It is the administrative seat of Glostrup Municipality, with an estimated populati ...

(1907) * East Chapel,

Vestre Cemetery Vestre Cemetery (, meaning "Western Cemetery") is located in a large park setting in the Kongens Enghave district of Copenhagen, Denmark. With its 54 hectares it is the largest cemetery in Denmark. The cemetery is landscaped and serves as an imp ...

, Copenhagen (1912–13) * Circus Building (rebuilding), Copenhagen (1914) * Community house, Vestre Cemetery, Copenhagen (1915) * Office building (alteration),

Assistens Cemetery An Assistens Cemetery () is a cemetery that functions as an expansion of another, older cemetery often in relation to a city church. Already by the end of the 17th century, Danish authorities deemed that the conditions for inner-city cemeteries we ...

, Copenhagen (1916) * Hunting lodge, Glimminge, Sweden (1917) * Public housing, Birups Allé/Mågevej, Copenhagen (1918) * Own summer house,

Gilleleje Gilleleje () is a fishing town and seaside resort on the north coast of the peninsula North Zealand, Denmark. The town is located at the northernmost point of the island of Zealand. It is one of the main towns of the Gribskov municipality in Regio ...

(1919) * Chapel and crematory, Sundby Cemetery, Copenhagen (1924) * Own house, 6 Rosbæksvej, Copenhagen (1926) * Villa, 1 Ceresvej

Frederiksberg Frederiksberg () is a part of the Capital Region of Denmark. It is an independent municipality, Frederiksberg Municipality, separate from Copenhagen Municipality, but both are a part of the region of Copenhagen. It occupies an area of less tha ...

, Copenhagen (1928) * Stærekassen,

, Copenhagen (1828–31, listed in 1995) * Aarhus Privatbank, Århus (1930)

Gallery

Image:Bispebjerg Kirkegård 2005-02.jpg, Bispebjerg Crematory, Copenhagen, 1906 Image:Taastrup Nykirke Denmark 3.jpg,

(1907) Image:Stærekassen, Copenhagen 2010.jpg, Stærekassen, Copenhagen (1931)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jacobsen, Holger Danish architects Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts alumni People from Odense 1876 births 1960 deaths Recipients of the C.F. Hansen Medal

Biography

Selected buildings

Gallery

See also

References