Karl Hård af Segerstad (28 January 1873,

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...

– 22 October 1931, Helsinki) was a Finnish architect. He came from a Swedish family, but lived and worked his whole life in Finland, mainly in Helsinki and Viipuri (which was taken from Finland by the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

in 1944 and today lies in Russia). He was appointed city architect of Helsinki in 1907. One of his most famous works is the Nylands Nation building (1899–1901) at the

University of Helsinki The University of Helsinki ( fi, Helsingin yliopisto, sv, Helsingfors universitet, abbreviated UH) is a public research university located in Helsinki, Finland since 1829, but founded in the city of Turku (in Swedish ''Åbo'') in 1640 as the ...

in Helsinki.

Life

Both of Karl Hård af Segerstad's parents were Swedish nationals, and throughout his life he retained strong ties to Sweden, although he was born and lived in Finland. He studied architecture at the

Polytechnic Institute An institute of technology (also referred to as: technological university, technical university, university of technology, technological educational institute, technical college, polytechnic university or just polytechnic) is an institution of te ...

in Helsinki, graduating in 1895. A year later, he received his Finnish citizenship. As a student, he worked for the architectural firms Kiseleff & Heikel (the firm of

Konstantin Kiseleff The first name Konstantin () is a derivation from the Latin name '' Constantinus'' ( Constantine) in some European languages, such as Russian and German. As a Christian given name, it refers to the memory of the Roman emperor Constantine the G ...

and Elia Heikel) and

Grahn, Hedman & Wasastjerna Grahn, Hedman & Wasastjerna was an architecture firm working in Helsinki, the capital of Finland, between 1892 and 1905. History The firm was founded in Helsinki by the young architects Karl Gustaf Grahn (1866–1907), Ernst Hedman (1867–1933) ...

(the firm of architects

Karl Gustaf Grahn Karl may refer to: People * Karl (given name), including a list of people and characters with the name * Karl der Große, commonly known in English as Charlemagne * Karl Marx, German philosopher and political writer * Karl of Austria, last Austr ...

Ernst Gustaf Hedman Ernst is both a surname and a given name, the German, Dutch, and Scandinavian form of Ernest. Notable people with the name include: Surname * Adolf Ernst (1832–1899) German botanist known by the author abbreviation "Ernst" * Anton Ernst (1975- ...

and

Knut Wasastjerna Knut ( Norwegian and Swedish), Knud (Danish), or Knútur (Icelandic) is a Scandinavian, German, and Dutch first name, of which the anglicised form is Canute. In Germany both "Knut" and "Knud" are used. In Spanish and Portuguese Canuto is used ...

). After he graduated, he founded his own architectural firm and then worked as an independent architect for several years. In 1902 he was appointed deputy county architect of

Viipuri Province Viipuri Province ( fi, Viipurin lääni'', commonly abbreviated'' Vpl, sv, Viborgs län or Wiborgs län, russian: Выборгская губерния) was a historical province of Finland from 1812 to 1945. History The predecessor of the ...

, and in 1907 he was made city architect of Helsinki. His high demands on himself led to a quickly deteriorating health and he died in Helsinki in 1931 at the age of 58.

Architecture

Hård af Segerstad's architecture takes its inspiration mainly from contemporary Swedish and German architecture, and to a lesser degree from the

National Romantic style The National Romantic style was a Nordic architectural style that was part of the National Romantic movement during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It is often considered to be a form of Art Nouveau. The National Romantic style spread ...

which was popular among many contemporary Finnish architects. The

Châteauesque Châteauesque (or Francis I style,Whiffen, Marcus, ''American Architecture Since 1780: A guide to the styles'', The MIT Press, Cambridge, MA, 1969, p. 142. or in Canada, the Château Style) is a Revivalist architectural style based on the ...

-style Nylands Nation building (1898–1901) in Helsinki has been described as his most accomplished work. During his time in Vyborg, he designed both tenement houses and a large covered market building. After his return to Helsinki he continued designing schools, a library, and another covered market. At city architect of Helsinki, he was in part responsible for social housing and planning issues.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hard af Segerstad, Karl 1873 births 1931 deaths Finnish architects Finnish people of Swedish descent Naturalized citizens of Finland