Lars Thalian Backer (5 January 1892 – 7 June 1930) was a Norwegian architect. Backer was a pioneer of

modernism Modernism was an early 20th-century movement in literature, visual arts, and music that emphasized experimentation, abstraction, and Subjectivity and objectivity (philosophy), subjective experience. Philosophy, politics, architecture, and soc ...

in Norwegian architecture during the 1920s.

Biography

Backer was born in

Oslo, Norway Oslo ( or ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of towns and cities in Norway, most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a Counties of Norway, county and a Municipalities of Norway, municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a populat ...

. His parents were Herman Major Backer (1856–1932) and Elisabeth Christiane Boeck (1868–1958). His father was also a noted architect whose work included St. John's Church in Bergen and Villa Fridheim in

Krødsherad Krødsherad (''Krødsherad kommune'') is a Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Buskerud Counties of Norway, county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Noresund. The municipality of Krødsherad was establ ...

. Backer was educated at the Oslo National Academy of the Arts under the supervision of Herman Major Schirmer and the

Royal Institute of Technology KTH Royal Institute of Technology (), abbreviated KTH, is a public research university in Stockholm, Sweden. KTH conducts research and education in engineering and technology and is Sweden's largest technical university. Since 2018, KTH consist ...

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

, from which he graduated in 1915. He served as an apprentice with several notable contemporary architects in Norway, including Harald Hals (1876–1959) and Ole Sverre (1865–1952), as well as Arnstein Arneberg and Magnus Poulsson. He attended the

Architectural Association School of Architecture The Architectural Association School of Architecture in London, commonly referred to as the AA, is the oldest private school of architecture in the UK. The AA hosts exhibitions, lectures, academic conference, symposia and publications. Histo ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

from 1919 to 1920. After completing an internship, he started his own practice in Oslo during 1921. Backer was responsible for several notable Scandinavian works including the Skansen restaurant (1926–1927) and Ekebergrestauranten (1927–29) in

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

, and the first high-rise office building in the city. His Skansen restaurant was the first

modernist Modernism was an early 20th-century movement in literature, visual arts, and music that emphasized experimentation, abstraction, and Subjectivity and objectivity (philosophy), subjective experience. Philosophy, politics, architecture, and soc ...

building in Norway, earning Backer lasting fame as a pioneer of Scandinavian Functionalism. Backer died at the age of 38 from a streptococcal infection. He was buried at Vestre gravlund in Oslo. Several members of his firm carried on his work and made names of their own, including Frithjof Stoud Platou who completed the design work on Horngården, an eight-story building on Egertorget in Oslo.

Buildings

File:Ovre Slottsgate 21.jpg, Øvre Slottsgate 21 File:Ekebergrestauranten 200804.jpg, Ekebergrestauranten File:Horngarden.jpg, Horngarden in Oslo

References

1892 births 1930 deaths Architects from Oslo Modernist architects from Norway KTH Royal Institute of Technology alumni Alumni of the Architectural Association School of Architecture Burials at Vestre gravlund {{Norway-architect-stub