On Thursday 5 April Pétur H. Ármannsson, architect and head of department at the Cultural Heritage Agency of Iceland, will give the talk “‘The most splendid and best-built stone house in this country’ – the Culture House from the viewpoint of Icelandic architectural history” in the lecture series Tímanna safn (Collection of the Ages), held to mark the 200th anniversary of the National and University Library of Iceland.
The abstract of the talk says:
“The Culture House on Hverfisgata was the most important public building of the Home Rule period, built in 1906–09 to designs by the Danish architect Johannes Magdahl-Nielsen. The house itself and its reading room were made to measure for the needs of the National Library, which was housed there from 1909 to 1994. It also held rooms and stores of the National Archives of Iceland, the Natural History Museum and the National Museum. Many consider the Culture House one of the finest works of architecture in the country. Its construction was an important step for Icelandic industry and craftsmanship. The building contractor was Icelandic, as were the craftsmen who worked on it, but the design and supervision were in the hands of Danish architects. The building is modelled on well-known library buildings in Copenhagen, Paris and Boston. On internet search pages the Culture House appears as Magdahl-Nielsen’s best-known work and the one that keeps his name alive. As far as is known, he himself never saw with his own eyes this one building he designed outside his own country.”
The talk will be given in the lecture hall of Þjóðarbókhlaða, the library building at Arngrímsgata 3, 12:05–12:45.
Everyone is very welcome.
The lecture series on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/182997635779892/