Grundtvig’s Church

Grundtvig’s Church looks like an enlarged Danish village church with a stepped gable, but it is built of some six million yellow bricks. The façade resembles an organ. The church interior is bright, tall and almost entirely without decoration.

The church was built in memory of the priest, hymn writer and educator N.F.S. Grundtvig. Peder Vilhelm Jensen-Klint won the competition in 1913, and construction lasted from 1921 to 1940. He died in 1930, and his son, the furniture architect Kaare Klint, completed the church. The housing around the church was also designed by Jensen-Klint and built in the same brick, so that the whole becomes a small town.

The church is built entirely of yellow brick, inside as well, and almost no other materials are visible. The west front is a tall stepped gable that has been compared to an organ. The form is based on the churches of the Danish countryside but on a monumental scale. The church interior is about 22 metres high and has pointed vaults. The brick is laid with great care, and details such as piers and mouldings are built in the same material. Kaare Klint designed the chairs, which became a Danish design classic.

The church is regarded as one of the foremost works of Danish Expressionism and National Romanticism. It shows how a simple material, laid with craftsmanlike skill, can create a powerful architectural experience. The church is used as a parish church and is a popular destination for architects and visitors.