The Rational Modernism of Sigurd Frosterus. A Nordic Interpretation

Abstract

Sigurd Frosterus (1876–1956) was one of leading modernists of the early 20th century in Finland and Scandinavia. He was an architect, critic and theorist who wrote about ar- chitecture, painting, literature and technology. Frosterus sought to capture the rational- ist world-view of the new century, with H. G. Wells, Friedrich Nietzsche, James McNeil Whistler, Otto Wagner and Henry van de Velde giving impulses to his visions. Frosterus studied and worked with van de Velde in Weimar in 1903–1904, and they shared many challenging projects. In Weimar, Frosterus also designed his own innovative entries for the architectural competitions for the railway stations of Helsinki and Viipuri. The Belgian colleague asked Frosterus to establish an architectural office with both their names. Frosterus highly appreciated the offer, but decided to return to Finland, where – he be- lieved – it would be easier to pursue an independent career. In Finland Frosterus with his different offices successfully designed villas, residential houses, business premises, farmhouses, factories, power stations and bridges, the Stockmann department store (1916–1930) in the centre of Helsinki being his major work. Frosterus’s style changed from rational art nouveau towards historicism and classicism during the years of the First World War. He criticized steel architecture with undulating forms in static constructions and preferred brick buildings and high-standard handicraft, taking Edvin Lutyens of Great Britain and Ragnar Östberg of Sweden as examples. Also Frosterus’s world-view changed from severe rationalism towards pluralism; and the machine aestheticist now became a critic of technology in the spirit of Oswald Spengler. Frosterus published several books on art, literature and new technology, and he wrote his doctoral dissertation on the history of colour in with reference to the writings of Konrad Fiedler and Roger Fry.