The Jugend Palace at Engen – An Architect and His Theatre

About the event

Den Nationale Scene at Engen, designed by architect Einar Oscar Schou, was completed in 1909 and is today considered one of Norway’s key Jugendstil buildings. The archive of Einar Oscar Schou is preserved at the Bergen City Archives and contains around 700 drawings of the theatre building, from façades to the smallest details. Drawing on this archive, the lecture will tell the story of the theatre’s construction, the architect himself, and the building’s architecture.

Ingfrid Bækken is an art historian with a master’s degree focusing on Einar Oscar Schou’s Jugendstil architecture. She currently works as an advisor in the Audience and Mediation Department at the Bergen City Archives. She has also published historical articles in, among others, the Bergen Historical Association’s publications and Bergens Tidende.

Illustration:
Schou’s final draft for the new theatre in Bergen, 1905. Archive of Einar Oscar Schou, Bergen City Archives.