Christian Hansen (architect)
| Hans Christian Hansen | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
20 April 1803 Copenhagen, Denmark |
| Died | 2 May 1883 (aged 80) Copenhagen, Denmark |
| Nationality | Danish |
| Alma mater | Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts |
| Occupation | Architect |
| Buildings |
National and Kapodistrian University of Athens Copenhagen Municipal Hospital Østervold Observatory |
Hans Christian Hansen (20 April 1803 – 2 May 1883) was a Historicist Danish architect who worked 18 years in Greece where he was active in the transformation of Athens from a small town to the country's capital and an international metropolis. Later in his career he returned to Denmark where he became a professor at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and designed buildings such as the Copenhagen Municipal Hospital and the Østervold Observatory. He was the brother of Theophilus Hansen who was also an internationally successful architect, active in Athens and Vienna. He is considered to be a pioneer in the study and application of polychrome architecture.
Christian Hansen was born in Copenhagen. He attended the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen from 1816, just 13 years old, where he studied under Christian Frederik Hansen, the leading Danish architect of the time, and Gustav Friedrich Hetsch. Christian Frederik Hansen taught him a rational approach to architecture and Hetsch introduced him to Schinkel whose influence he had brought to Denmark.
In 1831 Christian Hansen won the Academy's large gold medal and a travel scholarship. He then set out on a journey to Italy and Greece, first spending two years in Italy, mainly in Rome and Sicily.
In 1833, Hansen travelled to Athens, recently been chosen as the new capital of the nascent Greece which had recently gained its independence from the Ottoman Empire. At the time, Athens was just a small village with a few thousand inhabitants, chosen as capital for historic and sentimental reasons. It was therefore set for massive redevelopment to become a modern metropolis. Hansen won the favour of King Otto and was appointed Court Architect in 1834. In 1838, he was joined by his brother Theophilus who had also studied architecture at the Academy in Copenhagen but had been unsuccessful in getting commissions.
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