Reformistic approaches to mass housing in the metropolis: 1920s Copenhagen and Stockholm perimeter blocks

The first Nordisk Byggnadsdag (Nordic Building Day) held in Stockholm in 1927 was a pivotal event, though of Nordic resonance, in the 1920s reformation of Nordic mass housing. The paper investigates its organization and contents focusing on two significant speeches: the Danish architect Kay Fisker’s ‘Københavnske boligtyper’ (Copenhagen housing types) and the Swedish architect Sven Wallander’s ‘Inredning av smålägenheter’ (Interior design of small dwellings). The two presentations’ comparison paves the way for a deeper contextualization of early twentieth-century Danish and Swedish housing reforms. Despite differing approaches, they shared a keen commitment to addressing urban and typological challenges. Their contributions underscore diversity of architectural responses from pragmatic solutions to innovative urban transformations. To sustain this contextual analysis, the paper includes morpho-typological examinations of four housing projects: Fisker’s Jagtgaarden (1924–1925) and Gullfosshus (1927), both in Copenhagen, S. E. Lundqvist’s Draget block (1922–1924) in Blecksområdet, and Wallander’s Metern block (1926–1927) in Helgalunden, both in Stockholm. These cases – three of which were showcased at the Nordic Building Day – exemplify how proto-modern ideals shaped the perimeter blocks’ reformation (karrébebyggelser in Danish and storgårdskvarter in Swedish) and played a crucial role in redefining the urban fabric in ways which led to social innovations.