Draft:Ulla Tafdrup

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Ulla Tafdrup
Born(1906-10-14)October 14, 1906
Died(1996-12-28)December 28, 1996
OccupationArchitect

Ulla Tafdrup (born October 14, 1906, died December 28, 1996[1]) is a Danish kitchen architect.

Tafdrup was one of the most influential women in the 1940's and 1950's as both an architect and kitchen designer. She spearheaded a series of housing and kitchen studies for the Danish Non-Profit Housing Association, or "Dansk Almennyttigt Boligselskab" (DAB),[2] and revolutionized housing in a way that still influences interior design and floor plans within the home to this day.

Education and Career

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Ulla Tafdrup was dyslexic and therefore did not obtain a high school diploma, but rather a secondary school diploma. She was sent to boarding school in both England and France, respectively.

Tafdrup's greatest desire was to become an architect, and she secretly attended lectures, but never enrolled at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, School of Architecture. However, it was here that she met her second husband, Ib Martin Jensen. Eventually, Jensen formed a partnership with Hans Erling Langkilde, and their architectural firm ended up working for DAB, the Danish non-profit housing association. It quickly became clear to these two men that Ulla Tafdrup had many ideas and a talent for kitchen design, so she was brought on board as a kitchen consultant for their firm's projects.

In 1947, Ulla got a job at the Danish Non-Profit Housing Association, or "Dansk Almennyttigt Boligselskab" (DAB) in addition to establishing her own business.[3]

Historic background

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With "The Housing Support Act" of 1933 and 1938, it was possible for non-profit housing associations to build new and affordable housing for the less well-off sections of the population that lived in poor housing conditions. Therefore, the housing associations devoted considerable effort to developing new ideas for the design of modern, smaller homes; including a competition organized by FSB and Privatbanken in 1937. This competition was won by female architects Ragna Grubb, Karen Hvistendahl, and Ingeborg Schmidt. Later, these new trends, alongside Gytte Rues and Rut Speyer's extensive kitchen studies, were published in the book "Køkkenundersøgelser," by the Joint Committee for Housing Studies (Fællesudvalget for Boligundersøgelser).[3]


A Revolution in the Kitchen

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Ulla Tafdrup's early years as a housewife were spent using her kitchen as a laboratory, where she developed new ideas about both kitchen design and use. Primarily, she contemplated how work in the kitchen could be integrated with the rest of family life. With time, Ulla Tafdrup revolutionized the work, efficiency, and layout of the kitchen, and as a direct result, prompted a whole new way of thinking about floor plans for modern homes. For example, she tore down her own kitchen and had it moved to face south and east (instead of the traditional north), so that it was better connected to the rest of the family's living space when she was working in the kitchen. She also opened it up to the living room, so that she was in direct contact with the family – which led to the kitchen-living room concept that we know so well today.

Ulla Tafdrup made a hole in the kitchen wall with a hatch, enabling the housewife to talk to her family in the dining room while she was working in the kitchen.[4]

"This small intervention was historic and innovative. Ulla Tafdrup has left her mark on the kitchens of hundreds of thousands of Danes because she thought of the kitchen as a communal space."Template:Citat2In 1947, Tafdrup was hired by the Danish Non-Profit Housing Association, or "Dansk Almennyttigt Boligselskab" (DAB) as an architect and consultant for the development of kitchens in their new housing developments. This included "Mozartgården," which later formed the basis for DAB's systematic studies, test constructions, and the book "Vore Køkkener. En Forsøgsrapport fra Dansk Almennyttigt Boligselskab" (Our Kitchens. A Test Report from DAB.) (1951).

Tafdrup was internationally renowned, and, thanks to her many travels in Europe and the US, was at the forefront of the latest trends. She brought back both kitchen appliances and mixer taps from her trip to the US in 1949.

In 1948, following a proposal from both the Danish Women's National Council and Minister Fanny Jensen, a committee was set up to investigate how the workload in the home could be lightened for the (now numerous) working women. In 1954, the committee presented a report which, in its section on the kitchen, was greatly influenced by Ulla Tafdrup's work to create better working conditions for women in the home.

Women's physical, social, and practical experience as housewives began to be seen as a valuable source of knowledge for architects.[3]

Tafdrup developed ideas for organizing work in the kitchen rationally, with three zones—each with its own function and close proximity to the necessary tools and fixtures: “Everything in its proper place.” These ideas were highlighted by the Ministry of Housing as an example to follow.


Important Works

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  • Mozartgården, Sydhavnen
  • Carlsro, Rødovre
  • Søndergård Park, Bagsværd
  • Høje Søborg, Søborg


Literature

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  • ALT for damerne, Når Køkkenet Planlægges (1953)
  • Vore Køkkener. En Forsøgsrapport fra Dansk Almennyttigt Boligselskab (1951)

Sources

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  1. ^ Finnholbek.dk
  2. ^ https://dac.dk/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/DAC_Kvinder_UV_revolution_i_koekkenet.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  3. ^ a b c Jannie Rosenberg Bendsen; Svava Riesto; Henriette Steiner (18 June 2023). Ufortalte Historier. Om Kvinder, køn og arkitektur i Danmark (in Danish) (1st ed.). Copenhagen: Strandberg Publishing. ISBN 978-87-94102-66-7. OCLC 1384442522. Wikidata Q133858010.Q133858010
  4. ^ Frederik Guy Hoff Sonne (12 July 2022). "Arkitekturhistorien lider af kvindeglemsel, men du kan takke dem for mere, end du aner". Videnskab.dk (in Danish). Wikidata Q135989021.


External references

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Category:Danish architects Category:Female architects Category:Architects Category:Danish women designers