Højvangen Church: A Contemporary Vision of Spirituality

A need for places of worship to transform and better cater to contemporary needs for community, sharing, and support informed Henning Larsen’s design of a new church in the Højvangen district of Skanderborg, Denmark. This is the first new church built in the city in 500 years. 

As studio director Eva Ravnborg explains, «With the new church in Højvangen, we have been true to the theological tradition, while also reinterpreting the church as a place that accommodates both everyday life and celebrations, joy, and mourning across generations».

Højvangen Church: intimacy and sharing

This is a place of worship that goes beyond solely religious functions to embrace a broader, more global vision of spirituality. This has resulted in an emphasis on adaptability and openness rather than rigid spatial and functional configurations.

Emerging from the natural landscape, the 1,500 m² structure forgoes traditional front and rear elevations. Following the slope of the site, a partially underground corridor connects the church to the parish center. Alternating glass and brick creates an interplay of fenestration and massing that aptly represents the balance of personal reflection and community sharing that underpins the design. Niches set into one side of the façade provide worshipers a place to sit in private contemplation. The garden and courtyard then act as gathering places for events and group activities.

The sacred and the everyday

The interior revolves around its single fixed element: the central baptismal font. Designed by the architect specifically for the project, hardwood and linen chairs freely fill the space. When stacked to accommodate different events, the chairs form a pattern reminiscent of the building’s broken profile.

This reflects the vision of this place of worship as a space for both gathering and sharing, with the same space designed to host religious ceremonies, cultural activities, social gatherings, and so on. By paring back the sometimes aloof sanctity of churches, the design offers a vision of the sacred that’s more in tune with everyday sensibilities.

All design choices contribute to this, with materials such as brick, brass, and wood conveying a sense of calm and warmth. This is also true of the use of natural light, which the design team carefully studied as a key element of the design. The permeable interior walls, for example, filter sunlight while casting geometric patterns onto surfaces to create an atmospheric interplay of light and shade. The square plan reinforces the idea of communion and welcome – rather than a one-way sermon from the pulpit, the church fosters a circular exchange that arises from each person’s words and feelings.

The design sets a contemporary benchmark for religious buildings, embracing both Danish architectural heritage and modern concepts of spirituality and community.

>>> Discover Henning Larsen’s kindergarten nestled in the meadows of the Faroe Islands.