The Utzon paradigm

[Extract] This paper strives to address three objectives. The first is to discuss the Utzon’s oeuvre from a paradigmatic perspective, the second to layer that paradigm within two distinct but interconnected frameworks. The third objective is to explore the fusion of this dichotomous paradigm through the concept of ‘poetic conjunction’. Jørn Utzon (1918-2008) is now internationally recognised as one of the most original, innovative and socially concerned of modern architects, perhaps the last great exponent of the humanistic Nordic tradition within modern architecture. He is the architect of what is still widely considered the most noble and humane housing builtin Denmark, a simple, yet poetic modern church at Bagsværd and the most iconic and popular building of the 20th Century, his great unfinished masterpiece, the Sydney Opera House (see p. 24-25).