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Almost the entire ceiling is a mural with swirling streaks of bright-colored paint. Arne Klingborg, the late director of the Rudolf Steiner Seminary and Asmussen's friend and collaborator, is credited with conceiving and painting the mural. According to Coates, the mural depicts spiritual beings and cosmic forces active in the four seasons.

In anthroposophy, humans are considered "citizens of the cosmos." The artwork presents an abstraction of the human and unseen spiritual beings striving to achieve "balance and wholeness" in the cosmos. The colors in the ceiling complement those in the windows and in the upholstery of the seats.

The auditorium's etched and colored windows bring in daylight and communicate more of Klingborg's spiritual themes. Sculptor Jonathan Soper etched the motifs. The long north and south walls each have six windows with symmetrically colored glass panels.

According to Coates, windows on the north wall depict the "macrocosmic" or the "outer" path to spirituality, while the south windows display the "microcosmic" or the "inner" path to spiritual development. Thus, the windows continue the themes of the ceiling mural, while the filtered daylight highlights the relief of extensive wall carvings.

The hand-carved fir battens line the two sidewalls and the rear wall of the auditorium. Here, as interpreted by sculptor A. John Wilkes, Klingborg represented Steiner's vision of global harmony by the development of nations and cultural regions.

Motifs in angular and convex forms on the south wall are mirrored in curved and concave forms on the north wall. The tactile walls are painted in translucent, cool colors so as not to detract from one's focus on the stage.

The auditorium is an experience of color, daylight, and sculpture, which combine to appeal to all the senses including the intellect. Steiner believed a space must feel not enclosed but open to the outside world through its artistic motifs. Through its walls and ceiling, the auditorium presents such a "living" environment.

Meaning in Color

According to Steiner, colors endow form with "soul." Red, for example, is active and closes in on a viewer, while blue recedes and evokes a pensive longing. Accordingly, Asmussen used color in the Culture House to evoke moods appropriate to the various functions.

The "extroverted" foyer, for example, is what Coates describes as a "warm plum." The "introverted" auditorium, by contrast, is "light blue-violet" on the walls, while the ceiling displays a dynamic relationship between red and blue.

Architectural colorist Fritz Fuchs, Asmussen, and Klingborg collaboratively worked on the use of color in the building. The interior paints have a translucency to bring out the materiality of the surface and to create a natural-seeming luminosity.

Thus, the Culture House appeals to the human senses, stimulates the intellect, uses natural processes to guide its design, and creates a spiritual experience. This is the product of a collective effort: Asmussen's architectural conception, Klingborg's artistic sensibility, and the contribution of many collaborators.

Gary Coates believes that the Culture House is the most important expression of anthroposophy in Scandinavia, fulfilling Asmussen's decades-long effort to express Steiner's philosophical impulse.

Raj Jadhav is an architect, author, researcher, and educator, currently living in Mumbai, India. For his theoretical exploration of contemporary Indian identity, he received a national award for outstanding research presented by The Journal of the Indian Institute of Architects and another award from Kansas State University.

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The Culture House, principal building of the Rudolf Steiner Seminary, designed by Erik Asmussen. Photo: Max Plunger The foyer with the bridge to the auditorium. Photo: Max Plunger The foyer with stair and bridge to the auditorium. Photo: Max Plunger The foyer below the auditorium entry. Photo: Max Plunger Daylit sitting alcove on the upper deck. Photo: Max Plunger Auditorium. Photo: Max Plunger Auditorium windows of colored glass etched with artistic motifs depicting spiritual themes. Photo: Max Plunger Carved fir walls depicting Rudolf Steiner's vision of global harmony. Photo: Max Plunger   Click on thumbnail images to view full-size pictures.