Lewerentz was born at
Sandö in the parish of Bjärtrå in
Västernorrland County, Sweden. He was the son of Gustaf Adolf Lewerentz and Hedvig Mathilda Holmgren. He initially trained as a mechanical engineer at the
Chalmers University of Technology in
Gothenburg (1905–8). Later he took up an architectural apprenticeship in
Germany. Between 1933 and 1944 Lewerentz, together with his colleagues Erik Lallerstedt and David Helldén, created what is regarded of one of the masterpieces of functionalist architecture,
Malmö Opera and Music Theatre (
Malmö Opera och Musikteater). The foyer is considered of particular beauty, with its open surfaces and beautiful marble staircases and it is adorned with a number of works of art by artists such as
Carl Milles and
Isaac Grünewald. He was awarded the
Prince Eugen Medal for architecture in 1950. In the last decade of his life he designed two churches,
St. Mark's at
Björkhagen in Stockholm (1956) and St. Peter's at
Klippan in
Scania (1963–66), which revived his career in architecture. St. Peter's at Klippan sits in a suburban setting on the periphery of this small town in southern Sweden. The orientation of the church is correct, with the altar standing opposite the west doors. It is square in shape, suggesting a more intimate ritual in the tradition of
circonstantes (standing in a circle), which harkens back to early Christianity. This was the religious equivalent of the search for the essential and the primitive, strongly evident in both of Lewerentz's later churches. These characteristics are expressed beautifully in the detailing of the buildings, the choice of materials, the quality of light and the spatial articulation. He continued to work at competition proposals and furniture designs until shortly before his death in
Lund, Sweden during 1975. His total output was small but of very high quality. In an obituary published in
The Architectural Review, James Codrington praises Lewerentz's buildings for their "daring, often rugged use of materials" and their "indefinable atmosphere" and "sense of place." ==References==