Born: 1 April 1872, Norway
Died: 11 June 1962
Country most active: Norway
Also known as: Georgine Marie Hansen
The following is excerpted from Women Architects Worldwide: Building a Diverse and Inclusive Canon by Aubree Tillett, edited by Aubree Tillett and Jess Ilias, an open-access Pressbook designed to uplift the names of women architects from almost every country and territory around the world. This entry is shared in line with the Creative Commons licensing.
Born in 1872 in Kristiania, Norway (modern-day Oslo, Norway), Lilla Georgine Hansen is considered the first woman architect to establish an architectural firm in Norway (1912). She studied art, focusing on sculpture, with the German-Norwegian artist Hans Lerche, and studied architecture at Den kongelige Tegneskole (the Royal Drafting School) in Kristiania. After graduation (1894) she relocated to Brussels, Belgium, to work as an apprentice with architect Victor Horta; she was also an apprentice to Halfdan Berle in Oslo and to Martin Nyrop in Copenhagen, Denmark. Hansen established her own architectural firm in Kristiania. She won an architectural competition to design Heftye terrassen, a residential, apartment complex in Kristiania (1912). Hansen died in 1962 in Oslo.
References
Anker, Nils. “En Ny Tid for Håndverket.” Murbyen Oslo. Accessed April 30, 2025. https://www.murbyenoslo.no/historier/en-ny-tid-for-handverket.
Findal, Wenche. “Lilla Hansen.” Norsk Biografisk Leksikon. November 26, 2024. https://nbl.snl.no/Lilla_Hansen.
Mercé, Cayetana. “Lilla Georgine Hansen 1872–1962.” Un Día Una Arquitecta (blog), March 27, 2015. https://undiaunaarquitecta.wordpress.com/2015/03/27/lilla-georgine-hansen-1872-1962/.
Moe, Ketil, and Lars Roede. “Lilla Hansen.” Store Norske Leksikon. December 22, 2023. https://snl.no/Lilla_Hansen.
“På Sporet Av Lilla Hansen, Norges Første Kvinnelige Arkitekt Med Egen Praksis.” Arkitektur- Og Designhøgskolen i Oslo (AHO). Accessed April 30, 2025. https://www.aho.no/om/nyheter/aktuelt/pa-sporet-av-lilla-hansen-norges-forste-kvinnelige.html.
Seip, Elisabeth. “Lilla Hansen.” Norsk Kunstnerleksikon. April 19, 2023. https://nkl.snl.no/Lilla_Hansen.