Erik Gunnar Asplund began his career as a painter before he studied architecture at the Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm. Asplund worked alone and obtained a large amount of his work through competitions. Aside from professional practice, Asplund taught at the Royal Institute of Technology. By the end of the 1920's, Asplund had become a committed Modernist. In his architecture, he sought to point the way "to a new architecture and a new life". Keeping with this ideal, he became a signatory to the Acceptera manifesto of 1931. His layout for the Stockholm Exhibition in 1930 clearly indicates his modernist ideals. During the period from 1931 until his death, Asplund moved away from Modernism and began showing sympathy towards a stripped Nordic classicism.

Selected Works:

Woodland Chapel, Stockholm, Sweden 1918-1920
Stockholm City Library, Stockholm, Sweden 1920-1928
Chapel of the Holy Cross, Stockholm, Sweden 1935-1940