Decades of Danish architects are educated in the Beaux-arts tradition putting art and aesthetics above techniques and hard knowledge. This has influenced the development of environmental and sustainable architecture, of which the article gives a brief survey covering the period from the first oil crisis in 1973 to present day also seen in relation to resource, political and cultural preconditions. The article shows, how sustainability forces architects to reintegrate techniques and urban aspects as crucial parts of design considerations, thus questioning artificial and autonomous approaches to making architecture.