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Denmark’s natural position as a cultural bridge between Europe and Scandinavia has left us in the advantageous position of being able to combine the best of both worlds with our own unique traditions. The blending of cultures combined with special Danish dynamic between past and present manifests itself explicitly in our art and culture.
The Danish Dogma films, which in the last couple of years have been taking one international award after another home to Denmark, are distinctive for a style of direction that is at once restricted by self-imposed rules yet so free and improvisational that the focus is on the actual content and the performances. These films, which ultimately encapsulate a very Danish culture, appeal not only to home audiences, but to people in Europe and the rest of the world.
Danish culture is based on Denmark’s mixed Nordic and European heritage, on the history of an expansionist Viking nation and a 1000-year monarchy with strong ties to the whole of Europe. Its position as cultural gateway between Europe and the other Nordic countries means that Denmark enjoys the best of both worlds.
On the one hand, the staunch traditions of Denmark’s ballet, opera and theatre are manifest on the many stages around the country and give city life a keen cosmopolitan flair for Danes and tourists alike. And on the other hand there is Denmark’s design tradition: strict and functional yet light and airy with origins in a Nordic tradition that is in every aspect unique.
Elsewhere a similar fusion happens with architecture, nature and history. NaturBornholm unites the strict and functional architectural lines of Henning Larsen with an impressive natural and cultural space, which interprets the evolution of Denmark’s most easterly island. The very tip of Denmark is home to the original drawings by the world famous Jørn Utzon from which his son, Kim Utzon, produced the new Skagen Odde Nature Centre.
Denmark was Hans Christian Andersen’s country of birth, and is a fairytale land, a kingdom, cultural oasis, a foundry of modern design and, at the same time, a modern welfare state. It’s all there for you to see and experience. It doesn’t even matter which part of the country you have chosen to visit. Denmark is a conveniently small country with short distances between all major attractions – attractions to each and every taste, mind you!
Culturally the special Danish dynamic between past and present is there in the many, up to 1000-year old churches, in the street life of the provincial towns, in the wealth of castles and manor houses and in the world famous Danish architecture. This dynamic is manifest not least in the fine arts – in the early 19th century interpretations of a broader European tradition, the “Skagen School” and their homage to the Nordic quality of light, or the Viking inspiration of the Danish COBRA artists.
Even the most modern of Denmark’s fine artists are avatars of bygone artistic idioms, and a trip round Denmark’s many museums of art is a journey back into a thousand-year history as captured on canvas – from sacked medieval forts to avant-garde Danish architecture. At several museums the Danish landscape blends as one with art appreciation. The Louisiana Museum of Modern Art with its spectacular view of the Sound, and the Trapholt Museum with its fabulous vista onto Kolding Fjord are exquisite examples of how nature, architecture and art form a perfect synthesis.
Musically, Denmark occupies a prestigious part of the world map. Carl Nielsen, Jacob Gade and Safri Duo are all famous names outside Denmark. The Danish music scene is a firm favourite in many parts of the world and Denmark has hosted music in a class of its own covering all genres from rock to opera, both in the national concert halls and musikhuse and in the open air.
Copenhagen Jazz Festival, which turns Copenhagen into one big jazz venue for a fortnight every summer is legendary, and a major attraction for jazz-lovers from all over the world. One of the world’s largest rock festivals is held in Roskilde and all summer long Denmark stages more than 150 major and also smaller-scale music festivals.
The special ambience of the Danish music scene always allows for the unexpected. Bruce Springsteen has performed on Strøget, the main pedestrian street in Copenhagen, inspired by the many performance artists and buskers. Fans queuing at the official venue to see Lenny Kravitz in concert might well be lucky enough to meet him in the chilled-out setting of the Christiania Free State.
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