MUSEUM HOUSE OF FAIRYTALES HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN
Bangs Boder, Odense, Danmark
Client: Odense City Museums Size: 15.000m2 Plot size: 8.900m2 Status: Competition Typology: Museum Discipline: Architecture and Urban Design
The Idea is to create a scenario to house the fairy tales, poetry and images by Hans Christian Andersen, which are so important in the Danish culture, but also the messages and the lessons he conveyed across the world. The scenario evolves between fantasy and reality. It merges inside and outside, above and under the ground, past with present and future and location with its environment.
Both below and above the ground , the visitor is captured in a world of fantasy, by a play of light and darkness in both day and night conditions. All concrete walls refer to H.C. Andersen’s “paper cuts” and make the museum recognizable, liveable and palpable in every corner of its location. The paper cuts in the walls are mainly images of nature, so often present in Andersen’s tales.
The scenario fits perfectly to and is present in the future plans above and under the ground in the centre of Odense . Andersen’s childhood home is made identifiable in the situation by cutting it loose from his surroundings and placing it as a candy on a canvas in a candy drum.
For the most part , the museum is thought in two layers under the ground . The route through the museum leads visitors to fathom the fantasy world of H.C. Andersen.
The funnel with the pond connecting the garden with the museum is the centre piece of the museum, it makes reference to ‘The Ugly Duckling’ and ‘The Little Mermaid’. The funnel bonds land and water, indoor and outdoor and light with darkness. At the end of the museum route, the visitor comes along ‘The Tinderbox, the restaurant and the gift shop, independently accessible both from the museum, the public road and the car park. The main central entrance, visible from all angles on the site, also serves as street leading visitors into the museum. The fairy tale garden and its egg-shaped pond, represent the urban dream world.