Designmuseum Danmark
A temple to Nordic design, where a gallery of Danish chairs showcases works by Jacobsen, Hans Wegner, and other masters, housed in an 18th-century Rococo hospital.
Designmuseum Danmark sits on Bredgade, between Amalienborg and the Little Mermaid. The building was Frederik's Hospital, completed in 1757 in the Rococo style, where Hans Christian Andersen once stayed in a ward. It reopened in 2022 after renovation, and its permanent exhibition centers on 'The Danish Chair.' A long gallery displays more than 100 Danish chairs from the 20th century, including Arne Jacobsen's Egg, Swan, and Ant chairs, Hans Wegner's Y Chair, and 'The Chair' used in the televised Kennedy-Nixon debate, along with works by Finn Juhl and Kaare Klint. It is a pilgrimage site for furniture design enthusiasts. Other galleries cover Danish silver and porcelain (Royal Copenhagen), textiles and fashion, graphic design and posters, and Chinese and Japanese crafts collected in the 18th and 19th centuries. A special show, 'The Future is Present,' explores future ways of living. The museum has a design library (the reading room can be visited), a shop selling curated Nordic design goods at slightly lower prices than city design stores, and a courtyard café open in summer. Adult admission is DKK 135. Visitors under 26 enter free, and the Copenhagen Card gives free entry. Getting there: 5 minutes' walk from Marmorkirken metro station on the M4 line, or 3 minutes from Amalienborg. It can be combined with Amalienborg, Frederik's Church, and the Little Mermaid into a half-day route. The museum is closed on Mondays, and photography without flash is allowed inside. Design fans can also visit the antique shops along Bredgade and Illums Bolighus, the design department store on Strøget.
Opening hours
Tue–Sun, 10:00–18:00 (until 20:00 Thu); closed Mondays
Nearby sights
- Amalienborg Palace
- Frederik's Church (Marble Church)
- Kastellet
- Nyhavn
- Copenhagen Opera House
- The Little Mermaid
- Church of Our Saviour
- Freetown Christiania