Hirschprung Collection: An History of Danish Art

On a rainy day in the Danish capital, I visited the Hirschprung Collection. A beautiful museum hidden between the Danish National Gallery and a cemetery. The collection focuses on Danish 19th art, and ... well only on Danish 19th century art!

C.W. Eckersberg, A nude woman doing her hair before a mirror (1841)
Hirschprung Collection (Copenhagen)
Copyright: Hirschprung Collection

The building itself is a piece of art, an austere antique temple on the outside with an homely 19th century inside. The rooms are small which makes you feel you are visiting someone's home. The dichotomy between the outside and the inside is close to the novice's feelings about Danish art, a bit austere and academic from the outside but warm and full of surprises when you take the time to engage with the artists.

L.A. Ring, Spring. Ebba and Sigrid K�hler (1895)Hirschprung Collection (Copenhagen)
Copyright: Hirschprung Collection

We were welcomed by a lovely Danish man, who asked us to put our coats and bags in the cloakroom. A side note on cloakrooms in Danish museums, they are amazing! Most of the time they are free of charge and big enough to put your bags and your coat, to enjoy peacefully your visit. These small details make a big difference when a visit a place, you feel like the visitor wellbeing has been thought about, and the cloakrooms are also perfect for families who do not have to carry their bags around the museum.

Wilhelm Bendz, Interior from Amaliegade. Captain Carl Ludvig Bendz standing and Dr. Jacob Christian Bendz seated (c. 1829)Hirschprung Collection (Copenhagen)
Copyright: Hirschprung Collection

An audioguide was included in the visit. You could learn more about the building, the history of the collection but also about Danish artistic mouvements or events in Danish history. It had a selection of "twenty masterpieces" but you could listen to many more. I followed this selection, because as a novice in Danish art I wanted to learn about the main artistic mouvements and painters of the period. Furthermore, you can listen to the audioguide's entries on the museum's website.

Christen K�bke, Portrait of the landscape painter Frederik S�dring (1832)Hirschprung Collection (Copenhagen)
Copyright: Hirschprung Collection

The collection was created in the 1860 by the tobacco manufacturer Henrich Hirschprung (1836-1908). At the beginning of his collection, he collected contemporary paintings, but slowly started collecting artworks of the first half of the 19th century. This period is commonly named the "Golden Age" of Danish art, with artists such as  Christoffer Wilhem Eckersberg or Bertel Thorvalsden and many more. This new period of creativity in Danish history was inspired by Romanticism, and a return to nature and its beauty. In contrast, the Modern Breakthrough is a realist movement emphasising on the reality of the modern world, which is also heavily represented in the collection.

Harald Slott-M�ller, Spring (1896)HHirschprung Collection (Copenhagen)
Copyright: Hirschprung Collection

If you go to Copenhagen, please do not miss this amazing museum!