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Denmark has a strong tradition of first-rate craft art. An enchanting world of glass, ceramics, jewellery art and textiles unfolds in museums, galleries and exhibition centres all over Denmark. Here is a selection of the most familiar ones
Danish craft art is a class apart. In recent years, the noble tradition of craftsmanship has made a significant comeback as the haute couture of the design world. Exclusive unique items strut their stuff in influential lifestyle magazines while luxury goods compete for attention in the shops.
In museums and galleries all over Denmark, you can enjoy the old familiar items and steal a sneak preview of future classics of stringent Danish craft art.
 In Copenhagen especially, you can stroll in and out of some of the best exhibition centres in Denmark – notably the Designmuseum Denmark on Bredgade. The stylish rococo building by court master builder Niels Eigtved and Lauritz de Thurah houses a prominent collection of craft art with magnificent Danish and international specimens. Visit the permanent exhibition “Over alle grænser” (“Across all boundaries”), a flashback to the world exhibitions at the end of the 19th century, when Danish craft art made its first international breakthrough and art nouveau flourished. Swarming with images of nature and elaborately ornamental, the new style suited Danish ceramic artists perfectly. Spearheaded by Thorvald Bindesbøll, they cultivated freedom of artistic expression. They teased the most astonishing sculptures out of the clay, mimicking the flora and fauna of nature under a lush, mirror-like glaze. Thorvald Bindesbøll’s artistry can also be appreciated in a more homely location: on Carlsberg’s world-famous beer label of 1904, which still adorns a frothing cold Hof.
 If you’re looking for an authentic experience of craft art in Copenhagen, head away from Strøget and down the little side streets – or, perhaps better still, head for design-savvy Vesterbro. Here, the little combined workshops, outlets and galleries will tempt you with the avant-garde side of tailor-made clothing, jewellery art and ceramics. It is no longer sufficient for things to work – now they must also tell a story. Craft art is well equipped to deliver the genuine article with all the intimacy and uniqueness of a personal fingerprint. In the workshop outlet, you can meet your designer and you can also learn about the background to the objects. The Danish Crafts information centre has provided detailed listings of craft art outlets nationwide. At Amagertorv, there are exhibitions of the centre's own collection of contemporary Danish utility art, selected by different guest curators.
If you wish to pursue the ceramics trail, Galleri Nørby in Copenhagen is a must. The gallery often exhibits the very latest pots thrown, featuring visionary Danish names such as Ole Jensen, Anders Ruhwald and Michael Geertsen.
Jewellery lovers will find items for their wish-lists in the legendary Galerie Metal. The little basement gallery on Nybrogade by Gammel Strand has existed since 1978 and is the oldest exhibition centre in Denmark for jewellery art and modern silverware. A group of jewellery specialists – including the renowned Camilla Prasch, Karina Noyons and Nicolai Appel – run the place. And the exhibitions challenge the prevalent perception of jewellery art with accessories to embellish the male or female body in a rich array of materials ranging from gold, silver and precious stones to felt, rubber and snooker balls!
 In idyllic surroundings in Middelfart with views across the Little Belt lies Denmark’s Museum of International Ceramic Art Denmark, Grimmerhus – the Nordic region’s only specialist museum of ceramic art. Built as a dower house in 1857, the building was designed by architect Johan Daniel Herholdt and modelled on Italian 16th-century villas. Besides the changing exhibitions, the museum also houses Denmark’s largest private collection of Danish ceramics from 1890 to the present day. The collector behind the many nice pieces is Erik Veistrup, whose self-diagnosis is Ceramics-mania. Outside, the pictorial vase standing almost five metres tall takes you aback. This is by artist Peter Brandes, who was involved in the EXPO 92 world exhibition in Seville. In the sculpture park, you can also chuckle at two XL-sized recliners or have a picnic beneath the trees. The Trapholt Art Museum in Kolding has an eye for Danish design. Textiles with an emphasis on craftsmanship feature on its shopping list. The museum also boasts one of Denmark’s largest collections of ceramics. Thoughout 2006, Trapholt is displaying “Danish Ceramics” from its permanent collection. We meet pioneers like Thorvald Bindesbøll, J. F. Willumsen, Jais Nielsen and, last but not least, Axel Salto, a household name the world over, whose budding organic vases send the bidding sky-high at auctions.
 When it comes to Danish glassware, the 700-year-old market town of Ebeltoft leads the field. You can’t miss Glasmuseet Ebeltoft on Strandvejen, right beside the Frigate Jylland. The museum in the former custom house has just been enlarged by 795 m2. The new extension, with its glass and white rendered brickwork, protrudes elegantly over the water. The café patio provides a magnificent view over the tall ships docks, Ebeltoft Vig and Mols Bjerge. But the most popular part of the extension is the Glashytte (glassworks) in the museum gardens. Here, you can watch the glassblowers transform the molten, syrupy mass into drinking glasses, votives and bowls, which are on sale in the shop. After the glass museum, we recommend a stroll through Ebeltoft. The little glass galleries are stretched out like a string of pearls. This is also where the glass museum’s founder, Finn Lynggaard, has his glass studio and gallery. A little over 30 years ago, Finn Lynggaard became the first Dane to experiment with glass purely as an art medium, melting down fragments of glass and soda bottles to make colourful sculptures.
 Går If your trip takes you to Bornholm, you can expect to find a veritable mecca of craft art. This rocky island in the Baltic has always attracted craft art workers because of the landscape and especially the good clay. Here you will find the highest concentration of craft art workers anywhere in Denmark! In addition to visiting the countless open workshops for glassware, ceramics, textiles, wood and metal dotted around the island, you can also visit the Grønbechs Gård exhibition centre in Hasle to see about 50 local artisans at work, all under one roof. The Bornholm Art Museum at the Helligdomsklipperne cliffs in Gudhjem has a unique collection of craft art with a local slant. And each June, the museum hosts the graduation exhibition of The Glass and Ceramics School on Bornholm in Nexø. The main attraction is the illustrious Hjorths Fabrik (Bornholm Ceramics Museum) on Krystalgade, Rønne. The original terracotta factory that dates from 1859 now houses a ceramics museum, a shop and live demonstrations. Bornholm’s unique ceramics are still produced here – items include door signs and brown chemist’s jars – produced to tried-and-tested formulations.
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