Located on the site of Denmark’s largest World War II refugee camp, the new Refugee Museum of Denmark, FLUGT, tells the stories of refugees from the camp as well as refugees worldwide.
At 1,600 square meters (about 17,220 square feet), the museum was designed by BIG-Bjarke Ingels Group and exhibition designers Tinker Imagineers. Together, they adapted and extended one of the camp’s few remaining structures—a hospital—into the museum.
“FLUGT seeks to give a voice and a face to humans who have been forced to flee their homes and capture the universal challenges, emotions, and nuances shared by refugees then and today,” Claus Kjeld Jensen, museum director, said in a statement.
The former hospital comprises two long buildings. BIG connected the two structures by adding a soft curve-shaped volume, which serves as a welcoming structure and creates 500 square meters (about 5,380 square feet) of additional museum space. From the outside, the volume welcomes visitors into a seemingly closed entry hall. But inside, a floor-to-ceiling curved glass wall reveals a sheltered green courtyard and the forest, where the refugee camp used to be. From the entry hall, which functions as a lobby or a temporary exhibition space, guests continue to one of the museum wings.
The north wing’s exhibition area contains gallery spaces organized according to the hospital’s original flow. The south wing includes a flexible conference room, smaller exhibition spaces, cafe, and back-of-house functions.
“We went into this project with all our heart to address one of the world’s greatest challenges—how we welcome and care for our fellow world citizens when they are forced to flee,” Bjarke Ingels, founding partner, BIG, said in the statement.
Related Stories
Museums | Oct 7, 2020
First rendering of the National Medal of Honor Museum unveiled
Rafael Viñoly Architects designed the project.
AEC Tech Innovation | Sep 18, 2020
New Innovation Center should heighten Port San Antonio’s tech profile
The facility will include a 2,500-seat arena and serve as new home for the city’s S&T museum.
Giants 400 | Aug 28, 2020
2020 Giants 400 Report: Ranking the nation's largest architecture, engineering, and construction firms
The 2020 Giants 400 Report features more than 130 rankings across 25 building sectors and specialty categories.
Museums | Jun 12, 2020
How will museums change after COVID-19
This new environment may herald innovative economic models and change the way we think about museum design.
Museums | Jan 14, 2020
St. Louis’ new aquarium is built inside an 19th century train shed
PGAV Destinations designed the project.
Museums | Jan 8, 2020
The Grand Canal Museum will tell the story of the world’s longest canal
Herzog & de Meuron designed the project.
Museums | Dec 18, 2019
Weiss/Manfredi will lead the master plan of the La Brea Tar Pits
The firm was selected by The Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County after an international competition.
Giants 400 | Oct 3, 2019
Top 65 Cultural Sector Construction Firms for 2019
Whiting-Turner, Turner, PCL, Clark Group, and Gilbane top the rankings of the nation's largest cultural facility sector contractors and construction management firms, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2019 Giants 300 Report.
Giants 400 | Oct 3, 2019
Top 70 Cultural Sector Engineering Firms for 2019
Jacobs, Arup, EXP, BRPH, and Thornton Tomasetti head the rankings of the nation's largest cultural facility sector engineering and engineering architecture (EA) firms, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2019 Giants 300 Report.
Giants 400 | Oct 3, 2019
Top 110 Cultural Sector Architecture Firms for 2019
Gensler, Populous, DLR Group, Stantec, and Perkins and Will top the rankings of the nation's largest cultural facility sector architecture and architecture engineering (AE) firms, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2019 Giants 300 Report.
