Louisiana Museum of Modern Art

Modern Art Museum Opened In 1958 In A Villa And Low Galleries By The Sea, With A Sculpture Park On The Oresund · Humlebaek, Capital Region of Denmark

Louisiana, in the small coastal town of Humlebaek about 35 kilometres north of Copenhagen, is one of Europe's most admired modern art museums, and much of that reputation comes from where it sits. It opened in 1958 in a 19th-century villa - named, the story goes, after a former owner's three wives, all called Louise - and grew into a chain of low, glass-walled galleries that wind through a park and down towards the Oresund, the strait between Denmark and Sweden. Visitors come for the setting as much as the art: a sculpture garden on the lawns above the sea, often with works by artists such as Henry Moore and Alexander Calder; a gallery devoted to Alberto Giacometti that looks out on a small lake garden; and a cafe terrace with a view straight across the water to the Swedish coast. The permanent collection runs from the post-war years to today, and several big changing exhibitions a year keep regulars coming back. The honest caveat: it is closed on Mondays, and on rainy weekends it gets crowded.

Louisiana, Humlebaek, on the Oresund coast north of Copenhagen, Humlebaek, Capital Region of Denmark, Denmark

Open Tuesday to Sunday all year, usually from late morning; on some weekdays it stays open into the evening, while weekends close earlier. It is closed on Mondays and on some public holidays - check the current schedule before you travel, especially around Christmas and New Year. From Copenhagen Central Station or Norreport, coast line trains toward Helsingor reach Humlebaek in about 35-45 minutes; from Humlebaek station it is a signposted walk of about 10-15 minutes (roughly 1 km) through a residential street to the museum gate. Tickets can be bought on the day; for blockbuster exhibitions, buying online in advance saves queueing. Concerts, talks and the literature festival are booked separately.

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