Kengo Kuma & Associates' HC Andersens Hus opens in Denmark

Following a soft opening at the end of June 2021, a new museum dedicated to Danish fairytale author Hans Christian Andersen planned as a unique "fantasy world" of gardens and underground display spaces, has formally opened in Odense. The museum, designed by Japanese architects Kengo Kuma and Associates, is situated near the author's birthplace in the historic center of Odense, Denmark, and has been home to the H C Andersen House Museum since 1908.
The H C Andersen Hus plan, which is set in a lovely green setting, expands the existing home with new exhibition rooms, public facilities, a cultural center, and a children's play area.

Inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's fairytales, the museum's cylindrical, latticed timber forms are connected by meandering, maze-like pathways surrounded by green hedges, creating a trip between the "real world" and the "dream world." The above-ground parts house the reception, shop, and cafe, while the underground areas house all of the exhibition rooms. Visitors can see between the two "worlds" through cutouts in the landscape above.
The upper areas are almost fully transparent and laced with timber beams, giving the impression that they are "merging" with the surroundings. Exposed concrete is used to finish the darker show halls.

The exhibition halls offer a "fairytale experience" with interactive, multimedia works by twelve international artists responding to the themes and places of Andersen's stories. Some design features are inspired by specific stories, such as a Little Mermaid water pool through which visitors can see exhibition spaces below and a Giant's Garden with gigantic plants to make visitors "feel like a Thumbelina."
Other fairytale-inspired projects include Kada Wittfeld Architektur's Brothers Grimm Museum in Kassel, Germany, and a puppet theater built by Belgian studio Robbrecht en Daem for design company Valerie Objects.