Tag Archives: exhibition

Jens Funder-Nielsen: The H.C. Andersen Artist

Jens Funder-Nielsen has through a life-time been an author and artist of many media. Having grown up in Egernsund he moved to Copenhagen and Esbjerg to study and work, before returning to Sonderborg. We found out about him via a tip off from a friend who has bought some of his works of art to decorate her house. We wanted to learn more, so a quick phone call resulted in an appointment made to visit him in his house a couple of days later.

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On arriving at his house you can immediately see that the fairytales of H.C. Andersen are some of the things that inspire him the most. The items that had originally caught my eyes were the gold-plated HC Andersen fairytale ornaments. But that is not the only H.C. Andersen-inspired items he makes. There are also paper mobiles and paper cuttings, some of which you can buy and others which you can buy books with patterns to make your own.

Besides books about paper clippings inspired by H.C. Andersen, the 14 books he has published also include decorations for Christmas, table decorations for parties, and mobiles on other themes. Looking through the books the patterns are really detailed and intricate. A work of art in themselves!

His paintings are very colourful, covering many whimsical subjects in a childlike manner. You can see a few of his paintings here and as is to be expected, the local events and landscape are also an inspiration. If you have ideas he might also be open for making some on commission.

If you are interested in his work, do think about going to visit him. Jens and his wife are very friendly people. For many years they have been producing and selling art and books out of their house in Dybbøl. At an age of 81 years Jens is getting on in years so there are no regular opening times. But make a call like we did and you can sort a visit out very easily.

Jens also mentioned that every Christmas they have an open week, so you can also keep your eyes peeled on the local newspapers for more information about that when we get closer to December. His smaller items are perfect for giving as gifts, especially if you have foreign family and friends.

Oh! And just so you don’t say we didn’t warn you! If you visit I can promise you that you won’t allow yourself to leave empty-handed! We left with a small collection of items: some for us, and some to give as gifts.

See Jens Funder-Nielsen’s website for more information.

Universe – Revisited

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Universe (then called Danfoss Universe) was my first introduction to Sonderborg 3 years ago, way before we had any plans to move to Denmark. It is a science theme park where people can interact with science in a fun and enjoyable way through hundreds of hands-on activities, from Segway rides, to themed exhibits. I loved my time in the park then so now that the new season has started it was well worth visiting again to check out what was new.

Hurtig på Segway

The Name

The biggest change that cannot possibly escape you is in the name. In 2013 Danfoss Universe dropped the Danfoss part of the name to become Universe, an independent foundation. This should enable the park to become bigger (and, better?). A number of changes could, in fact, already be seen in place!

Weekend Events

Prior to this year most of the main events have consisted of the daily science show, as well as workshops, such as this rocket-building workshop. However, this year there is a whole programme of events during the weekends. This weekend it was Jimmy Enoch with his circus act. It was great fun watching him (if a bit scary!) and having a workshop with him on how to use different circus tricks and the unicycle.

 

If you missed it there is still a lot to come. From gymnasts (Flying Super Kids) to Children’s tv personalities (Hr Skraeg, Sofie Ostergaard), to Soapbox car building  and rally, your kids should be happily entertained.

Speed: This year’s theme

Every year Universe celebrates one particular theme. Last year it was ‘The body’. This year the theme is ‘Speed‘. One of the highlights appears to be the ‘race room’, where up to 8 people can race together to see who comes out fastest. There is also a leaderboard with the top times so far. Other connected attractions include the hands-on exhibits in the Cumulus and the 5D simulator of being in a race car. If you’ve been before visiting this part of the place is possibly worth it.

New Attractions

The waterworks part of the park has been extended! When I’ve been there before I loved playing around in this part of the exhibit. I do come from an island after all, so water is in my genes! This has now been extended with more set-ups for kids (whatever their age) to play around in.

 

All in all, Universe is a good place to spend an enjoyable day, especially if the sun is out as it has been this weekend. There’s enough variety to keep kids entertained as well as the bigger kids (also known as adults). So a definite place to put on your list if you’re visiting the area, as well as if you live here.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mogello/7983294257/

Disclaimer: Michael works at Universe as a Web developer. 

 

Ship Wrecked – What they find on the bottom

The coming weekend an interesting event is taking place in Sonderborg. Every second year somewhere in Denmark a local diving club organises a Wreck Exhibition and this year it’s hosted by the local Sønderborg Sportsdykker Klub.

Here you can see artifacts that people have brought up to the surface from wrecks. You will also get a chance to talk to the people who brought them up, hear their tales of finding the wrecks and their theories for why the ships sank.

As part of the exhibition there will be a photo competition for the best wreck photo. There is also a competition for the prettiest and funniest find.

The last couple of years Danish sports divers has been acquiring sonar equipment which has made it possible to locate wrecks that were considered lost. One of these “lost” wrecks is UC 30.

During World War I in April 1917 the German submarine UC 30 struck a mine and sank by the west coast of Jutland. Almost a decade later in 2011 an expedition found the wreck and underwater photographer Kim Meineche was there to document it. At the exhibition Kim Meineche will be there to talk about the expedition and show the pictures he took. Some of them he took with modern 3D technology.

The artifacts that will be on display are in private collections so this is a very unique chance of seeing these things. To get an idea of the items and atmosphere we got some pictures from Søren Hertz-Christensen, Sønderborg Sports Diving Club to show you what it was like two years ago:

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The exhibition is open

  • Saturday March 3rd 10am – 5pm
  • Sunday March 4th 10am – 2:30pm

Entrance is 40DKK, free for children under 12