ARKEN Museum for Moderne Kunst

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ARKEN Museum of Modern Art was opened on 15 March 1996 by Her Majesty Queen Margrethe. Prior to that lay years of political work to turn the region south of Copenhagen to an important part of Danish cultural life.

In many ways ARKEN is a natural part of the development of Copenhagen. From the very beginning of the urban renewal in the 1960s, Copenhagen's western and southern suburbs became established as the preferred destination for former inhabitants of the inner city. This meant that the population in the new suburban municipalities grew significantly in number throughout the latter half of the twentieth century.

This tendency was reinforced by the increased immigration into Denmark. The municipalities south of Copenhagen became popular for people of especially Kurdish, Turkish and Pakistani origin. For the first time large multi-cultural quarters sprang up in Denmark.

In continuation of Danish cultural politics it was natural to establish a cultural institution to give the large new population of the western suburbs an opportunity to experience the greatest national and international art, in their own region.

This ambition carried the foundation of ARKEN Museum of Modern Art through the political system, and led to one of the great Danish cultural investments of the latter half of the twentieth century. ARKEN became an undertaking of international dimensions.

When all decisions were made and funding was secured, a competition was held to find an architect. The young architecture student Søren Robert Lund surprisingly won the competition. His suggestion for a deconstructivist museum building now provides the setting for ARKEN. The museum's architecture is striking and bold, but nonetheless suits its surrounding in Strandparken very well.

Since its establishment ARKEN has worked hard at enhancing the quality of all aspects of the museum's affairs, and since 1997 is firmly established among its peers in the national and international circle of museums.