Play at the museum

The licorice bird, stone sculptures created for the Tivolaj art playground in Tivoli, and fabulating sketch drawings for the children’s story “Littlefant” are just some of Henry Heerup’s imaginative works, which you can now experience for the first time at the Heerup Museum.

For the exhibition LEGESIND (English title: PLAYFUL), Design School Kolding graduate Karen Juhl Petersen has created five play designs and approaches what turn the museum rules upside down and invite the museum visitors to play along – with Heerup’s universe, museum norms, contributions by visitors and with each other. 

- My designs draw inspiration from Heerup’s artistic process and artworks, and uses this as a common third to unfold play at the art museum, using aspects from construction play, storytelling and open-ended play, explains Designer Karen Juhl Petersen.

At the entrance, the guests receive an entry ticket of trash. In the exhibition room, this trash ticket can be used as part of a big, co-created story, written and exhibited by the guests themselves. They are invited to finish art pieces, explore the process of building models, and to generally activate their body as well as their mind. 

The Heerup Museum writes about Heerup’s take on play: 

- Heerup consciously investigated the concept of play and not least that of participating in play, which is more relevant than ever, because through play we create relationships and develop our empathy and ability to create together.

The exhibition is open 17 September 2023 to 8 January 2023 at the Heerup Museum in Rødovre.