| Monday: | CLOSED |
|---|---|
| Tuesday: | 11:00 – 20:00 |
| Wednesday: | 11:00 – 20:00 |
| Thursday: | 11:00 – 20:00 |
| Friday: | 11:00 – 20:00 |
| Saturday: | 11:00 – 17:00 |
| Sunday: | 11:00 – 17:00 |
| Monday: | CLOSED |
|---|---|
| Tuesday: | 11:00 – 20:00 |
| Wednesday: | 11:00 – 20:00 |
| Thursday: | 11:00 – 20:00 |
| Friday: | 11:00 – 20:00 |
| Saturday: | 11:00 – 17:00 |
| Sunday: | 11:00 – 17:00 |
Circleen's Birthday
10 April – 22 August 2027
It all began with a circle. In 1957, 17-year-old Hanne Hastrup was studying at the School of Drawing and Industrial Design when she sketched the little character who would become Cirkeline (Circleen). A few years later, she moved to Hesselrødvej near Karlebo, where the little elf and her friends truly came to life. In 2027, Circleen turns 70, and The Nivaagaard Collection will celebrate the occasion next year with an exhibition of Hanne Hastrup’s original drawings.
The years have been kind to the smiling elf in the red dress with black dots, but in 2027, Circleen celebrates her 70th birthday!
The Nivaagaard Collection is marking the occasion with the exhibition Circleen’s Birthday, which opens on April 10 and runs throughout the summer until August 22. The exhibition invites visitors into Circleen’s world of poetry, nature, and adventure, with a generous selection of Hanne Hastrup’s original drawings, a creative workshop integrated within the exhibition, and a nature school in the park.
It was on Hesselrødvej, just outside Karlebo and not far from The Nivaagaard Collection, that Circleen’s world began to take shape. Here, Hanne Hastrup moved to a smallholding in 1962 with her husband Jannik, who created the first animated films in 1967 based on Hanne Hastrup’s drawings of the little elf and her friends, for which Hanne also wrote the scripts. In 1969, the first Circleen book, written and illustrated by Hanne Hastrup, was published.
From the illustrator's desk
Circleen originally emerged from a series of small doodles that Hanne Hastrup made at seventeen years old, when she was bored during a class at the School of Drawing and Art Industry. At first Hanne called the little figure Oline, but the O then turned into a circle, and so her name became Cirkeline (Circleen). It was only in the house just outside Karlebo that Circleen would turn up again on the illustrator’s desk – this time in a matchbox.
In the Cicleen films and books, the little elf helps the illustrator tidy up the table before climbing out of the window to explore the lush countryside beyond. The house near Karlebo is full of mice, but the illustrator cannot bear to kill them. They scurry across the floors, and one day Circleen befriends two of them, Frederik and Ingolf. Together, they go about their daily chores, explore the world around them, frighten the cat and set off on adventures in the wider world.
In 1969, Hanne and Jannik divorced and left Karlebo, but they went on making Circleen films. Together, they created nineteen episodes in all for DR, the Danish public broadcaster, between 1967 and 1971. The feature films came later: Hanne did the production design and screenplay for the first of them, Circleen: City Mouse, in 1998. Hanne Hastrup has written and illustrated a long series of Circleen books, and in 1998 she received the prestigious children’s book prize awarded by employees of the Danish book and stationery trade.
With the exhibition Circleen’s Birthday, The Nivaagaard Collection builds on the success of its popular 2023 exhibition Alfie Atkins at the Museum, which invited visitors to immerse themselves in the wonderful world of the little boy through original drawings by his creator, Gunilla Bergström.
In 2027, the spotlight will be on Hanne Hastrup and Circleen.
Med udstillingen Cirkeline har fødselsdag tager Nivaagaards Malerisamling tråden op fra den populære udstilling Alfons Åberg på museum i 2023, der gav publikum mulighed for at fordybe sig i den lille drengs forunderlige univers gennem de originale tegninger af hans skaber, Gunilla Bergstrøm.
2027 will be the year of Hanne Hastrup and Circleen.
The exhibition is supported by the Augustinus Foundation.
