The Bornholm Art Tour

text: Martin Poul Gangelhoff 

Foto: Anders beier

Imagination is unleashed on Bornholm, where craft art flourishes. Since 2017, Bornholm has also been known as Makers Island, after becoming the first island in the world and the first region in Europe to join an exclusive club as a World Craft Region – one of the most distinguished titles in the world of craft art.

A tour of Bornholm speaks volumes about how well-earned this title is, because the island abounds with craft artists young and old, Danes as well as foreigners, showcasing their creative talents. 

The island’s galleries are brimming with painted canvases characterised by green or dark landscapes, curved or angular patterns and shapes frozen in time. At glass and ceramics workshops, forges and kilns meld molecules under intense heat. The heat yields creations that last for generations. But Bornholm offers many other types of craft art, too. Photographic art, woodworking art, knitting art, upcycled art, culinary art. The only limit is the imagination! 

The Bornholm Art Tour is the best time of the year to explore Bornholm’s wide range of craft art. The island’s craft artists join forces during this yearly festival to celebrate the island’s proud tradition of creative craft art. The festival lasts four days during the Ascension Day holidays. 

With the blossoming Bornholm spring as their backdrop, a profusion of the island’s craft artists display their art. Many of them also invite visitors right inside their studios, where they talk about their works of craft art, their styles and their methods. Refreshments are also available at various points along the Bornholm Art Tour. Several of the island’s restaurants, cafés and bakeries open their doors to proffer the products of their culinary prowess. 

The Art Tour will awaken all your senses after the cold dormancy of winter, and everyone is welcome to see, hear, smell, touch and taste. 

The Bornholm Art Tour takes place during the Ascension Day holidays in Denmark. The works of all participating craft artists are also exhibited at Svanekegaarden in the weeks leading up to and following Ascension Day, where you can get a taster or an after-taste of the Art Tour. The Bornholm Art Tour’s own catalogue is available on Bornholmslinjen’s ferries and at Svanekegaarden. This year’s cover features advertising and art photographer Claus Sonne (1962–2003).  

Further details about this year’s programme are available on the website for the Bornholm Art Tour: bornholms-kunstrunde.dk

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