five years sketching in the happiest country in the world
KATHRYN LARSEN
INTRODUCTION This book is a love letter to Denmark, the Danish people, and the non-Danes I have met while living here. And in some ways, it is a love letter to the man that supported me through it all: my sweet husband, Lucas, who’s more Danish than a lego block. I have read multiple travel books and guide books on Japan, France and the United States, that combined art, culture, and little quiet observations. When I came to Denmark, one of the biggest surprises I experienced was how hidden the culture was, and how there were so many nuances underneath the surface. I wasn’t prepared for them, and initially went through a very big culture shock. Drawing became a way for me to document all the beauty I saw, while keeping note of the things that make Denmark such an amazing and unique place. Thank you Denmark, for five glorious years. I hope to return to you someday soon.
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This book is made possible due to the Patreon supporters: Alexander Emil Niclas John Many thanks for your support on this journey!
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I first touch down in Copenhagen at the tender age of nineteen, deeply in love with a Danish boy named Lucas. I met him in Japan six months prior. I am enchanted.
The boyfriend that will eventually become my husband gives me the full tourist experience. We eat smørrebrød and drink beers in the summer sun, and I break open my sketchbook for the first time to draw.
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I plan my move over the next year, while studying at architecture school in the US. I am accepted to an architectural technology course in Copenhagen, take a deep breath, pack my bags, and come to Denmark, completely unaware of what’s in store for me.
Denmark represents an escape for me from the rat race of the United States. It is a promise of achieving an affordable education in my dream industry, and a chance at true love.
COPENHAGEN
just kidding, I live in the suburbs
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I move to Brønshøj, a suburb of Copenhagen, at the age of twenty, in 2015. At the time, I am unaware of this, but my new neighborhood is known for being a bit of a problem child in Copenhagen. It is a tremendous difference from the United States though. It is safe enough to walk outside late at night by myself. I revel in the beautiful houses of my neighborhood, and the nearby park, Utterslev Mose. 5
The view from across my apartment
I fall in love with the different colors of brick over the day, and the colors that shadows make. My favorite is in the morning, when the sunlight makes the apartment complex across from mine glow gold.
One of the cute family houses in Brønshøj 6
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A crow breaks his wing near our apartment and cannot fly. His friends squack to him from nearby trees, and have a fit whenever we get close.
After surveying the situation from a safe distance, we call animal control, who scoops the poor fellow up. I read that crows can remember facesI hope they don’t think I’m a crow-napper.
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I go around Utterslev Mose and try to draw one of the half-timber framed houses so I can label it and use it to learn some Danish. My goal is to get a job in the building industry, so I have to teach myself a ton of specialized words. Like hjørnestolp. 10
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I always ask friends to meet me at this McDonald’s because I think it’s kind of hilarious to be American and say “Hey, meet me at the Golden Arches!”
I think it’s crazy that buildings are so old here that a McDonalds can legally be slipped behind a 19th century facade. Growing up, I thought my house was old because it 12 was built in 1830.
When I first started drawing in Denmark, a lot of my sketches were like these. Hesitant, unfinished. I was still experimenting a bit and trying to find what felt right. Sometimes I tore pages out of my sketchbook. In 2017, I decide to commit to sketching my daily life. No more giving up halfway.
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I joked to Lucas before moving to Denmark that architects always wear black. He stared at me blankly. Now I know that it is because everyone seems to wear black all the time in Copenhagen.
I always thought hotdogs were American. Turns out they are Danish too. And you can get a beer with them on the street. You can’t do that in Philly. 14
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I make it a goal to find the best aerial views in Copenhagen. The Round Tower is a good one, but for free views, I also like to run into Illum, ride the escalator to the top floor, and peer out.
Another good free one is inside Hay House, in the city center. I’m too scared I’ll bother people, though, if I sketch there inside the shop. 16
Did you know that Denmark is full of slots? Slot means castle. Slut, on the other hand, means “done” or the “end”. And fart means speed. Seeing signs for “Fart Kontrol” always makes snicker like a five-year-old.
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I try to go to the palace to sketch but after I draw this and label it, I realize it is Odd Fellows Mansion and not, in fact, Amalienborg Palace. 19
Oops. 20
The colors in Copenhagen inspire me to experiment more, especially when I receive a new watercolor set from Lucas as a Christmas gift. I like to paint them as saturated as possible. I’ve never seen such daring yellows and reds before.
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I go sketching in Glyptoteket but I get in trouble for using markers to draw in the museum. The guard tells me, “You can’t use ‘tusche’”. I stare blankly at her, and say, “this is a pen.” Apparently felt-tipped pens are considered markers, and I am only able to use them on the terrace roof.
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The mystery of the coffee tower: I’ve been drawing versions of these since coming to Denmark but never knew their history. They serve coffee these days, but apparently they used to sell tram tickets.I love seeing them around the city. 23
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SCHOOL
It’s not what I expected.
My new study is fun, but extremely relaxed, and chaotic I struggle with being put into a group of five, where our work as a collective is more important than my individual performance. My whole life has been about me: me succeeding, me being the best. I have to learn how to play well with others. 25
We go on a travel trip with school. Heres what I learn: I like Jørn Utzon, but I think BIG’s dwellings in Amager are terrible- you can see directly into the large windows of the apartments. If it was my apartment, I’d be flashing the world every time I took a shower.
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There are a lot of different brick colors, in Denmark and I am amazed by Gruntvigs Kirke, and Romerhusene. Some of these bricks are still traditionally baked so the colors vary. Also it is possible to study to become a mason and then use your masonry experience to become an architectural technologist.
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I bring my sketchbook everywhere. Even on building site visits.
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My favorite trip by far is when we go to RĂĽdvĂĽd and learn about historical Danish architecture, and restoration.
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Sometimes I draft directly into my sketchbook. There’s something so satisfying about drawing an elevation, to scale, by hand. Even now, I sketch out my work ideas on lined paper, before turning to the computer.
FYI: Schools in Denmark are highly specialized. You get your liberal arts degree at universities. There are also art academies that offer design and architecture degrees. I study at a professional school, which also has study tracks for things like fashion and jewelry design. I love the old brick architecture of the University of Copenhagen. It reminds me of the feeling of studying at an Ivy League back in the States. I hang out at Studenterhuset sometimes, because my friends volunteer there, and I can get free vouchers for cake from them. 32
WINTER
it’s really dark outside
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The wind howls, and the nights are long - made worse by the fact my first winter in Denmark, I am sick with the kissing disease. I sleep for hours.
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Christmas is the gemstone of the season. Nisser, which are like little Christmas gnomes, like to eat risengrød with a pat of butter on it and bring presents. At first I think that butter on rice pudding is strange but I try it and it blows my mind. There are so many new traditions here that I have never tried. Dancing around the Christmas tree is one of them. Also, Christmas is celebrated a day earlier than in the US. This leads me to continually wish my American family a Merry Christmas a day too soon. 36
My advice to beat the winter blues? Visit the greenhouse at the botanical gardens in Copenhagen or in Arhus.
Enjoy a tropical few hours.
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I drink gallons of tea in my second winter. It helps when I get sick. My friend Monika gives me some of her family’s honey from Lithuania, and adds berry moonshine to the tea. I get instantly drunk and fall asleep. The next day, I do actually feel better.
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HYGGE
yes, it sounds cliche, but it’s essential
Americans alway picture hygge as drinking coffee with your friends. Coffee is ten dollars here. A beer is five. Guess what most Danes drink with friends?
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I still think it’s hyggeligt to grab a cup of coffee with friends though. I join a local sketching group, and we sit around and draw together, over a fresh cup of joe. Beer tends to make my linework wobble even more than usual.
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That’s not to say that I don’t like beer though. For some reason I always draw Tuborg. I think it’s because I like the design of the different holiday beers.
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Take a six pack and some friends down to Dronning Louises Bro on a warm day. Watch the sun set. 45
The buildings here look a lot like Paris too.
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I also like watching the duck boats paddle across the lakes. I’m not ashamed to say I’ve tried them on more than one ocassion. 49
Hygge is a verb and an adjective. It is one of my favorite things about this country, and it is different for everyone, but I like to think it’s about enjoying little things every day in life. 50
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A little enjoyment I have is satisfying my sweet tooth. Denmark is filled with new cakes and pastries that I’ve never encountered before. I have a new appreciation of marzipan.
In Denmark, I make some of the best friends in my entire life. In the US, sometimes competition and insecurity would get in the way of friendship. Not here. Not when there is hygge to be had instead. 52
JUTLAND
the island that is connected to Germany
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In 2016, Lucas moves out of the 25-square-meter flat in Brønshøj to Sønderborg, to study for a year. I end up commuting at least twice a month to visit him on the weekends. The train ride is only four hours, and I usually take a nice nap.
One of the things I notice about Sønderborg is how soft all the facades are in color. The pastels are almost every color of the rainbow.
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This is a drawing I actually feel quite bad about. I am standing, sketching in the cold by the harbor. A woman comes out to the balcony and yells out at me “what are you doing??” I think she is afraid I am up to something nefarious, because when I call back “I’m drawing, sorry!”, she seems confused. I think I scared her.
I draw this at a bar, with a huge cider in hand as I work. The day is warm and the sun is shining. It is a good day.
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One of the people by the fire engines hands me a postcard of what I’ve been sketching, so I attatch it in my sketchbook over another set of drawings, of people sketches. 58
One of the places I visit often in Jutland is Viborg. We have two friends, Eydi and Freja, that live and study there. The city is amazing, filled with arts and crafts, nature, and cute little cafes.
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I’m particularly attracted to a little street with half-timber framed houses, brick, and cobblestoned pathways.
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Our friends happen to have two cute parakeets, that like to fly around and land on your hand. Eydi says that they have “warm little raptor toes”. It’s true!
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Lucas has a love-hate relationship with Hector. Five minutes after I draw the birds, he borrows my sketchbook and returns it with this sketch. 62
The foundations in the area by our friend’s apartment slant, because they’ve been so worn down over time. As a result, many of the walls look like they are leaning forward. It’s part of the charm, the imperfection that comes from aging. 63
Aarhus will forever be one of my favorite cities in Denmark. It feels like a calmer, quieter version of Copenhagen. I especially love the ARoS art museum. It has some of the best contemporary art I’ve ever seen. Going up into the rainbow panorama is something I always do now, when I visit.
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In 2018, during my internship, the entire architecture firm goes on a travel trip across Jutland. I am so excited to see the Wadden Sea Visitors Center. The remodel/extension was done by Dorte Mandrup Architects, entirely in thatch. After checking out the exhibits, we go on a little hike outside in the park.
I only have 2 minutes to draw this, so the people look a bit like trolls. The entire church is incredible. I wish I could have had more time to draw it. 66
World War II didn’t exactly happen on US soil, so visiting 67 bunkers is like history coming alive for me.
This is one of my more favorite buildings designed by BIG. I like their museums better than their residential buildings.
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I draw my pirate fantasy at Strandingsmuseet.
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At the museum, I grab a postcard from an interactive display. You’re supposed to write what you offer unexpected guests. Here in Denmark, I am the unexpected guest. The American.
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SPRING
arguably the best season in Denmark
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After a long, dark winter, the signs of spring always brighten my mood. Growing up, my backyard had a lilac tree. Here, flowering trees are so abundant, the air is constantly perfumed. Flower shops still exist, and display their wares outside. In the US, for flowers, most people would visit a supermarket. 74
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Unfortunately, Spring or Summer doesn’t always guarantee good weather. 76
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The little square by my apartment has little pop-up flower stalls almost every day. I’ve never bought any plants there, but I love seeing them. The Danish affinity for plants surprised me. At one point I startle at seeing my boss water the plants on our meeting table. I had assumed they were plastic. 79
SLAGELSE our new home!
In 2017, Lucas and I pack up from Brønshøj and move to Slagelse. 100km west of Copenhagen, this sleepy little city is surrounded by cows and rapeseed fields. I get my first job here, and begin to put down roots. 80
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Near my apartment, there is a mall called VestsjĂŚllandscentret. There are always pop up displays in the center, and one day I go down to find animatronic dinosaurs. I sit and draw this at the nearby Espresso House. The little kids get scared when the head moves from side to side. 82
I also experience a rare sketching snafu when I try to sketch with a “waterproof” copic liner pen. The second I start trying to paint my sketch, I realize it’s not waterproof and give up. But I decide to try again later.
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Here, the churches and religious architecture date back to the middle ages. It reminds me of the book The Pillars of The Earth. I wonder what life was like here when these churches were being built. 84
There’s the Viking Fortress Trelleborg near our apartment. So I draw my Viking beer. This is actually one of my only pencil drawings in five years.
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When I do get to visit Trelleborg, it’s with friends, so I don’t really have time to sketch. Instead, I do a crayon rubbing of the runes they have in the Visitor’s Center. This one is the plan view of the fortress.
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WORK
enjoying that sweet Danish work-life balance
My first ever “real” job is working for a summer house company in the country. Every day I draw houses that I will never get to enjoy myself. Finally I decide that I need to experience this summer house culture first hand, and in 2019, I visit two friend’s homes over the summer 88
The first summer house I visit is in June in Skælskør. It is close to Slagelse, and completely isolated. The beach is almost empty, and there’s a lovely forest for walking in. We are close enough to the sea that I can smell it from the house’s porch. I draw my friend’s dog Simba. He’s like a powder puff, he’s so fluffy. 89
The second house I visit is in Liseleje. It is almost a four hour journey, but well worth it. I visit my friend, an elderly American lady, and we sit on the porch for hours, drinking wine and eating. The house has another two dogs, and a cat that I spend time getting to know. I am sad to leave and go back to work. 90
When I was in school, I had an internship for a fancy architecture firm in Nordhavn. One of the things that surprised me was that they stuck to a 37-hour work week. 91
Meanwhile in the US, I knew people working 50-60 hours in the industry each week. The Danish work-life balance is one of the best parts of living here. You work to live here. 92
COMMUTE
I have a love affair with public transport.
I have to be honest, although prone to delays, the Danish public transport system is fantastic. It’s so much better than the American system, if our system can even be called a system really. And the bike infrastructure is one of the best in the world. 93
That being said, I am terrible at biking. It takes me a full year of timidly trying to bike around Copenhagen to finally not be afraid of slowing everyone down. And even when I do get comfortable, I’m still so slow that people regularly pass me smoking, cigarette in hand, or cycling with no hands. How do they do that??
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Biking is still my main form of commute, until I move to Slagelse. But in mid-2020, someone steals my beloved bike from our courtyard. Rest in peace, my glorious city cruiser. 96
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I get to experience a cool event when all the 5A busses get changed to 5C busses, while I’m still living in Brønshøj. The new busses are beset by functioningproblems for about two years
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Once I move to Slagelse, my commute consists mainly of bus and train. 99
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Yes, I spelled “commute� wrong. It happens!
DESIGN
Danish design is world famous.
Design is a part of everything in Denmark. It’s woven into the very tapestry of society. I will never forget one of my first study jobs, when I ask a coworker who Verner Panton is. The look of horror on her face makes me realize I have to do some research. 108
I start by studying furniture. Davids Samling is open free to the public. So I go and sketch all the chairs and tables I see. 109
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I also sketch the chairs I see around town. They’re very nice. 111
And finally, I go to Designmuseum Denmark, and sketch their chairs. They must have hundreds of chairs, each in different styles and designs. 112
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I also visit BLOX for the Danish Architecture center. I see their exhibits on Jørn Utzon and Dorte Mandrup. 116
ONWARDs leaving Denmark
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How do you know when a place becomes home? When you touch down, and feel relief, and familiarity. Denmark will always be a piece of me. It’s a complex tapestry of memories and emotions, of tears and joy. Of new firsts and triumphs. Denmark is home, just as Japan and America will always be home to me too.
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People always ask me what I bring when I go sketching. This is my set-up. I paste things in and stamp into my sketchbook as I visit places, and draw on top. There is no right or wrong way to create! 121
Now it’s your turn. I challenge you to get a piece of paper, and a pen, and draw something. It could be anything. Go for it!
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