CLAY – an architectural pearl

The house of ceramics by Lillebælt

You step through a manor house from 1856-57 and end up underground, in bright, raw exhibition halls overlooking Lillebælt. That's how you meet CLAY Museum of Ceramic Art Denmark in Middelfart: a place where old architecture and modern museum design merge.

Grimmerhus was built as the dowager's residence for Hindsgavl Castle, designed by architect J.D. Herholdt, who also designed the University Library and the National Bank in Copenhagen. The historicist house, inspired by 16th-century Italian villas, was protected as a heritage site in 1993, one of the country's first true examples of villa architecture. Today the entrance, café, and shop occupy the old rooms.

In 1994, the ceramics group Clay Today opened a museum in the house, and the collection grew fast. Following an architectural competition, Kjaer & Richter A/S designed an extension, with most of the new building placed underground to protect both the listed villa and the surrounding protected forest. An interior staircase connects the two parts, and large glass sections pull Lillebælt into the rooms. The above-ground pavilion is clad in handmade, reversible roof tiles that act as louvers, controlling the light.

Below ground, changing special exhibitions await, along with a treasury of porcelain, faience, and stoneware from the Royal Copenhagen Collection. The museum took its current name, CLAY Museum of Ceramic Art Denmark, in 2015, at an inauguration attended by Queen Margrethe.

A visit suits you if you want to combine art, architecture, and a pause by the water, whether you come alone, as a couple, or with kids.

Tip: Take a walk through the sculpture park afterward, where several of the museum's large works stand outdoors, overlooking Lillebælt.