From his Copenhagen studio, Møn-born Danish artist BJØRNSTJERNE CHRISTIANSEN recalls growing up with two experimental artists as his parents. Bjørnstjerne shares how he co-founded SUPERFLEX in 1993 with Jakob Fenger and Rasmus Rosengren Nielsen, and talks about some of the art collective's Copenhagen and international collaborative projects that bring to light a wide range of societal issues with play and humor. Bjørnstjerne selects a work by Ursula Reuter Christiansen from the SMK...

From Glendale, Los Angeles, in his home where he has lived since 2005, Danish musician and animator JØRGEN KLUBIEN talks about his parallel artistic paths, as a singer who rose to fame in Denmark with his band Danseorkestret in the 1980s, and as an animator with Disney Studios, where he made a mark on all the iconic films, from The Little Mermaid, The Lion King, Pocahontas, Mulan, A Bug's Life, Toy Story 2, Cars, Shrek Forever After, to Dumbo. Jørgen selects a work by Henri Matisse from the...

From his home in the Pacific Palisades in Los Angeles, Danish-American mountaineer and writer FINN-OLAF JONES describes growing up in Stevns, Denmark and Wayzata, Minnesota, surrounded by his American father's library and Danish art collection by Skagen Painters. Finn-Olaf talks about his latest project of completing the Seven Summits, as he reached the peaks of the highest mountains on each of the seven traditional continents. Finn-Olaf selects a work by C.W. Eckersberg from the SMK...

From her home in Copenhagen, Robert-nominated Danish actor, writer, stand-up comedian, television host, and author METTE LISBY recalls her 12-year residence in Los Angeles, which followed a five-year stay in London, as a period of positivity and possibility. From her time as a pioneer female stand-up comic in the early 1990s to her current book projects, Mette shares how it's all been a journey of learning and of gathering experiences. Mette selects a work by P.C. Skovgaard from the SMK...

From his Los Angeles home, Danish artist and Oscar-winning film producer BENNI KORZEN, who left Copenhagen for New York in 1964, talks first about his 200 or so abstract color paintings and collages that surround him. Benni recalls his Oscar win for Best Foreign Film for the Danish production Babette's Feast (1987), a 1960 documentary with CBS about the historic 1943 rescue of 95% of Danish Jews (of which he was one) to Sweden, and describes current projects. Benni selects a work by Paul...

From her home studio in the middle of Nørrebro in Copenhagen, Manila-born Danish-Filipino artist LILIBETH CUENCA RASMUSSEN recalls falling in love with art at her first exhibition as an exchange student in the US. Lilibeth talks about identity and performativity in art, the unique space of video and performance, as well as the challenges as a brown, female artist in the Danish and international art scene. And she shares her thoughts on what makes a good museum. Lilibeth selects a work by...

From his new restaurant Ilis in Greenpoint, Brooklyn in New York City, Michelin-starred Danish chef MADS REFSLUND talks about the central role of the root cellar and the rethinking of the front of house and back of house model where the chefs are also the ones talking with diners about the food. Mads, a co-founder of Copenhagen's world renowned Noma, additionally shares memories about his start in New York and the influence of his parents and his grandparents in paving his path with...

Danish actress JOSEFINE LINDEGAARD talks about her latest role as Greta on Zack Synder's Rebel Moon — Part 2, The Scargiver (2024), filmed in Santa Clarita just north of Los Angeles. Having grown up in Hellerup, Denmark and Warsaw, Poland, and arriving in New York and in Los Angeles in her late teens, Josefine recalls the small film roles in big projects, such as A Man Named Otto (2022) — and describes her path and her commitment to hone her craft. Josefine selects a work by C.W. Eckersberg...

From his summer house and studio outside of Copenhagen, Odense-born Danish actor CLAES BANG recalls his experience making the satirical black comedy The Square that won the Palme d'Or at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival, and the myriad of interesting projects that have found him since, including the newly launched tv series The New Look about World War II and modern fashion. And Claes talks about making music as an antidote to his day job. Claes talks about the Alberto Giacometti exhibition at...

Coming off of The Color Purple (2023), Helsingør-born Oscar-nominated Danish cinematographer DAN LAUSTSEN talks about shooting the musical in Savannah, Georgia. Dan describes his work as both technical and creative with the sole goal to help the director tell the story, and retraces his steps from the National Film School of Denmark in the '70s, to working in the U.S with directors Ole Bornedal, Guillermo del Toro, Chad Stahelski, and Blitz Bazawule, respectively. Dan selects a work by Henri...

From her studio in Glendale, Los Angeles, where she made her home about 10 years ago, florist TRINE DAHL KLUBIEN talks about her path from a flower shop on Pistolstræde in Copenhagen to one in Los Angeles, where she is sought after for her characteristic Scandinavian-California aesthetic, and where she works with a wide range of clients including Hollywood household names. Trine talks about the personal nature of the flower business and the physical demands of the work. Trine selects a work...

Los Angeles-based, Emmy-winning Danish musician and music producer JOACHIM SVARE has seen the changes in the music industry, and especially the recording industry, over the decades. Joachim shares his thoughts on the community of Danish musicians he helped build in Studio City when he first arrived in the early '90s to his current work scoring for film and tv, in particular preschool animation, a highlight being an Emmy win for "Color Song Red" (2019). Joachim selects a work by Emil Nolde...

Allerød-born Danish car designer and entrepreneur HENRIK FISKER left Denmark at age 20 to pursue his dream of becoming a car designer. He trained in Switzerland, left his legacy at Aston Martin and BMW, and has called LA home since 2000. Now focused exclusively on electric vehicles, at Fisker Inc. headquarters in Manhattan Beach just outside of Los Angeles, Henriks shares his vision to make the world's most sustainable vehicle. Henrik selects a work by Richard Mortensen from the SMK...

At the Honorary Danish Consulate in Los Angeles, Funen-born Danish pastor ANNE-GRETHE KROGH NIELSEN, who first arrived in 2004, talks about being inclusive and visionary as she serves an international as well as locally diverse congregation in a cultural environment of multiple religions. It's a role that Anne-Grethe treasures, as it allows her to make connections with people from all over. And her image of God is definitely not a white man sitting in the sky with a long beard. Anne-Grethe...

In Los Angeles for the premiere of True Detective: North Country, season four of the popular series, Upernavik-born Greenlandic activist and actress AKA NIVI NA discusses her first tv role as the troubled character Julia Navarro. Having experienced prejudice while living in Denmark, Aka supports opening sustained dialogue about indigenous individuality and seeing increased Greenlandic representation in storytelling and in being part of the world community. Aka selects a work by Nicolai...

On a trip to Los Angeles for the Oscars luncheon to honor the nomination of Knight of Fortune (2022), Danish producer and Oscar winner KIM MAGNUSSON discusses his 12th Oscar nomination, what he looks for in a short film, why short films are important, and what are themes that speak to him. He shares insights on the Danish and American film industries, the importance of Danish filmmaking in the global space, and his own professional path. Kim selects a work by Olafur Eliasson from the SMK...

On a trip to Los Angeles to screen Apolonia, Apolonia (2022), Oscar-nominated and Emmy-winning Danish-Icelandic documentary film producer SIGRID DYEKJÆR shares her thoughts on a few of her other notable international co-productions, including The Cave (2019) and The Territory (2023). Sigrid talks about team building in support of the director's vision, her interest in ethical filmmaking, and the changing landscape of the documentary film market. Sigrid selects a work by Kirsten Justesen from...

On a visit to Los Angeles, Copenhagen-based Oscar- and Golden Globes-nominated Danish-Greek director NIKOLAJ ARCEL talks about his new film The Promised Land (2023). He retraces his time living in LA, from when he received an Oscar nod for A Royal Affair (2012) through The Dark Tower (2017). He talks about key differences in his experience with Hollywood and Danish film productions, and his seminal training from the National Film School of Denmark. Nikolaj selects a work by Caspar David...

OLE HENRIKSEN, award-winning Danish founder and creative director of his eponymous skincare brand kicks off the series from his home in Los Angeles, a city he's made his life for close to 50 years. Ole talks about art, wellness, and Danishness, and shares tried and true lessons from his path from the town of Nibe on Jutland Peninsula in northern Denmark and his long-held disciplined role as strong proponent and global ambassador of positive thinking. Ole selects a work by P.S. Krøyer from the...

Welcome to Danish Originals! It is a podcast series, in English, that features Danish creatives who have made a mark in the US. We hope you will join us and subscribe to Danish Originals. The podcast series is co-represented by American Friends of Statens Museum for Kunst and Statens Museum for Kunst. We invite you to subscribe to Danish Originals for weekly episodes. You can also find us at: website: https://danishoriginals.com/ email: [email protected] And we invite you to donate to...