Experimentarium, one of the city’s largest public attractions, with over 300,000 visitors annually, is temporarily shifting its operations to Papirøen, one of several artificial islands in the middle of Copenhagen Harbour near Nyhavn.

 

The science and technology centre will shortly after the New Year move to the island while its current home in Hellerup is modernised, and it is expected to operate there for at least two years.

 

Its move to Papirøen is part of a plan to transform the island, which has a prime city-centre location but has for decades been an industrial no-man’s-land, into a vibrant and creative new cultural zone.

 

Among the other tenants are a number of creative businesses and restaurants. They include Jesper Møller, the chef and owner of the acclaimed Restaurant Julian at the National Museum, and the architecture firm Cobe, which has already established the Paper Gallery to showcase a permanent collection of architecture models, as well as providing a backdrop for fashion shows, social media events and exhibitions.

 

Experimentarium currently features almost 300 interactive exhibitions, but will have to reduce that number when it moves to its new 3,000 sqm site on Papirøen.

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“We will have only half the space that we have in Hellerup, so not all of the exhibitions will come with us,” chief executive Kim Herlev confirmed to Politiken newspaper. However, he stressed that all the old favourites will be there for visitors to see when they visit the new centre.

 

Furthermore, Experimentarium’s new location, particularly its proximity to the harbour, will enable it to offer more outdoor activities.

 

“We feel a little like a young student moving to the capital,” continued Herlev. “We consider the period as an opportunity to experiment with different ways to do things.”

The temporary centre will open its doors to the public with a special exhibition on winter sports, running in parallel with the Winter Olympics in Sochi. 

 

Papirøen, the ‘paper island’, acquired its name due to the presence of the Danish press purchasing society, Pressens Fællesindkøb, which held its newsprint stock there for decades.