So a couple months ago I wrote this blog about Denmark being the asshole of the day for having Obama go over there to lobby for the Olympics…well just like everything else, Europe got my blog late and I just received this response…

from Your A Disgrace:

Denmark has never asked for your president, you stupid morron! Obama unfortunately wanted to support Chigago and maybe to catch some publicity. He´s comming again to the climate meeting, but of course this time it´s important, because The United Fucking States can´t control their abuse of the environment!
To conclude on what you´re saying, I would guess you´re one of the reasons why NOONE in scandinavia or the rest of Europe, gives a fuck about americans. Everyone thinks the inhabitants of the United States are stupid as hell… And you´re one of the reasons why..! I hope you lose your job, and your 10 dollar paycheck, and maybe when your IQ reaches the level of 59, you should be abe to realize, that the States aren’t the center of everything..!
In fact, we don´t gives a fuck…

now I’m not gonna give out this losers e-mail address…but I’ll give you the important parts… XXXXXXX-asshole.euxxxx@msn.dk

so from what I can gather being a stupid ignorant American, this zero is an asshole from Europe and more specifically Denmark…well holy shit!!! I’ve gone mother fucking international!!! I’ve hopped the pond!  I love this kind of thing, this is one of the main reasons I started The Loon…I want to piss people off…but I never thought some Danish loser would read me and fire back…but now I am declaring verbal warfare on Denmark…I had no beef with you, but now that one of your 5.5 million decided to mess with me it’s fucking on…if WW2 is any indication you’ll surrender to The Loon in a matter of days…wouldn’t this flag look great flying over Copenhagen?

 so any loyal readers of The Loon have some homework…we have officially declared war on Denmark…so if you know anyone who is Danish then punch them in the face really fucking hard…THE LOON IS RISING!!!!! Down With Denmark!!!!

Vibe and her  father. Copenhagen, Denmark 2008

Thomas Lekfeldt (b. 1977, Denmark) is a freelance photojournalist based in Copenhagen, Denmark. He works for Danish and international press, primarily the Danish newspaper Ekstra Bladet. He has a bachelor’s degree in photojournalism from the Danish School of Journalism in Aarhus, Denmark. He has received awards in the Danish Picture of the Year, Best of Photojournalism, EISA Maestro Photo Contest and New York Photo Awards. His work was also recently exhibited at Visa Pour l’Image in  Perpignan, France and the Noorderlicht Photo festival in the Netherlands.

About the Photograph:

“I followed Vibe, a little girl with a brain tumor, during the last year of her life. I documented the sorrows and the moments of joy at home, in school, on vacation and in hospital. The story was at the same time an assignment for the newspaper Ekstra Bladet and a very personal project for me. At the time that I took this picture Vibe had been hospitalized for a few days to have a chemotherapy treatment. She was in the hospital with her mother, and her father and twin sister often came to visit her. In the picture Vibe is kissing her father, and above them are some paper cuts that Vibe and her mother had made. To me they look like stars, and they keep reminding me of what Vibe’s father used to tell Vibe; that he would catch the stars in the sky for her if she asked him to. Now he tells Vibe’s twin sister Laerke that Vibe herself has become one of the stars in the sky.”

Distrust and prejudice against Jews in Denmark doesn’t thrive only in extremist groups. Up to 75 per cent of immigrants from five different countries and 20 per cent  of ethnic Danes have anti-Jewish attitudes.

A Swedish policeman help a Danish Jew who escaped the Nazis in 1940 and took refuge in Sweden.

The data comes from a new study which appears in the book «Danmark og de fremmede: Om mødet med den arabisk-muslimske verden» (Denmark and the stranger: on the meeting with the Arab-Muslim world), which will be published Friday.

The study shows, additionally, that anti-Jewish attitudes are strikingly more widespread among the immigrants who define themselves as Muslims than among Christian immigrants.

The study is based on interviews with 1503 immigrants from five different groups: Turks, Pakistanis, Somalis, Palestinians and ex-Yugoslavians – as well as 300 ethnic Danes.

All were asked three questions, which deal with their attitudes towards various groups in society and not just to Jews.  But it’s the Jews that the five groups are clearly most distrustful and prejudiced against.

65.8 per cent of the five immigrant groups said that one «can’t be careful enough in relation to Jews in Denmark».  75.2 per cent don’t want a family member to marry a Danish Jew.  And 31.9 per cent  think that «there are too many Jews in Denmark».

«The study shows that the anti-Jewish attitudes are certainly not unique to extremist circles.  The attitudes are far, far more widespread among the immigrants, then we usually think», says professor Peter Nannestad of the Institute for Political Science at Aarhus University, who made the study.

But ethnic Danes can’t be said to be free of anti-Jewish attitudes.  For example, 18.2 per cent of them think that one ‘can’t be careful enough in relation to Jews in Denmark’, and 14.7 per cent don’t want to see a family member marry a Danish Jew.

Peter Nannestad says that the figures aren’t surprising, but are roughly in line with what is seen in other studies.  He refers to an American study of antisemitism in Europe from 2006, which gave the same picture of Danish attitudes towards Jews.

Chief Rabbi Bent Lexner of the Mosaic Faith-society isn’t surprised by the data.  He says that it’s probably Danish naivety which makes people think it isn’t so.

«Since the situation is so. It’s not a coincidence that the government is working on an action plan on how to create better awareness of the Jewish community in Denmark in such groups».

The study shows, additionally, that anti-Jewish attitudes are strikingly more widespread among the immigrants who define themselves as Muslims than among Christian immigrants.

The spokesperson for the Muslim Joint Council, Zubair Butt Hussain, didn’t want to comment on the study since he hasn’t read it yet.  But racism – regardless of whether it’s in the form of antisemitism, racism against Danish Muslims or other groups – is completely and totally unacceptable, he says.

Source: Danish Christian daily « Kristeligt Dagblad».

Ten North Naples Middle School students were suspended after they participated in “kick a Jew day.” The students received a one day, in-school suspension. The parents of the 10 students were also called. Parents of the students who were kicked were also notified of what happened. The Collier County School District has a policy on bullying and harassment. The students were disciplined in accordance with the bullying and harassment policy, which can range from “positive behavioral interventions up to and including suspension or expulsion, as outlined in the Code of Student Conduct.” What do you think should happen to these students?

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3XN has won a architectural competition for the design of the Courthouse in Frederiksberg in Denmark.

The expansion of the Courthouse in Frederiksberg, Denmark, will be a sculptural and classic structure, which at once expresses a welcoming transparency while maintaining the justice system’s sobriety and seriousness.

The new Courthouse will be a natural extension of the existing neo-classical building, yet still maintaining its own identity through a modern and contemporary expression.  The building design is therefore composed with clear references to the architectural style of the refined neighborhood of Frederiksberg.  The form of the structure is both classic and dynamic – standing as a modern interpretation of the classical saddle style roof.

The interior of the courthouse focuses on compliance with the law reform’s requirements on security and internal segregations in the building.  Therefore, the building provides its employees, the defendants, witnesses and guests an open and friendly environment in which it is easy for the different user groups to navigate.

A small atrium cuts through the middle of the building; drawing light deep into the interior creating an open and airy connection across departments.  This creates the feeling of direct daylight in the rooms and gives a general lightness to the building’s inner core, meeting the visitors as they come up from the foyer.

The Courthouse is expected for completion during the first half of 2012.

Special Thanks to Lise Roland Johansen from 3XN
All images and text are from 3XN!

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Michaela Kocianova is featured on the cover and in an editorial for Denmark’s Elle. Literally I wasted no time in posting this shoot I loved it from the get-go. I love the styling and Michaela’s hair looks absolutely amazing. Another great shoot from somewhere other than the UK, again I ask why can’t our own version of this mag produce this quality. Come On Guys!

IMG|SOURCE: MX

The Celebration (Festen) 1998

Genre: Drama

Description:

A darkly comic journey into forbidden family territory. No one can ignore a person like Danish patriarch Helge Klingenfeldt. So on his sixtieth birthday, a celebration is required. Friends and relatives scurry to the country estate. Eventually, every family’s secrets will come out. And since his twin sister’s death two months ago, prodigal son Christian is more haunted than usual. The time has come for the darkest family skeleton to be revealed, and it must be done in their father’s style – with flair, and malice.

Directed by: Thomas Vinterberg

Stream and watch it online for free:

The Celebration on stagevu (with English subtitles)

The Celebration on MEGAVIDEO (with English Subtitles)

why are you sending people away? is it because you want to keep Denmark 'clean'?

Let them in I say!

Let them in!

It’s amusing, but Denmark is so fucking rich.  And so obscenely selfish, and pompous.  Whatever we think we know,  Denmark or a representative of the Danish way, with very few exceptions, will come along and tell us a) they know better or b) ahahahhahhahaha!  we actually *patronising titter* know less than we profess to.

Oh ahahahhahahaha Danish people, you know so much right?

You know about the orphans of AIDS right?  You saw them on your little gap year tourist trek to AF’KA.  You donate a portion of your salary to your sponsor child.  You UNDERSTAND the millions of people going to bed hungry tonight?

How about letting them in?

How about taking a cut in your standard of life, living with a little less fat arsed security?  How about giving up the duck or the pig this christmas,  feeding a family of six on what you snack on during the tv breaks?  How about letting them in?

Oh I know, right now you are either a) too busy pontificating from your office stool (social democrats) b) having passionate debates with other like minds and getting your face pierced (enhedslisten) or c) filing your taxes (anything right of venstre) but have you not considered the sheer bulk of your everyday wealth here?

All mouth and no trousers is what I call your lot.  I have seen this before, in town to town, but never a whole country of the disease.

What oh what is really wrong with ya?

Let them in I say.

Now, some Danes like to quote some number that suggests Denmark has actually been quite generous allowing refugees in,  well, thank you very much, that was nice, thanks for the flat and the cheque and the free child care and the Danish lessons.  That job didn’t show up though, I wonder… is it cos I’s black?  Eh?

No, you’ve been very kind, really.

But you know.  I have two pictures in my hand.  One is of a big fat Dane at a Julfrokost (now don’t tell me that 9 months pregnant manbelly is glandular:  it is PORK) and one is of an girl orphaned by AIDS living in South Africa.

One is full of it and one is wanting.

This place is selfish, the people keep it so,  even the armchair pontificators, their talk goes nowhere, they like to criticize the governing body, the people from Jutland, the invandrer, y’all have these awful smug pontifications about what is going wrong here, y’all bring all manner of shite into it.  Europe keeps being mentioned, that it is a general problem.

But not one of you is getting off your ass and saying:  LET THEM COME!

And by ’saying’ I mean, actually making SOME NOISE.

There is place here for more people,  it would mean the Danes took a huge cut in their pork intake, but really, SHOULD a person spend that long on the toilet anyway?  I heard that the Dane use more laxatives per capita per annum than any other country in Europe.  You all eat too much!  You are way toooo warm.  You have too many clothes and your cars look silly and shiny, but not in an ‘American Dream’ kind of way.  You don’t look ’simple scandinavian chic’, you look greedy and/or  pretentious.

Y’all take your flights half way across the world,  muliple holidays and pleasure trips a year and you order on the internet for what you can’t get in KVICKLY, and you keep your borders tight.

Denmark is a democracy, somehow the people have agreed in huge numbers to who tells us what to do.

And always the smug Dane voice, who knows better than we do, because they have it all worked out.

Until I see Danes standing up, in huge numbers, I will stick with my assumption that you are all cowardly, selfish,  greedy and lazy.  I keep hearing all these bleeding heart liberals saying: oh, no, but really, we are with you on this, we are actually ashamed to be Danish right now, and there are more like us…

Oh raaaallllly?  So where the fuck are they?

You know damn well all you care about is your pension.

As a citizen of the North Pole Santa is probably a little confused about who he should be paying his taxes to.

Sovereignty has never really been an issue in the past not least because there’s actually no land to speak of – the North Pole is a shifting piece of ice and only defined as an imaginary point where the lines of longitude cross.  Indeed back in 1920 when two Eskimos confessed to killing a member of the Peary expedition ten years previously, the case was dropped due to the inability of anyone to prove jurisdiction.

Canada and Denmark have the closest landmasses and just this week we saw Canada once again staking a claim for sovereignty over the North West Passage as well as some robust statements from various politicians over Canada’s rights to the Arctic interest.

Canada, of course, has some form here.  In 2000 they threatened to charge a pilot with ‘littering’ when he abandoned his plane due to engine failure near the North Pole.  He eventually returned to fix it and recovered the errant aircraft.  At the time no other countries sought to challenge Canada’s intent or legal right to do so.

Since then, however, things have changed and the catalyst is the potentially massive quantities of natural resources that sit below the ice pack.  Estimates vary but oil and gas reserves alone could be vast, albeit extremely expensive to recover.

Russia has regularly tested Canada’s patience with their military flights crossing into disputed Canadian territorial waters.  The odd US submarine pops up at the North Pole from time to time too, whilst the Russian navy went so far as to plant a flag on the sea bed at the North Pole.  I think it is fair to assume that this discussion is far from over.

How it will all be resolved or, indeed, if it ever will be resolved are difficult questions to answer.  Would a country actually be prepared to invade the North Pole? Would Canada or Denmark take military steps to defend such an act?  If the answer to either of these questions is actually no, then why bother debating or passing motions around sovereignty?

It’s a bit like hedging your bets – “we’ll keep posturing so no one forgets that we think it’s ours”.  Ultimately we suspect that words will not be enough but, with the price of oil and gas in particular relatively depressed at the moment,  this issue will be a news sub-plot for some time to come.

In the meantime perhaps Santa should just accrue his potential tax liability and make sure his records are accurate.  I guess at this time of year he probably has other things on his mind…

… they put on a show to remember! We arrived at the Mons Klint national park on a windy, rainy, cold day.  The waves weren’t very high, but made an impression nevertheless.

(Photo credit: MRandin)

(Photo credit: MRandin)

It’s been a while since I’ve smelled the sea and this one smelled particularly good. We climbed down the wooden stairs leading to the coastline and reached and interesting dead end!

(Photo credit: MRandin)

One travel site claims that “The brilliant white of the chalk standing out against the deep blue of the sea is particularly striking when the sun is shining”.

Personally, I think that’s debateable.

Being enrolled in GLOBE involves a multitude of cultural experiences – and food is of course one of them.

Yesterday, the American GLOBER’s decided that they wanted to share one of their most important traditions with us – Thanksgiving. And since this involves an unbelievable amount of food, we were divided into smaller groups and had each our separate responsibilities. As our dorms are dispersed around the city, it was quite a logistic exercise to get everyone to meet up at the same place with (at least partly) warm food. The journeys of the night involved a turkey going by bus and courageous chefs running through the pouring rain to try and safe their cakes and pies. Indeed, this was an outside classroom experience with the problems of supply chain management!

We ended up having more than thrice as much food than we needed and all of us went home with a full stomach after this enjoyable encounter with traditional American cooking.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Quelle “Need U” • Album Download

“Blue Mondays”, as explained by Quelle

1 ‘Special Ingredient’
“its simple. i consider myself one of those special ingredients that make hiphop so special.”

3 ‘Deal Wit It’ feat Denmark
“one of my favorite songs of all times with one of my favorite emcees. this was the fist official crown nation song as far as im conserned. it of course is saying deal with the shit you got coming to you. on some no fly zone shit. but its also saying deal with the fact that we got that shit and these other niggas just dont.”

4 ‘The Jones Brothers’ feat Blaqk Mythe
“me and blaqk mythe started making music together back in 97/98. we dont work together often but he’s easily one of my favorite cats to work with. it was originally recorded over a beat by this cool ass dj named doc link. then i remixed it so it would fit in better with the album. me and blaqk just like talking shit. so thats what the song embodies.”

5 ‘Dick Ridah’ feat Denmark
“magnetic gave me a beat cd with this track on it a while back and it was like a year later when we finally made ‘dick ridah’. i was listening to a shit load of redman at the time, hence the chorus. if you don’t know the reference go listen to every redman album and find it. it’s more exciting when you hear it that way”

6 ‘Blue Mondays’
“this song is about the things people feel blue over. the story behind it is more yellow. or orange. some random cat gave me this remix cd where this guy did remixes of popular songs at the time. then like a good ways into the cd this beat comes on and i’m like “wow”. so i write the song not knowing who made the beat and of course not giving a fuck. maybe like two years later im at my guy daves apartment playing some shit he hadnt heard yet and blue mondays comes on and hes like “hey this beat sounds familiar” turns out his roomate, justin, made the beat that i got randomly a couple years back. so it made the album.”

7 ‘Need You’
“a song about a girl i wanted but couldnt have. simple as that. in all honesty i was just playing the herb. even someone as cool as me can fall victim to sucka shit from time to time. so i wrote a song about her. thats what writers do. the only thing i cant write well are two sentence descriptions of my songs.”

8 ‘Put It Down’ feat Galaxy
“meet these cats through Team Swass named 5ill and galaxy who were in this group automation alley. me a galaxy did a song called put it down over one of galaxys beats. this is accually the remix. its just a song about how we do what we do best. pretty to the point.”

9 ‘Running The Show’ feat Loose Cannon
“first of all, loose is one of the reasons i started making beats in the first place. plus he has this way of riding the drum patterns that i haven’t heard to many people do the same way. this is also the first song i recorded specifically for this cd. in my moms basement. two grown ass niggas. a few shout outs and a couple verses later we had a song.”

10 ‘Vegetables’
“this song works both ways. if you cant handle your liquor dont try to buy the bar out and shit like like. nothing funnier than watching a flossy ass nigga getting carried out of a bar by two equally deckd out cats and a chick wearing pumps and a mini skirt. but i’ve been there before myself. in the worse way. so i’m kinda getting on my own head too. i love alchohol so much though.”

11 ‘Yessyallin’
“i have no fuckin idea whos beat this is. and this song has not real goals in life. but it’s like one of my favorite songs. so “the kid stays in the picture” as they say.”

13 ‘Someday’ (aka ‘Take It From Me’) feat 87
“i originally wrote the first verse over a beat loose cannon did using that pink floyd machine song. i probably used it on a few other joints before it found its home on someday. then eighty came through with the chorus and a verse. then niggas was getting all moved and shit. which is a good thing. im just weird about emotional folks. its song about life. the things that change, the things that stay the same, hope, desperation. all that shit that makes people go crazy in the head.”

14 ‘Peace’ feat Big Tone
“i made ‘peace’ out of thin air. its just my way of saying goodbye. its was my live show closer for a while and still makes surprise apperances at the end of some crown nation shows. denmark was working at bd’s mongolian bbq at the time. thats where the ‘bds chop it up and grill it in your face line’ came from. and of course big tone is that guy.”

15 ‘Keep My Name Out Ya Mouf’
the name of the song says enough i guess. the story goes like this. this legend in my eyes named swing low the bro gave me a sack of mini disks jam packed with old detroit shit. i mean like old shit from cats like big fuzz and baatin and shit. this beat was in there and i kinda used it without permission. i couldnt resist. the shit is so classic. thanks swing.

16 ‘Song 16 (Therapy)’

“my little brother mosel was really into david axelrod for a minute so he had a lot of his shit downloaded. i heard this shit a decided it would be a challege to write to. and who am i to walk away from a challenge. thats my therapy. my way of clearing my head. writing. ahhhhh…”

Thanks to Quelle For Providing Insight Into The Album! Big Up!

∆

I stole this video from Lenore Skenazy at Freerangekids.  HER focus was on the fact that two month old twins were allowed to nap in the sunshine. Outside.  Unattended.  And no one called the cops on the parents for child endangerment or neglect.  It turns out the entire country is *full* of parents who leave their adorable blonde babies on the street in their prams for some crazy nut job to snatch away.  And I guess that there are so many of them hanging around that there’s not much temptation anymore.  Most kids do not get stolen.

But I digress.

The real story is that these incredibly beautiful, simplicity loving, high tax paying, Ikea addicts are the happiest people in the world.  They say they are Democrats but Oprah says they’re socialists.  Au Contraire, says the swimsuit model (presumably with a PhD in architecture).  They are merely civilized.  It is civilized to take care of the poor and the old.  It is civilized to spend time with your family and friends.  It is civilized to have fewer things so that you can have more freedom.  What a concept!

Too bad Oprah didn’t do this last year instead of helping to force that Republican lite, corporate loving, uber shmoozer on us for president. I guess it’s possible for even Oprah to get rolled every now and then.

Is she trying to atone or is she trying to get us accustomed to wanting a lot less, now that her White House friend has bungled the recovery?  Who knows?  I wouldn’t mind living a Danish life and I suspect there are a lot of Americans who when faced with another $4000/month mortgage payment on the McMansion while they wait on pins and needles to see if they still have a job, would find a small flat and a resilient social safety net in Copenhagen just charming.  I just hope it isn’t too late for America to get the message.

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Michelle Style, a strapless gown by Indian-American designer Naeem Khan.   Chandelier earrings and glittering gold and diamond bangles. This was for the White House State Dinner with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his wife Mrs. Gursharan Kaur. What do you think about Michelle Dress?

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Copyright © Kim Høltermand

If you’ve been reading this blog the past couple of weeks then you will have noticed that I have developed a bit of a fixation on the photographic talent coming out of Scandinavia, specifically Norway and Sweden. Well now I can add Denmark to that list after speaking with the amazing Danish photographer Kim Høltermand. His specialty is architectural photography and he is already making an incredible mark in the industry, his work evokes a dark and modern tone. His intuitive ability to capture the mood of a building is truly remarkable and is also evident in his nature photography where his use of fog sets up a unique composition. He was born in 1977 into a creative family with his father and grandfather being artists; his grandfather was also an architect. He currently lives in Kirke Værløse, Denmark with his wife Camilla and their daughter Sally. In addition to his burgeoning career in photography, which only began a few years ago, Høltermand’s day job has him working as a fingerprints expert in the Crime Scene Unit of the Danish National Police.

Høltermand has many new and interesting projects on the horizon including being asked to photograph the new Plateau lounge chair created by one of Denmark’s most famous designers, Erik Magnussen. Høltermand also took 1st place in the category of Architecture Buildings Pro at the International Photography Awards this year. I have no doubt that the name Kim Høltermand is one I will be hearing a lot of in the future. I don’t think it will be long before the top architects and developers are requesting Kim to capture their buildings worldwide for blue chip editorials and advertisements. With a style all his own, Høltermand is going places.

Academy A: I read that you used to be a graphic designer and I wonder how you incorporate that into your photography? Do you do a lot of post-production work on your photographs?

Kim Høltermand: The toning and my style are definitely influenced by the fact that I used to work with graphic design. I use tight angles, clean lines, high contrast and coloring/toning/desaturation for a more graphic looking image.

I try not to make my images too polished and “photoshop-ish” – often the simple and discreet use of image editing is the most effective. But most importantly, I make imagery that I like to look at.

Copyright © Kim Høltermand

Academy A: Architectural Photography is not a subject you often see photographers attracted to, but you have found a way to carve out an interesting niche for yourself by photographing a selection of distinctive structures. What made you passionate about this subject matter?

KH: I have always had a crave for aesthetics, clean lines, symmetry and balance. In my past work as a graphic designer I always found these subjects very important in the build up of a project and in my personal style. At that time I also loved architecture and when my wife and I bought our house, the former owners (who happened to be architects) had not terminated their subscriptions of several architectural magazines, I started reading these and I was sold. Architectural photography is now my call – I can’t explain it, but I breathe it now and it is on my mind most of the day.

Academy A: You seem to go for a more modern aesthetic that evokes a certain moody tone. What attracts you to a specific structure and how do you know it will translate well photographically?

KH: I think most architectural photography today is kind of dull – nice angles and a blue sky. That’s it. I love the idea that I can breathe life into these buildings, photographing them in different weather conditions (often gray, rainy and misty) and creating a certain moody feeling I think makes it easier for the viewer to relate to the building and in the end makes a much more interesting image.

I always start out by checking the weather forecast – fog is my best friend. When I arrive at the building, I quickly know which angles will make for nice shots. It’s like I turn on this grid filter in my mind which I virtually put on top of the building and I can see where things will work and where they will not.

Copyright © Kim Høltermand

Academy A: The series you did on trees was interesting to me, the shots were so haunting and poetic, it reminded me of Sleepy Hollow. What inspires you to do a series like this…does it start with the location or an idea that you want to interpret?

KH: I live about 30 minutes from Copenhagen, near the woods, and I often drive through on my way to work. One morning, I took my camera and drove up to a riding school nearby these woods. It was like being on the set of Sleepy Hollow or some horror movie – I just fired away and listened to different kinds of electronic music while shooting this series. I often use music as inspiration – one of my biggest sources of inspiration actually.

Sometimes the series comes to me as I am on the “set” – it evolves right in front of me. Other times I hear a beautiful piece of music, a beautiful piece of art, graphic design, a movie, typography and then bang! – I have the idea for a new series. Other times I work on a concept for several days or weeks – waiting for the perfect weather, or just authorization to access.

Academy A: What is the message you hope is conveyed through your photographs?

KH: I hope to reinvent architecture photography with a style that is not seen very often in this field – I try to inject feelings, emotions and life into these buildings, which are usually just used to “store” life. A more organic and human way of seeing architectural photography.

Copyright © Kim Høltermand

Academy A: There’s a lot of great creative talent coming out of Denmark on a variety of levels and I’m curious as to why you think this is? What is it about Denmark that inspires such originality?

KH: Denmark is a small country and I think it is easier to make a stand as an artist in a small group than in a huge. We also have a wide range of different creative talent on a small space and all this mixes up for a perfect creative nation. We all want to show our skills and talent to the world and luckily some of us are lucky enough to make it to the top. Denmark has generated a huge amount of creative brands/names/people in a wide range of categories and I am certain that this will continue in the future.

Academy A: What advice would you give to a young photographer that you wish someone had given to you at the start of your career?

KH: If you can dream it you can do it – Walt Disney. My motto for life. ALWAYS believe in what you do and have faith in it – and yourself. You will encounter a lot of people in this business, which are not all the kind sort. I once had a boss who told me that I would never, ever, become what I wanted the most – that I was incompatible and useless. No matter how many NO’s, bad critique and bad reviews you will receive on your way – always believe. And maybe one day you too will be today’s headline—on everyone’s lips—and get your 15 minutes of fame.

Copyright © Kim Høltermand

For limited edition, signed prints of Kim’s work, please visit The DASK art gallery of Copenhagen.

The Elephant Gate at Carlsberg brewery in Copenhagen (Photo credit: MRandin)

I recently spent three weeks in Denmark: two for work and one for pleasure. While gandering around Copenhagen one afternoon, a group of us came across an outdoor photo exhibit entitled 100 Places to Remember Before they Disappear. The photos were inspiring, so much so that when my husband flew over to join me in Copenhagen in week three, we decided to head over to the west coast of Denmark to The Wadden Sea or Vadehavet as it is known in Danish.

The outdoor photo exhibition in Copenhagen near the Hotel d'Angletterre. Check it out if you're in Copenhagen - they're around till 27 December 2009. (Photo credit: MRandin)

En route, we passed by some amazing places, which I intend to share with you all in my next few posts.

Denmark is an interesting place geographically and culturally. Geographically its islands galore, which makes for an interesting drive accross the country. There are many bridges to cross such as this one, the “Storebaelt bro bridge”, which takes you into the island of Funen.

The famous Storebalt bro bridge linking the island of Zealand with Funen. (Photo credit: MRandin)

(Photo credit: MRandin)

The Danes are a fun bunch of people (they’ve been voted the happiest people on the planet), reflected in their often ecclectic dress sense and bicycle happy demeanour. Their penchant for using bicycles as a mode of transportation has led to “layered” parking for bikes at one train station in Copenhagen.

Piling it on in Copenhagen (Photo credit: MRandin)

Aside from the Swiss and Canadians they’re also one of the most trusting set of people I’ve met. One B&B owner I called, told me that he was about 12 hours away on holiday somewhere but had left the key on the door for any visitors to let themselves in!

A week’s trip in Denmark can burn a substantial hole in your pocket if you don’t earn in Danish Kroners. Nevetherless it’s a great country and offers its visitors an ‘out of the ordinary’ vacation. Speaking about ‘out of the ordinary’ – I will always remember this one dinner on the island of Funen. It’s a local speciality, but is an acquired taste that I’m not sure I could ever acquire…

What would you like for dinner? How about a heart attack. (Photo credit: MRandin)