Gudhjem Museum

About the museum

When De Bornholmske Jernbaner was dissolved in 1968, the painters Axel Munch and Paul Høm and their wives, including the ceramicist Lisbeth Munch-Petersen, took the initiative to save the Gudhjem station from being converted to other uses. In 1969 they succeeded in buying the building – largely through personal guarantees – and the original furnishings were bought back at an auction. In the same year the station became a museum.

The station building of the Almindingen–Gudhjem line, opened in 1916, was designed by the architects Kay Fisker and Aage Rafn, including ceilings, doors, and furniture; today it is a listed building. An inheritance later made possible a new building for art exhibitions designed by Niels Frithjof Truelsen, which was inaugurated in 1990; a storage building followed in 2001.

The museum is run by the Gudhjem By- og Museumsforening, which is also the civic association for Gudhjem and Melsted and operates the museum exclusively with volunteers. In the bright exhibition hall it shows several changing exhibitions per season with Bornholm art and crafts – from the artists' colony of around 1900 to the present. In the old station, a permanent exhibition and a film tell the story of the island railway; one room shows sketches by Oluf Høst. In front of the museum is a park of about 15,000 m² with wildflowers, a pond, and granite sculptures by, among others, Ole Christensen and Jun-Ichi Inoue.

Highlights

• Listed station from 1916 with original furniture by Fisker and Rafn
• Exhibition and film "På sporet af sporet" on the Almindingen–Gudhjem railway
• Oluf Høst's sketch collection in the Bogcafé
• Changing exhibitions with Bornholm art and crafts
• Museum park with granite sculptures and a view over the Svanekebugten

Permanent exhibitions

• Stationen og jernbanen – In the former baggage room, texts, photos, and objects tell of the Almindingen–Gudhjem railway line; in the waiting room the film "På sporet af sporet" plays, alongside a detailed model of locomotive no. 21.
• Oluf Høst skitsesamling – The digitized sketch collection of Oluf Høst plays on a screen, and selected originals hang on the walls of the room furnished with old station furniture.
• Gudhjem Museums Park – About 15,000 m² of natural area with wildflowers, a pond, a collector's garden, and granite sculptures by Bornholm artists, accessible via mown paths.

Founded

1969

Operated by

Gudhjem By- og Museumsforening

Admission & discounts

Members of the Gudhjem By- og Museumsforening have free admission. Vernissages are free of charge.

Accessibility

• Partially wheelchair accessible
• Elevator: not available
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking: not available
• Service dogs welcome
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

The ground floor with the current exhibitions is accessible to wheelchair users; the upper floor with the local history exhibition only via a narrow staircase. No dedicated accessible parking spaces, but there is usually plenty of room in front of the building. Animals are not allowed in the building, except guide dogs for the blind.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.

Getting there & parking

The museum is on the upper edge of Gudhjem; for a stroll through the town, the museum association recommends parking at the top and walking down.

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop

Books, postcards, and posters are sold at the reception. The Bogcafé is a reading room with the museum's own library on art and local history. Restrooms for museum guests.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.

Plan your visit