Kunsten — Museum of Modern Art

Aalborg's museum of modern art in a 1972 Alvar Aalto building

Kunsten (the name means simply "the art") is Aalborg's museum of modern art, housed in a 1972 white-marble building by Alvar and Elissa Aalto — one of the few works by the celebrated Finnish architect outside Scandinavia. The building is as much a draw as the collection: the long horizontal facade, the interior courts, and the carefully controlled natural light from clerestory windows make it one of the finest museum buildings in Denmark.

The permanent collection runs from the early 20th century to the present, with a strong showing of Danish modernism and international work from the 1960s onward. Temporary exhibitions rotate frequently and tend to be ambitious. The sculpture garden on the Limfjord side of the building is pleasant in summer. Kong Christians Allé 50; closed Mondays.

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A story
The building at Kong Christians Allé was designed by Finnish architect Alvar Aalto and his wife Elissa, with Danish architect Jean-Jacques Baruël, between 1958 and 1972. It was one of Aalto's few commissions in Denmark, and the white marble exterior and skylighted galleries show his characteristic concern with natural light. The building itself is on the Danish list of protected architectural works.