EVENTYRDALEN
Eventyrdalen is a unique art project created by street artist Balstroem. The project consists of a 24-meter-long mural that interprets H.C. Andersen's fairy tale The Nightingale in a modern, visual universe.
The project was developed in collaboration with the organizations Be Free and Unikke Stemmer, who have been responsible for workshops with young people from Mjølnerparken and Vollsmose. The young people's ideas, stories and creative input have helped shape the work - and it was through these workshops that The Nightingale was chosen as the central fairy tale.
The work was created in an old dairy near Vissenbjerg, where Balstroem spent eight weeks developing a visual universe that combines his characteristic street art style with the young people's ideas and input from workshops. The universe is shaped by their stories and perspectives, which together with Balstroem's artistic language give The Nightingale a new and contemporary form.
The Fairy Tale Valley is more than art – it is a story about community, creativity and letting new voices speak.
BALSTROEM
Balstroem is a Danish visual artist and muralist who works at the intersection of street art and narrative visual art. With a background in graffiti and a passion for fairy tales, history and symbolism, he creates large, colorful murals that both catch the eye and provoke thought.
His works are characterized by a playful and detailed style, where every figure and color choice has significance. Balstroem often works in public spaces and likes to involve young people in his process through workshops and co-creation – because, according to him, art should be accessible and alive.
In the project Eventyrdalen, Balstroem interprets HC Andersen's fairy tale The Nightingale through ten large works, created in dialogue with young people from Vollsmose and Mjølnerparken. The result can be experienced as a 24-meter-long artwork in the Eventyrhaven during the HC Andersen Festival 2025.
Balstroem's approach is both artisanally solid and socially engaged – and his goal is to bring adventure into our everyday lives, one wall at a time.
BE FREE
Be Free is a social arts organization that works with young people and creative communities at its core. Through art projects, workshops and co-creation processes, Be Free gives young people the opportunity to express themselves, take ownership of their surroundings – and believe in their own ideas and potential.
Based in Copenhagen, Be Free works across cities and cultures, often in collaboration with artists and local actors. Be Free believes that creativity can create change – for both the individual and the community.
In Eventyrdalen, Be Free has helped engage young participants through a series of workshops, where they have helped select motifs, share ideas and shape the final artwork. The workshop in Vollsmose was carried out in collaboration with the local organization Unikke Stemmer, which works with young people and communities in the area. Their stories and input have become an important part of the visual expression in the work.
Be Free helps build bridges between generations, stories and art forms – and creates spaces where young voices are seen and heard.
UNIKKE STEMMER
Unikke Stemmer is a local, socially engaged organization based in Vollsmose. They work to strengthen young people's self-confidence, voice and community through creative processes and meaningful activities. The organization is based on the idea that all young people have something important to contribute - and that their experiences and perspectives deserve space and recognition.
As part of Eventyrdalen, Unikke Stemmer has been responsible for the workshop in Vollsmose, where young participants have contributed their ideas, reflections and image choices. It was in this workshop that the fairy tale The Nightingale by HC Andersen was chosen as the central theme for the artwork.
Unikke Stemmer has created a safe and inspiring space where participants could express themselves and feel ownership of the shared art project. Their efforts have been crucial in ensuring local anchoring and genuine co-creation in Eventyrdalen.
WORKSHOPS
MJØLNERPARKEN
What do you want to be remembered for?
Be Free's theme for workshops with a group of young people from Mjølnerparken, aged 14-18, is to relate to Hans Christian Andersen as a person. Who was Hans Christian Andersen, and how was his path to being still known 150 years after his death. At the same time, we wanted the young people to reflect on what they would like to be remembered for. What do they dream of spending their lives doing, and what do they want others to remember them for when they are no longer here?
We had the actors Arian Kashef and Tarek Zayat to lead the workshops, whom the young people already know from other art and culture workshops and events that Be Free has created and held in Mjølnerparken. Tarek himself was also born and raised here.
To make it more relatable, we asked the young boys we were going to hold workshops with which contemporary artists they would like to meet, and to hear about what he/she would like to be remembered for. It ended up being Hav (from Hav og Kamal), who visited us for the first workshop. Here he shared about his own journey to where he is today, and what he would like to be remembered for. After that, the young people could also ask questions. Afterwards, we had a workshop where the young people themselves shared about their dreams and what they would like to be remembered for.
We have also been on an inspiration trip to Odense, where we visited HC Andersen, the museum and his childhood home. It impressed the young people how poor HC had grown up, and how many people had lived in the house. We had good conversations about his journey from growing up in a poor family, not becoming a dancer, as he first wanted, and then suddenly finding what he really burned through with. We also talked about his fairy tales, and which fairy tales the young people liked best.
We ended by going to the farm in Vissenbjerg, 8 km outside Odense, where the artist Balstroem is currently painting the paintings based on a modern interpretation of The Nightingale. We saw the place, the paintings that had been completed so far, and had a barbecue and dinner together. A truly wonderful day, which for some was the first time outside Copenhagen, and for most the first time in Odense.
VOLLSMOSE
In this course, developed and facilitated by Unikke Stemmer – a platform for artistic and co-creative processes with children and young people – children and young people from Vollsmose have interpreted HC Andersen's fairy tale The Nightingale through creative and artistic processes.
The process culminates in shared audio stories, poems and rap – contemporary and personal retellings of the classic fairy tale, created with the participants' own words, voices and perspectives.