Frøslev Camp highlights the history of war in Denmark during World War II, when the occupying forces used the camp as a prisoner camp. Beautifully located near the German border, surrounded by the picturesque Frøslev Plantation and along the Hærvej, Frøslev Camp stands as a museum area that conveys a subject in Denmark's history that sharply contrasts with the surrounding idyllic nature.
The original character of Frøslev Camp was marked by mud and barracks, placed in a strict geometric arrangement in the form of a panopticon structure, which gave the guards an overview of the inmates in the camp. The geometry as a design principle remains a central part of the landscape concept’s structure and conveys the history of the camp's function as a prison. To stage the ordered structure, the dune and hill landscape is drawn in between the barracks, where the incursion of wild nature emphasizes that the time when the camp functioned as a prison has passed.
Storytelling and Nature Integration
The road that divided the camp between German and Danish – guard and prisoner, now functions as a walking and cycling path for visitors in both the museum area, the plantation, and the Hærvej. At the end of the walking and cycling path lies the arrival and trail center, and halfway along the stretch, it connects to the most central outdoor element of the museum area: the Square of Time. The Square of Time invites contemplation and reflection and can be used for events and commemorations. The square is designed with different pavings that illustrate the muddy terrain that characterized Frøslev Camp when it was a prisoner camp.
Imprints of demolished barracks along the main path are marked with corten steel edges and filled with clipped grass. One of the demolished barracks has been reinterpreted as a memorial called "The Memory". Here, the footprint of the barrack is cast and furnished with fragments of walls and bed spaces, as they were originally organized, with the names of the 12,000 inmates engraved. The use of corten steel as a consistent material choice strengthens the area's identity and wayfinding. The rusty surface creates coherence between the elements in the museum landscape and symbolizes that its time as a prisoner camp has passed.
The project for the Frøslev Camp museum area combines storytelling, nature integration, and modern facilities, respecting the site's cultural heritage and the camp's significance for descendants and Danes.
