Tivoli looks to japan with biggest themed development in its history

STORY:

Light has been part of Copenhagen’s Tivoli Gardens since the 19th century, illuminating towers, gardens and architecture in one of Europe’s oldest amusement parks.

Now Tivoli is making light the theme of the biggest themed development in its 183-year history.

The new district is called Hikari – the Japanese word for “light”.

At night, more than 2,000 square metres beneath Tivoli’s Demon roller coaster are transformed by lanterns, illuminated signs, neon, reflections and Japanese-inspired architecture.

But Tivoli’s fascination with East Asia is far from new.

It stretches back almost to the park’s beginnings in 1843, at a time when distant cultures were capturing the European imagination.

One of Tivoli’s best-known landmarks, the Japanese Tower, dates from 1900. Designed by Tivoli’s then director and architect Knud Arne Petersen, the tower combines Japanese and Chinese architectural inspiration and is illuminated by thousands of pieces of coloured glass.

Denmark’s fascination with East Asia also found its way into literature.

After visiting Tivoli shortly after it opened in 1843 and seeing its Japanese/Chinese-inspired buildings, Danish writer Hans Christian Andersen wrote “The Nightingale” in two days. The fairy tale, set at the court of the Chinese emperor, was written in the weeks following Tivoli’s opening.

Martin Petersen, an East Asia expert at the National Museum of Denmark, says Denmark’s fascination with Asia goes back centuries and has influenced everything from trade and design to literature and aesthetics.

That history now meets a very different image of contemporary Japan.

Hikari’s narrow street combines traditional references with neon signs, modern Japanese popular culture, food, art and light.

Materials and objects have been sourced from Japan, including reclaimed doors, windows and vintage objects as well as around 60 tonnes of traditional Japanese roof tiles.

Contemporary Japanese art is also part of the streetscape, including a colourful sculpture by Takashi Murakami, one of Japan’s most internationally recognised contemporary artists.

For Japanese consultant Aya Okamura, the result was striking.

“I walked into Hikari and I was very impressed. It looks amazing. It’s really, really good.”

Light is also used to alter visitors’ perception.

Light is also used to alter visitors’ perception.

Outside, the new Typhoon’s Eye provides a more physical form of disorientation.

The rotating drum accelerates until centrifugal force holds riders against its wall and the floor drops away. Riders experience forces of up to 3G.

Inside Hotel Hikari, guests pass through illuminated tunnels, tilted rooms and mirrored spaces where repeated reflections appear to continue indefinitely.

The rotating drum accelerates until centrifugal force holds riders against its wall and the floor drops away. Riders experience forces of up to 3G.

At night, the old and new parts of Tivoli meet.

The Japanese Tower glows above its historic garden, while a few metres away Hikari is illuminated by lanterns, neon and signs and the Demon roller coaster passes overhead.

For Tivoli CEO Susanne Mørch Koch, the development reflects a challenge faced by a historic amusement park in the centre of a modern European capital: how to preserve what generations know while continuing to change.

“Tivoli cannot grow in size, but we can always grow in terms of the experiences we offer our guests,” she said.

Hikari has been around five years in development and represents an investment of several hundred million Danish kroner.

It is the latest chapter in a relationship between Tivoli, light and Asian inspiration stretching back more than 180 years.

Tivoli Gardens, which opened in 1843.
Tivoli Gardens is open during several seasons throughout the year, including its main summer season, Halloween and Christmas.

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