New refugee barracks exhibition aims to reverse declining visitor numbers at Danish museum

A full-scale replica of a postwar refugee barracks has opened at the FLUGT Museum in Oksbøl, Denmark, as part of an effort to revive flagging attendance at the site dedicated to the country’s largest-ever refugee influx, DR reports.

The exhibition, titled Barakken (The Barracks), recreates the living conditions of the roughly 35,000 German refugees housed in the Oksbøl camp between 1945 and 1949. It officially opened on Constitution Day with around 100 visitors—near the venue’s capacity—according to Claus Kjeld Jensen, director of the Varde Museums, which oversees FLUGT.

“Opening day exceeded all expectations,” Jensen said. “We received many positive comments, including a moving speech from German Ambassador Anke Meier on the importance of Danish-German friendship and cooperation.”

The barracks exhibition completes the museum’s core narrative, which has been missing a physical representation of the camp’s living quarters since FLUGT first opened in 2022. Visitor numbers surged initially but later declined sharply; by August 2024, the museum had recorded 17,000 fewer guests than projected for the year.

“Visitors have told us they wanted this part of the story expanded,” Jensen said. “We’re pleased to finally fill that gap.”

FLUGT chronicles the largely unknown history of Denmark’s largest refugee wave—the German displaced persons of the late 1940s—as well as more recent arrivals to the country.