STELLA NOVA
VISITING HANNI GOHR
IN HER PRIVATE HOME, FREDERIKSBERG
MODEL AND CONTENT CREATOR
@HANNIGOHR
Trine: We're sitting here in your truly lovely home, which has a very creative atmosphere in every way... And with several works you've created yourself. What does creativity mean to you?
Hanni: It's a freedom that requires time and peace... Otherwise, it doesn't work. My home is a stage for everything I love and cherish. I need to use my hands concretely for something to emerge... I can cut paper for hours without knowing exactly what it is and what I want with it. It's a process that takes me somewhere, and sometimes something beautiful comes out of it, other times not... But I always have an intuitive approach, which isn't very deliberate. In principle, it's the same way I cook and the same way I dress every day... Impulses and moods guide it.
Trine: Actually, I feel the same way... I'm not the type to lay out clothes in the evening for the next day - or make a meal plan for the whole week.
Hanni: Me neither... I must always feel things and be in a creative flow... For example, packing a suitcase is one of the worst things I know.
Trine: Ugh... I feel the same way - I hate it and always walk around the empty suitcase for days before packing 10 minutes before I must leave... What do you think it's about?
Hanni: It probably has something to do with the total restriction of going away with completely wrong things you don't want to wear.
Trine: Yes, it's probably about suffocating possibilities and the decision closing in on itself, with no way back... The fear of having made completely wrong decisions. I can almost feel the same way about shopping in a supermarket...
Hanni: That's why my specialty is cooking based on the "empty the fridge" principle... I love solving the task of making everything out of nothing. It's probably because I can be imaginative in my daily routine.
Trine: Funny... because it's the opposite - that you thrive with certain constraints where the task just needs to be solved as best as possible. Like if someone else packed your suitcase... It might work better for us if others packed for us.
Hanni: I don't thrive with given constraints, but I can promise to show those constraints that they can be broken.
Trine: Yes, that's another way to look at it - and I probably feel the same way - I never throw away food either, and there's a lot of food waste that could be avoided if everyone thought like you and took pride in making delicious food out of what's already in the fridge.
Hanni: Yesterday, I picked fresh chilies... I haven't tried it before, but I was afraid they would go bad before we used them. Nothing should be thrown out. That's how I was raised.
Trine: That's how I was raised too... And I've tried to teach my children the same.
Hanni: In my case, I think it comes from my West Jutlandic roots. It's something I'm pleased about. I grew up in Esbjerg but have been so privileged to have traveled worldwide as a model, and now I live here in Frederiksberg. They are big contrasts that have helped shape me and still do.
Trine: How do you experience these contrasts?
Hanni: It's hard to put into words... But generally, it's not as fancy and sophisticated in Esbjerg - people are more down-to-earth, and Copenhageners are probably flightier. I love being here, but I also love coming home, and I'll never be a Copenhagen native, even though I've lived here for quite some time now. Esbjerg is my core - that's just how it is.
Trine: Do you miss the countryside and being away from the city?
Hanni: I miss being in nature, and now we've bought a summerhouse in Møn, and it's really lovely and completely calm and quiet. It also means a lot to me to be close to the water... I swim year-round and feel there's nothing better.
Trine: I totally understand you... I'm from here - north of Copenhagen, but in a way, I also grew up in North Jutland by the North Sea because my father always had a summerhouse there... Being there almost feels like my childhood home. Could you imagine living in the countryside permanently?
Hanni: Right now, it's probably best between here and the summerhouse - I like the contrasts and the joy of having both, and it feels like a great privilege. But you never know in the long run... It's hard to say how things will shape up in the future. But my partner is a true Copenhagen native... And I don't think he could do without the city's pulse.
Trine: It's also a huge privilege to have the best of all worlds - I increasingly appreciate it. The only advantage of always being in the same place is that you don't have to pack a suitcase...
Thank you for your time, Hanni... It's been a pleasure to meet you and get to know your creative universe.
