The Foundation

The Leif Hasle Foundation is a privat nonprofit charity that preserves the legacy of Leif Hasle, who lived at Vindbyholtgård until his death in 2016. The foundation organizes free cultural events, such as literary readings and lectures, along with other activities, primarily for the local community. In this way, Vindbyholtgård has become a culturally rooted meeting place. The foundation also manages the writing residency, Vindbyholtgård Refuge, especially for young writers and artists.

Forfatteren Leif Hasles Fond, som bestyrer hans arv.

The Leif Hasle Foundation

Upon his death in 2016, the author Leif Hasle bequeathed his entire fortune, including his extensive art collection and properties, to a public charity, The Leif Hasle Foundation.

The foundation has two main purposes: “to manage the rights to Leif Hasle’s authorship in a way that ensures the greatest possible exposure” and to provide housing for writers and artists by offering them residencies at Leif Hasle’s refuge, located on the Vindbyholtgård estate in Sydsjælland.

Vindbyholtgård also regularly hosts open events with artists, writers, and other cultural figures.

In addition to the three rooms at the writing refuge, the Leif Hasle Foundation rents out an artist residence to writers or artists. The residents of the main house also serve as hosts for the refuge’s guests on a daily basis.

The foundation also awards a small research grant to promote Leif Hasle’s authorship.

Jørgen Bruhn, Professor of Literature at Linné University in Växjö, Sweden, is the chairman of the board of the Leif Hasle Foundation. Louise Svanholm, M.A., and Henrik Karl Nielsen, attorney ph.d., are the two regular board members. All three were appointed by Leif Hasle himself.

From 2017 to 2018, the author Peter Adolphsen served as the first host of the refuge, and in the spring of 2018, a new host couple, illustrator Simon Væth and fashion designer Stina Resting, moved into Vindbyholtgård. In April 2023, Lukas Ballin, Clara Bro Ludvigsen, and Benedicte Ørsnæs took over the hosting duties.

The current hosts are Clara Bro Ludvigsen, Benjamin Grodin, and Rose Maria Scott Nielsen.

Scholarship

A scholarship of DKK 10,000 is awarded to support research and studies related to the life, works, or authorship of Leif Hasle (1933-2016). This scholarship is available to university or vocational college students who intend to write major or minor theses on the subject. It is also open to authors or writers who wish to create an essay or work of fiction based on the aforementioned themes.

Applications, including a 1-2 page description of the proposed project, should be sent to the chairman of the board of the Leif Hasle Foundation, Jørgen Bruhn, at info@leifhaslesfond.dk. A maximum of two scholarships are awarded each calendar year. Upon completion, the work will be submitted to the foundation, which will determine if the text should be published on the foundation’s website. Applications are reviewed on an ongoing basis.