Louisa Thomsen Brits is half Danish, half English, a writer, journalist and author of The Book of Hygge: The Danish Art of Living Well, published by Penguin last year. The cult of Hygge (pronounced ‘hue-gah’) is the Danish philosophy of cosiness and contentment. It encourages a feeling of warmth, comfort, and belonging.
Louisa was born in Africa and brought up in the UK, and spent every summer with family in Denmark, learning the language of hygge to establish a place of belonging wherever she has found herself.
For Louisa, hygge is a quality of presence and togetherness. It’s a daily practice, a way to affirm interconnectedness and enjoy wellbeing. She believes that hygge is an experience of contentment rather than a pursuit of happiness, and is about being not having.
As a Dane, hygge is bred in her bones. As an Englishwoman she can comfortably translate the concept and share its universality as an impetus common to us all.