At Copenhagen Museums and Attractions, we’re devoting this winter holiday to friendship and intimacy in distant lands: from Mumbai to Greenland, and from the Mediterranean all the way to Nivå.
Shining through each of these four exhibitions is the integrity of the artist’s vision.
Indian architecture firm Studio Mumbai prioritises local success over international acclaim, Greenlandic printmaker Nuka K Godfredsen favours a low art form to get his message across, Danish sculptor Gottfred Eickhoff valued originality over mainstream success, and an exhibition at Nivaagaard puts friendship before popularity.
It’s an exhilarating, often humbling collection of work that reminds us that staying true to one’s identity is perhaps the greatest artistic gift of all.
In between the sun and the moon
Danish Architecture Centre, Strandgade 27B, Cph K; ongoing, ends March 6, open Mon-Fri 10:00-17:00, Wed 10:00-21:00, Sat-Sun 10:00-17:00; over-15s: 60kr, students: 40kr, under-15s: free adm; dac.dk/en
India’s leading architecture firm, Studio Mumbai, consists mainly of artisans and a few architects who work together to find the best solutions for specific locations. Understanding the spirit of a place is at the centre of their projects – they use local materials and count in natural contexts in ways that are foreign to the West – for example, when drawing buildings that have to be monsoon-resistant. India is a land of contrasts, but Studio Mumbai does not find this problematic. They draw inspiration and ideas from opposite, and working with the tensions between poles – between tradition and modernity, city and countryside – to design spaces that are at once exciting and practical.
Explore Arctic prehistory
National Museum of Denmark, Prinsens Palæ, Ny Vestergade 10, Cph K; ongoing, ends March 28, open Mon-Thu 10:00-16:00, Fri 10:00-15:00; over-18s: 40kr, students: 20kr, under-18s: free adm; en.natmus.dk.
In the new exhibition ‘Qanga’, the Greenlandic artist and printmaker Nuka K Godfredsen communicates the prehistory of Greenland through lively cartoons. ‘Qanga’, which means ‘in the olden days’, has previously been exhibited at North Atlantic House, as well as in Greenland and Japan. The exhibition expands across two rooms that together pave the way for a spectacularly rounded Arctic experience, using various media. It also includes music that has been composed specifically for the exhibition.
An intimate, sculptural universe
Thorvaldsens Museum, Bertel Thorvaldsens Plads 2, Cph K; opens Feb 12, ends June 5, open Tue-Sun 10:00-17:00; over-18s: 50kr, under-18s: free adm; thorvaldsensmuseum.dk/en.
Gottfred Eickhoff, one of the most original Danish sculptors of the 20th century, spent vast amounts of time in the Mediterranean. Drawing inspiration from France, Italy, Spain, Greece, Egypt, Turkey and Morocco, his work echoes many of their great artists – most notably Goya and Rembrandt. In this new exhibition at Thorvaldsens Museum, you can get to know an artist who is unknown to many. Eickhoff, who passed away in 1982, worked at a time in which art was growing increasingly abstract. Even so, he insisted on depicting the human body realistically. The result is sculptures of immensely poetic, sensual and intimate qualities.
‘Friendships’ in art
Nivaagaard, Gammel Strandvej 2, Nivå; opens Feb 14, ends May 22, open Tue-Fri 11:00-20:00; over-18s: 80kr, students: 60kr, under-18s: free adm; nivaagaard.dk
The winter holiday is the perfect time to spend a day with a close friend. In the exhibition ‘Friendships’, Nivaagaard presents Scandinavian photo and video artists who investigate friendships as a phenomenon. Friendships exist between siblings, humans and animals, across generations, regardless of differences, and can be both life-affirming and painful. The broad display explores both sides of the coin, ultimately highlighting the contrasts that pervade in any relation. Representative of contemporary life, ‘Friendships’ brings to mind how we tend to quantify friendships on social media, chasing a high number of likes in interactions with many friends at a time, often forsaking the dedication and time every friendship deserves.
Find out more at http://www.cphmuseums.com/.
