Kunsthal Charlottenborg's first biennale focuses on poetry all over Denmark

In close collaboration with Manchester International Festival and the curators Hans Ulrich Obrist & Lemn Sissay, Kunsthal Charlottenborg launches its first biennale titled Poet Slash Artist. The international art exhibition is shown in the streets, train stations and bus stops all over Denmark.

Exhibition period: November 15 - December 31, 2021

Kunsthal Charlottenborg's first biennale exhibition Poet Slash Artist presents works by 35 Danish and international poets and artists all over Denmark. Poet Slash Artist, curated by Hans Ulrich Obrist and Lemn Sissay, is an exploration of poets who work with visual art and visual artists who work with poetry. Throughout the history of art and literature, there are more words and images passing between us today than ever before. Poet Slash Artist was originally commissioned and produced by the Manchester International Festival (MIF) and HOME in July 2021 and is now shown in a new version across Denmark bringing together cultures, continents, languages and generations with works by 35 artists and poets.

The curators of Poet Slash Artist, Hans Ulrich Obrist and Lemn Sissay, explains:
- “There’s nothing else like this exhibition. It’s not a book launch, it’s not a performance of poets in the traditional sense, but these artworks are performing. The poems are performing; they’re going into the city. As French writer and philosopher Édouard Glissant said, exhibitions need to go beyond the walls of the museum. Many people who would never go to an exhibition could encounter it if it’s in the street. The magic happens when someone is walking past, and they engage with a space they wouldn’t have otherwise engaged with.”

Hans Ulrich Obrist is a Swiss curator and director at Serpentine Galleries in London. He has been selected as number 1 in the art world by the respected art magazine ArtReview that every year makes a top 100 list of the art world’s most influential people. Hans Ulrich Obrist has curated a number of shows in the most respected art institutions worldwide, and has previously worked with Kunsthal Charlottenborg as a curator of the exhibitions TAKE ME (I’m Yours) (2016) and It’s Urgent! (2019).

Lemn Sissay is a British author and broadcaster. Sissay was the official poet of the 2012 London Olympics, has been chancellor of the University of Manchester since 2015, and joined the Foundling Museum's board of trustees two years later, having previously been appointed one of the museum's fellows. He was awarded the 2019 PEN Pinter Prize. He has written a number of books and plays.

John McGrath, Artistic Director and Chief Executive of Manchester International Festival, is very pleased about the collaboration and that the exhibition now will be shown in Denmark:

“As an international festival, we’re so pleased that these extraordinary artworks, which were created for Manchester will be presented by Kunsthal Charlottenborg and displayed across Denmark for millions of Danes to experience. We hope that they will give a sense of togetherness and connection, just as the artists themselves connect words and images.”

Kunsthal Charlottenborg Biennale Poet Slash Artist is part of Kunsthal Charlottenborg's exhibition program, supported by the Augustinus Foundation, the Obel Family Foundation, the Ministry of Culture and the Danish Arts Foundation.

Facts
Kunsthal Charlottenborg Biennale: Poet Slash Artist
15 November - 31 December 2021

The exhibition takes place all over Denmark on AFA JCDecaux's 350 nationwide advertising panels, and give an exposure of the works to 3.5 million Danes.

All works will be shown in the courtyard at Kunsthal Charlottenborg, Kongens Nytorv 1, 1050 Copenhagen K between 15 November - 31 December 2021, and at Nørreport Station between 27 December - 31 Dec 2021.

Poet Slash Artist is curated by Hans Ulrich Obrist & Lemn Sissay. The exhibition was originally commissioned and produced by Manchester International Festival and HOME in July 2021.

About Manchester International Festival
Manchester International Festival (MIF) has won a global reputation for commissioning, producing and presenting bold, dynamic and forward-thinking new work across the arts. Every two years, it brings together leading artists from different art forms and backgrounds to create and stage new work all over Greater Manchester. The next Festival takes place in July 2023.

MIF collaborates with venues, festivals and cultural organisations worldwide, whose input guarantees the projects have a life after each Festival. Year-round, MIF works widely within communities through My Festival, a diverse network of creative people forging closer connections with MIF.

MIF's future home is The Factory – designed by OMA, backed by Manchester City Council and HM Government, and currently under construction in the centre of Manchester. When it opens, The Factory will present one of the most ambitious and adventurous year-round creative programmes in Europe and welcome an estimated 850,000 visitors a year.

Contact
Michael Thouber, Director Kunsthal Charlottenborg, mt@kunsthalcharlottenborg.dk, (+45) 2840 8050

For further information please contact:

Jeannie Møller Haltrup
Head of Communication, Kunsthal Charlottenborg
jmh@kunsthalcharlottenborg.dk / (+45) 3374 4629

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