LEONARD COHEN: A CRACK IN EVERYTHING
24 OCTOBER, 2019 - 2 AUGUST, 2020. REOPENS 26 MAY 2020
EXTENDED Leonard Cohen: A Crack in Everything will be extended and can be experienced at both GL STRAND and at Nikolaj Kunsthal all the way up until 2 August 2020.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Berlingske
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Kristeligt Dagblad
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Børsen
"You can spend days at this exhibition, and there is reason to visit it again and again." - Weekendavisen
Tickets are sold at GL STRAND and Nikolaj Kunsthal. The ticket can be used once at each venue.
The world-renowned novelist, poet, and singer-songwriter, Leonard Cohen (Montréal 1934 – Los Angeles 2016) has inspired generations of writers, musicians, and artists. He was an extraordinary poet of sorrow and the human condition, giving voice to what it means to be fully alert to the complexities and desires of both body and soul. We are privileged to have Cohen’s music, words, and performances inhabit both the Kunstforeningen GL STRAND and Nikolaj Kunsthal for six months, offering a critical celebration, loving tribute, and quiet commemoration of a vast artistic achievement, and inspiring life.
Leonard Cohen: A Crack in Everything is the first exhibition entirely devoted to the imagination and legacy of the influential singer-songwriter, man of letters, and global icon from Montréal, Canada.
Originally conceived by the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal, the exhibition brings together commissioned artworks by visual artists, filmmakers, and musicians who have been inspired, influenced or otherwise moved by Cohen’s extraordinary oeuvre.
On view at GL STRAND is a selection of works which feature contextual multimedia installations - immersive multiscreen archival montages highlighting five decades of Cohen’s concert performances; an installation devoted to Cohen in interviews revealing the workings of his mind; an audio environment which gathers commissioned covers of his musical repertoire; and yet another which invites visitors to play an organ keyboard, with individual keys summoning audio files of his poetry, recited by the poet himself - as well as a variety of other artists’ responses to Cohen’s art and life.
The exhibition also includes the installation Listening to Leonard with recorded covers of Cohen songs produced, arranged, and performed by the following musicians and vocalists:
Ariane Moffatt with Orchestre symphonique de Montréal; Aurora; Basia Bulat; Brad Barr; Chilly Gonzales and Jarvis Cocker with Kaiser Quartett; Dear Criminals; Douglas Dare; Feist; Half Moon Run; Julia Holter; Katinka Bjerregaard; Leif Vollebekk; Li’l Andy and Joe Grass; Little Scream; Lou Doillon; Mélanie De Biasio; Moby; Socalled; Steen Jørgensen; The National with Sufjan Stevens, Ragnar Kjartansson, and Richard Reed Parry.
Participating Artists
Kara Blake
Candice Breitz
Janet Cardiff & George Bures Miller
Christophe Chassol
Leonard Cohen
Daily Tous Les Jours
Tacita Dean
Kota Ezawa
George Fok
Ari Folman
Jon Rafman
Zach Richter
Taryn Simon
Participating artists at Kunstforeningen GL STRAND
Kara Blake, Janet Cardiff and George Bures Miller, Daily tous les jours, Kota Ezawa, George Fok, Ari Folman, Jon Rafman, Taryn Simon
Participating artists at Nikolaj Kunsthal
Candice Breitz, Christophe Chassol, Tacita Dean, George Fok, Zach Richter
Organized by the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal, the exhibition is curated by John Zeppetelli, Director and Chief Curator at the MAC, and Victor Shiffman, Co-Curator. The presentation in Copenhagen is coordinated by Kunstforeningen GL STRAND in collaboration with Nikolaj Kunsthal.
The Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal (MAC), a state corporation funded by the Gouvernement du Québec, thanks Leonard Cohen for his support of this exhibition. Robert Kory, Adam Cohen and Lorca Cohen provided invaluable assistance in the successful organization of this project.

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The MAC also acknowledges the support of CBC/Radio-Canada and the National Film Board of Canada, as well as Sony Music and Sony ATV.
The exhibition in Copenhagen is made possible by our generous donors A.P. Møller and Hustru Chastine Mc-Kinney Møllers Fond til almene Formaal, The Obel Family Foundation, Konsul George Jorck og Hustru Emma Jorck’s Fond, The City of Copenhagen and The Danish Arts Foundation.
The exhibition Leonard Cohen: A Crack in Everything premiered in the fall of 2017 in Montréal, and was later presented in the spring of 2019 at the Jewish Museum in New York. Following its Copenhagen showing, it will travel in 2020 to the Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco.
The exhibition can be seen at Kunstforeningen GL STRAND and Nikolaj Kunsthal from October 24, 2019 to April 13, 2020. One ticket will buy you access to both art galleries.
During the entire exhibition, there will be a wide range of events, including talks, sessions, documentaries, yoga, concerts and intimate concerts organised by Kunstforeningen GL STRAND and Nikolaj Kunsthal.