Previous exhibition
A Surreal Shock - Masterpieces from Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen
About the exhibition
Disruption, new thinking and a desire for revolution and disruption are staged in this year's major exhibition A Surreal Shock - Masterpieces from Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen. Visitors will get a comprehensive introduction to surrealism and the opportunity to experience some of the most popular works of art from the last hundred years.
Curated in close collaboration between ARoS curator Jakob Vengberg Sevel and curator Els Hoek from Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, the exhibition features more than 200 works, including 180 iconic pieces from the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen collection. Significant contributions by Eileen Agar, Joan Miró, Leanora Carrington, Man Ray, Max Ernst, René Magritte and Salvador Dalí, among others.
The Surrealists created controversy and scandal in their time: their focus on individual sexuality, social revolution and the dissolution of classical forms of artistic expression provoked. They attacked the common narrative and tried to find alternatives, just as we see again in much contemporary art today.
Curator and Collection Manager at ARoS Jakob Vengberg Sevel
The loan from Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen provides a unique opportunity to place Danish surrealists such as Wilhelm Freddie, Sonja Ferlov Mancoba, Rita Kernn-Larsen and Vilhelm Bjerke Petersen alongside their international colleagues and kindred spirits. The juxtaposition allows you to see the many similarities, but also some of the differences between the Danish and international surrealists.
Vilhelm Bjerke-Petersen, Ejler Bille, Richard Mortensen and Sonja Ferlov characterised the formative years of Danish surrealism through the magazine Linien.
Today, Richard Mortensen is best known for his constructivist paintings, while Ejler Bille is less prominent among the CoBrA artists. Bjerke-Petersen's great contribution to the introduction of surrealism in Denmark was largely forgotten in the years after World War II.
The exhibition at ARoS gives the artists a more prominent place in Danish art history. Danish surrealism is characterised by international openness and a wealth of ideas, which laid the foundation for the Danish avant-garde art scene throughout the 20th century.
Head of Collection and Curator at ARoS Jakob Vengberg Sevel
The exhibition opens with a scene from the film "The Andalusian Dog" by Luis Buñuel.
Please note that parts of the scene may seem violent
Reviews
An exhibition with a difference.
Berlingske
An absolute must-see.
Kristeligt Dagblad
Groundbreaking works.
Jyllands-Posten
ARoS goes surrealism-crazy
Politiken
An exhibition that explores the many facets of surrealism.
Kunstavisen
Special thanks to
The exhibition is realised with generous support from the A.P. Møller Foundation
The exhibition year 2023 is supported by the Augustinus Foundation
Thanks to other collaborators: Ege Carpets and Hizkia
Cover image credit line:
René Magritte, La maison de verre (Glashuset / The Glass House), 1939. Gouache on paper / Gouache on paper. Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam Purchase: 1977 © René Magritte / VISDA 2023 Photo: Studio Tromp.