Abbas Akhavan

In June, CC will open the first Scandinavian solo exhibition by Abbas Akhavan (b. 1977 in Tehran, Iran; lives and works in Montreal, Canada). Akhavan’s work ranges from site-specific installation to performance, drawing, sculpture and video. In highly alluring and poetic works, Akhavan picks up complex geopolitical narratives, investigating the historical, architectural and social structures of a specific area or place. Sourcing the Glyptotek’s rich collections of ancient Middle Eastern art, Akhavan presents a single exhibition spread across both institutions – from CC’s raw industrial spaces to the Glyptotek’s historical architecture.

The exhibition is the first in a series reflecting a three-year partnership between CC and the Glyptotek, employing international contemporary art to provide new perspectives on the cultural heritage of the ancient world and its importance today.

At CC, Abbas Akhavan presents the work curtain call, variations on a folly (2021-); a monumental architectural installation made of the ancient building material cob and a green-screen stage. The installation is built in the image of the colonnade that once led up to the great Arch of Palmyra, a 2,000-year-old heritage site in Syria. The arch is thought to have been destroyed by Islamic State militants in 2015, and subsequently replicated in marble by the UK- and US-based Institute of Digital Archeology using 3D imaging technology. curtain call, variations on a folly was originally commissioned by Chisenhale Gallery in London, where it premiered in 2021.

The three-year partnership between CC and the Glyptotek is generously supported by:

Den Obelske Familiefond
A.P. Møller og Hustru Chastine Mc-Kinney Møllers Fond til almene Formaal

curtain call is generously supported by:

Embassy of Canada to Denmark, in Copenhagen