Cisternerne

NB: Temporarily closed. Re-opens in the spring of 2025.

Art gallery, water reservoir and urban dripstone cave 

The subterranean space beneath the green lawns of Søndermarken Park works as a breathtaking stage for contemporary art installations. The cold, humid and dark old water reservoir might remind you of long-forgotten cathedrals and gloomy catacombs – it is sparsely illuminated, and the atmosphere evokes fascination and enchantment in both children and adults. 

Every year Cisternerne invite an internationally recognized artist or architect to create an exhibition particularly to this underground space – an exhibition in large scale that interacts with and emphasizes the unique architecture, climate, atmosphere and history of Cisternerne.

March 17th to November 30th 2024: Start Again the Lament by Taryn Simon

Cisternerne presents an extensive sound installation by artist Taryn Simon. Building everlasting recitations of loss, Start Again the Lament explores how we mourn individually and collectively, considering the anatomy of grief and who we choose to guide us through it.

In the act of lament, discontent is publicly performed. Professional mourners are granted the authority and solicited by the bereaved to occupy, negotiate, and shape their loss. 

In a relentless replay, the lamentations of professional mourners are broadcast into the reverberating space of Cisternerne. These sonic rituals of grief include northern Albanian laments, which seek to excavate ‘uncried words’; Wayuu laments, which safeguard the soul’s passage to the Milky Way; Greek Epirotic laments, which bind the story of a life with its afterlife; and Yazidi laments, which trace a topography of displacement and exile. Cisternerne becomes an instrument echoing recitations of loss with a reverberation of 17 seconds.

Related Attractions

Opening Hours

Location

Søndermarken

Roskildevej 28


http://www.frederiksbergmuseerne.dk/cisternerne