Image: Den Frie Udstillingsbygning, Aarhus
Den Frie Udstillingsbygning in Copenhagen will open ‘Nervetråde’ on 11 September 2026, bringing Danish and international artists together for a group exhibition on grotesque, unsettling and anxious aspects of contemporary life. Curated by Magnus Thorø Clausen and Sif Lindblad, the exhibition remains on view through 1 November.
‘Nervetråde’ works across painting, sculpture, video, installation, performance, text and drawing. Its starting point is the grotesque, with a historical thread running back to the nervous mood of literature around 1900, when Den Frie was founded, and forward to the frayed nerves of contemporary visual art. The exhibition links the strange and grotesque qualities of its works to feelings of anxiety and uncertainty.
The show describes its works as bringing together terms usually treated as incompatible: comic and frightening, rational and absurd. These combinations form what the exhibition calls a distorted image of the paradoxical world of the present. Rather than offering consolation, ‘Nervetråde’ sets out to irritate and stimulate the nerves in unpredictable directions.
Among the participating artists are Kai Althoff, Lutz Bacher, Meriem Bennani and Orian Barki, Adam Christensen, Hanne Darboven, Karen Kilimnik, Senga Nengudi, Martine Syms, Roland Topor and Peter Wächtler.
A live programme will extend the exhibition through dance, music, language and other practices, examining the less familiar sides of familiar categories and conventions. Presented through the performance platform Toaster, the programme begins on 24 September with Adam Linder’s ‘Mothering The Tongue’ (2023/2026) and Adam Christensen’s ‘A Vampire Kiss’ (2026).
On 1 October, Sara Sjölin will present ‘New work’ (2026), alongside spellchestra’s ‘Marketplace’ (2026). The final programme date, 22 October, features Sofie Winther’s ‘Outlet’ (2026) and Alma Toaspern’s ‘plex’ (2025/2026).
