Discover our images of the exhibition by Jeannette Ehlers: At the crossroads of the waters, the echoes of tomorrow at Bicolore at the Maison du Denmark.

Has the notion of identity become as universal as it is individual?

The question of “Who am I? ” is now combined with “Who can I be? » . A singular voice rises to answer us, that of Jeannette Ehlers. At the crossroads of his Trinidadian and Danish roots, the artist invites us on an introspective and mixed journey, at the heart of Bicolore, the contemporary art platform of the House of Denmark . Her work interrogates themes of gender, race and power, offering us an artistic experience that is both emotional and intimate. Photography, video, installation, performance, his works fit together like the pieces of a puzzle, interlocking at the heart of the architectural spaces of the Bicolore plateau, in a quest for identity guided by memory, resilience, and this rebellious burst of questioning. A religiously choreographed altar, made up of sixteen smartphones broadcasting a frenetic waltz of scenes of insurrection; a masterful tribute to Pearl Primus in which Jeannette Ehlers performs a poignant scene mixing the “hair” of history with the alienating ties of colonialism; a disturbing incarnation of the Brazilian icon Escrava Anastacia, a freed slave whose punishing iron mask the artist exchanges for a combustible face made of coal, thus taking memory on the wrong foot, in a volatile confinement; The artist deploys here all the decolonial potential to remind us that history has not passed, as an invitation to listen to the echoes of tomorrow which already resonate within us.

Mark your calendars:
Opening of the exhibition

May 28 at 7 p.m. - Free entry & free
Art Talk: Crossing Waters, the Ripples of Tomorrow, with Jeannette Ehlers, Elvan Zabunyan & Elisa Leïla Durand
May 29 at 7 p.m. - Free entry & free
Art Talk on Karen Blixen with Thomas Wisniewski, Judith Thurman and Catherine Lefebvre
June 12 at 7 p.m. - Free entry & free

Three works under scrutiny in the exhibition Jeannette Ehlers, at the crossroads of the waters, the echoes of tomorrow:

At the heart of this exploration, "Diasporic Frequencies" stands out as a choreographic performance, a vibrant tribute to Pearl Primus. Through this work, the artist depicts the impact of colonialism on the diaspora, highlighting hair as a symbol of resistance and emancipation.

The other major piece of the exhibition, "Anastacia – Ever-changing as the ocean", is an interpretation of the portrait of Escrava Anastacia: a slave of African origin who became a spiritual figure in Brazil. As depicted in her portrait, she was forced to wear a punishing iron mask. Jeannette Ehlers takes memory on the wrong foot by using a combustible medium: coal.

The installation "Coil - The Sensuous Ways of Knowing" evokes racist violence throughout the ages, from the colonial past to recent riots. With sixteen smartphones continuously broadcasting scenes of demonstrations and fires, Jeannette Ehlers confronts us with the brutal reality of history, inviting us to reflect on the current challenges of society.

A graduate of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, the artist aspires to broaden our view of the world, highlighting the multiple perspectives that shape our reality. Ehlers' works often address decolonial hauntings and disruptions, and she emphasizes the possibility of empowerment and healing in her art, honoring the legacy of resistance in the African diaspora. It combines the historical, the collective and the rebellious with the familial, the corporeal and the poetic.