A Wren Says

Sitting in my hotel room in Denmark, I searched for things to do. Ah the Cisternerne!, There is an art exhibit there, I’ll go look at that. Aside from the address, that is all the information that I had as I headed off on my walk to see it.

The Cisternerne is within a park on the opposite side of the street from the zoo. I didn’t fully know that and was walking around trying to figure out why maps was telling me to turn into a field. It is because the entrance is actually a small structure. The real exhibit is underground.

I showed up, without a clue as to what the exhibit was. I learned as I started my experience that it was a work by Taryn Simon, Start Again the Lament. It was an exploration of the lamentations from around the world. To be honest with you, had I known that while sitting in my hotel room, I probably would not have made the journey. But there I was with paid admission; there was no going back now. I went down the steps and opened the door in to the darkness.

The area was dark, lit only by long bulbs of blue light. There was a path of metal grates to walk around the space, suspended over water. It was disorienting not only because of the dark but because of the nature of the exbibit.

The art on display was actually the sounds playing in the air. The cries of lamentations from different cultural backgrounds echoed through. It was not lost on me that I was listening to sounds of grieving while feeling like I had descended into the underworld.

I weaved my way around in a matter of minutes. I thought of leaving then. That was all there was to the exhibit. I exited, staying by the doors, only to return resolved to let myself experience the work. I challenged myself to connect with my own grief, the cries that I never let myself release in to the world.

The current exhibit, Start Again the Lament, will run until November 20, 2024.