Struer Museum and the Museum of Contemporary Art Roskilde meet at an exciting crossroads between cultural history and contemporary art, with sound as the defining element. In a two-year collaboration between Struer Museum and the Museum of Contemporary Art Roskilde, sound art from the museum’s collection and exhibition program enters into a dialogue with Struer Museum and the town’s strong sound history.

An Echo of Danish Sound History Intertwines with Contemporary Art Since 1925, Struer has resonated in a world of sound with the establishment of the Bang & Olufsen Radio Factory, which put the town on the world map. Here, sound became the town’s DNA, and with the newly established National Knowledge Center for Sonic Cultural Heritage, Struer continues its curiosity about sound. This curiosity resonates with the Museum of Contemporary Art Roskilde, which since its inception in 1991 has engaged with ephemeral and time-based art forms, including sound and sound art.

Listening Chairs from our collection
The branch is furnished with two listening chairs. Here, visitors can sit and experience an artwork from the Museum of Contemporary Art Roskilde’s collection and exhibition program. The listening chairs were designed in 1982 by Polish designer Dieter Mankau as part of a sound art installation for the 7th Documenta in Kassel, Germany. The Museum of Contemporary Art Roskilde later acquired the chairs in connection with the 1996 exhibition Sound Journey – a presentation of 100 sound works from Studio Akustische Kunst in Cologne. Over time, the distinctive listening chairs have become a hallmark of the Museum of Contemporary Art Roskilde’s focus on sound art and have been part of many exhibitions and projects both inside and outside the museum.

Listen to Reverie: On the Liberation from Work
Imagine a world where work does not define who you are. Where material productivity is not the standard for how we understand personal value and social status. Where you own your own time and live in connection with your innermost intuition. Reverie: On the Liberation from Work (2017) is a guided hypnosis that prepares us for a reality beyond work, where we can meet who we truly are. If you had everything you needed to live a life without working – what would you do? The popular solo exhibition *Living Dead Time* by Danilo Correale, from the Museum of Contemporary Art Roskilde’s 2024 exhibition program at the psychiatric hospital Sankt Hans, presented the hypnotic sound work for the first time. In the exhibition, Danilo Correale delved into topics like sleep and leisure, exploring new perspectives on what is often seen as “unproductive.” The exhibition examined the value of inactivity as a political act directed against a perpetually accelerating society.

Danilo Correale (b. 1982, he/him) is an Italian artist living and working in New York. In his works, Correale critically examines human living conditions in late capitalist society. Through in-depth research, he presents speculative perspectives across media such as text, sound, installation, and video. His extensive research and work with phenomena like sleep, leisure, and work in the 21st century represent an inexhaustible source of new works and projects. Correale’s artistic work is often influenced by and adapted to specific invitations and site-specific spaces. Danilo Correale has exhibited at numerous prestigious international art institutions and biennials, such as RIBOCA, Manifesta, Moscow Biennial of Contemporary Art, Performa, Triennale Milano, MAM Contemporary Art, Kadist Foundation, Soma Mexico, Pistoletto Foundation, Hessel Museum of Art, and MAXXI. Correale also received the New York Prize in 2017, alongside Chiara Fumai. He teaches Video and Performance at New York University and IUAV Venice.

Struer Museum is a cultural history museum focused on sound, listening cultures, and local history. The museum was founded in 1930 and has developed into a gathering place for stories about the significance of sound in history and everyday life. In recent years, the museum has strengthened its focus on sound and collaborates closely with contemporary artists and sound researchers to create new perspectives on the role of sound in shaping and reshaping identity, sociality, and coexistence. The museum combines cultural history narratives with experimental exhibitions and interactive experiences that invite the audience to explore the many dimensions of sound. The goal is to create a dynamic and engaging museum where past and present meet through sound. In 2024, Struer Museum, together with the National Museum, Aarhus University, and Sound Art Lab, founded the National Knowledge Center for Sonic Cultural Heritage (SOKU), which works to create a knowledge base for museums’ work with sound. SOKU brings together a national field of researchers, museum staff, archivists, and others around the role of sound in contemporary and future cultural heritage.