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Leonard Cohen - A Private Gaze - July 9 - August 18 2007 Private Gaze will be the first ever public exhibition of Cohen’s artwork, featuring over 50 images selected from the songwriter’s extensive private archive that stretches back over 40 years.
Images in Private Gaze include people, nudes, objects and places – many of which are annotated with Cohen’s personal notes, observations and musings. Some feature recognizable characters from his songs, whilst others reflect his changing moods through revealing self-portraiture.
There are also drawings that capture views from his Montreal apartment alongside pictures drawn during his five-year seclusion as a Zen Buddhist Monk at Mount Baldy Zen Center that he undertook in 1996.
Cohen has kept copies of his journals and sketchbooks since the mid 1960’s when he was more famous as a published poet and novelist than singer songwriter.
As his music career developed, Cohen continued to sketch and draw at every available opportunity and his visual work shares many of the same qualities and themes found in his music: the light and shade of human emotion, dark humour, social commentary, sexuality and politics.
Throughout his career Cohen’s art has always been highly private. Only when some of his drawings appeared in last year’s poetry/prose collection Book Of Longing did his worldwide fan base get a glimpse of this side of his creativity.
However, Private Gaze will not only allow the public to see examples of Cohen’s original artwork for the very first time – they will also be able to purchase limited edition fine art prints that Leonard will personally sign and annotate individually. You can see the work here
Leonard Wrote This Poem Especially For The Exhibition IF THERE WERE NO PAINTINGS
If there were no paintings in the world,
Mine would be very important.
Same with my songs.
Since this is not the case, let us make haste to get in line,
Well towards the back.
Sometimes I would see a woman in a magazine
Humiliated in the technicolour glare.
I would try to establish her
In happier circumstances.
Sometimes a man.
Sometimes living persons sat for me.
May I say to them again:
Thank you for coming to my room.
I also loved the objects on the table
Such as candlesticks and bowls.
From a mirror on my desk
In the very early morning
I copied down
Hundreds of self-portraits.
The Curator has called this exhibition
Drawn to Words.
I call my work
Acceptable Decorations.
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