Late Danish artist’s secret folder of 100 penis drawings exhibited at son’s insistence

A previously unseen collection of over 100 explicit self-portrait drawings by the late Danish artist John Olsen has gone on public display in Kerteminde after his son insisted they be included in a retrospective exhibition, DR reports.

The drawings, discovered in a folder beside Olsen’s bed after his death in 2019, depict his erect penis in meticulous detail. His son, Simon Bohr, found the works while clearing the artist’s estate on his Midtfyn property, where Olsen had amassed an extensive private archive of art and curiosities.

“Near his bed, we found a folder containing over 100 drawings of his own penis,” Bohr told DR’s Første Række programme. “I thought it was quite special—and funny—so of course I kept them.” The drawings, never before exhibited, are now featured alongside Olsen’s better-known works depicting animals and nature at Toldboden, Kerteminde’s art association.

Bohr stipulated only one condition when loaning his father’s works to the exhibition: that the penis drawings be displayed. “I wanted them to exhibit his penis too,” he said. The drawings have been framed and mounted on a dedicated wall, seamlessly integrated into the broader presentation of Olsen’s oeuvre.

Though Bohr cannot confirm whether anyone else knew of the drawings’ existence, he is certain of their subject. “I’ve never seen his penis erect, but they’re the same shape, the same volume, the same size every time. I’m pretty sure it’s his.”

Known for his raw, instinct-driven approach to art—often incorporating blood and animal entrails—Olsen nevertheless kept these drawings private. Bohr speculates that while his father embraced provocative materials, he avoided deliberate provocation. “He didn’t want to come across like Jens Jørgen Thorsen [a controversial Danish artist]. He was serious about his work.”

The son, now a schoolteacher, sees the drawings as a natural extension of Olsen’s artistic practice. “Boys draw penises everywhere—my father just did it beautifully.” He adds that the works fit unobtrusively among Olsen’s other pieces: “They’re totally integrated. No one notices they’re any different.”

Two of the drawings have already been sold. Bohr, who grew up surrounded by his father’s unconventional art, remains unfazed by the discovery. “I saw incredible things as a child—not erect penises, but beautiful images of animals and wildness. I learned to reconcile with it early on.”

The exhibition at Toldboden is currently open to the public.