Exhibitions from Joseph Beuys, Gerhard Richter and Ai Weiwei to open in Belgium this month

Date
4 October 2017
Above

Gerhard Richter 4 Panes of Glass, 1967 © Herbert Foundation, Gent

This month three major exhibitions featuring the work of three prolific artists are due to open in Belgium. M HKA in Antwerp will be featuring the first large-scale exhibition of the work of Joseph Beuys in Belgium since the 1980s, whereas S.M.A.K in Ghent is presenting the work of Gerhard Richter and FOMU in Antwerp the first-ever solo show in Belgium of work by Ai Weiwei.

Joseph Beuys – Greetings from the Eurasian
The M HKA museum for contemporary art, film and visual culture will open its doors on 13 October for an exhibition charting the work of artist Joseph Beuys. The exhibition is a display of the artist’s activities in Antwerp during the 60s and 70s while “exploring his relevance to a new generation,” and considers how Beuys’ used the notion of “Eurasia” as part of his anti-Modern sentiment, looking towards a potential future affinity with the “East” and “West.” The show includes several major works by Beuys including Eurasienstab (Eurasian Staff) and Infiltration homogen für Konzertflügel (Homogeneous Infiltration for Grand Piano) amongst many others. The exhibition will run until 18 February 2018.

Above

Joseph Beuys and Henning Christiansen, Eurasienstab, fluxorum organum, 1968, 16mm film still,
courtesy Anny De Decker, © SABAM Belgium, 2017

Gerhard Richter – About Painting
Gerhard Richter is considered to be a re-inventor of the genre of painting in the post-war era. About Painting is organised around the artist’s 85th birthday and is the first museum exhibition of his work in Belgium since 1976. The show features a selection of early pieces as well as the institutional debut of a series of new paintings from his studio. The exhibition is essentially centred around his sculptural works 4 Panes of Gladd (1967) and 7 Panes of Glass (House of Cards) (2013) and aims to connect Richter’s work from the 60s and 70s with today. The exhibition opens on 21 October and will remain open until 18 February 2018.

Above

Gerhard Richter, Vorhang IV, 1965, Oil on canvas, 200 cm x 190 cm, Kunstmuseum Bonn. Photo: David Ertl

Ai Weiwei – Mirror
Lastly, FOMU will be opening its doors on 27 October for the first solo exhibition by Chinese artist and activist Ai Weiwei in Belgium. Photography plays a crucial role in his work and is a medium which takes centre stage in Mirror. Designed by Weiwei, it offers a thought-provoking review of his photographic work from the 90s until now and includes works such a Study of Perspective alongside his daily streams of selfies shared on social media. FOMU is a centre for contemporary and historical photography and Mirror will run until 18 February 2018.

Above

Image courtesy of Ai Weiwei Studio

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About the Author

Ruby Boddington

Ruby joined the It’s Nice That team as an editorial assistant in September 2017 after graduating from the Graphic Communication Design course at Central Saint Martins. In April 2018, she became a staff writer and in August 2019, she was made associate editor.

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