WIELS : OPENING AND INAUGURAL EXHIBITION

12/05/2007

WIELS




WIELS : Opening
First stage on the 26th – 28th of May

Inaugural exhibition: "Expats/Clandestines"
26th of May – 5th of August 2007

Wiels Contemporary Arts Centre
Avenue Van Volxemlaan 354 – B-1190 Brussels
t/f (32)(0)2 347 30 33
http://www.wiels.org
wiels@wiels.org


WIELS : Opening
First stage on the 26th – 28th of May

Wiels, the new Contemporary Arts Centre of Brussels, opens its doors on the weekend of the 26th–28th of May, 2007. Following its restoration, the remarkable corner building of the former Wielemans-Ceuppens breweries built by the modernist architect Adrien Blomme, now houses Wiels Contemporary Arts Centre. The first stage of this renovation concerns one exhibition floor and the brew hall.

The creation of Wiels meets an old need: a center with an international vocation specializing in contemporary art finally opens in Brussels!

Thanks to a broad range of activities and services, Wiels will create an open and dynamic context, ideal for the discovery and understanding of contemporary art. The three exhibition floors of a total surface of 1.800 m2 will accommodate six annual large scale exhibitions. The back wing will house nine artists in residence as well as education, training and community-based programs. Social commitment, essential to share the stakes of contemporary art with every public, will be carried through an innovative program of mediation, training and professional development.

A large program of complementary activities will complete the activities of Wiels: a cinema, conferences, festivals and concerts. The brewery hall, will serve as a convivial lobby, which will host a café-restaurant and a bookshop. Finally, the panoramic rooftop terrace will offer a unique viewpoint over Brussels.

The renovation was financed by the Brussels-Capital Region ("Monuments and Sites" and special investment credits), the European structural funds Urban II and the District of Forest/Vorst, along with private sponsors and donors. For its operations, Wiels is supported by the Flemish Community structural subsidies and the French Community punctual subsidies, the VGC and the COCOF, as well as the Bernheim Foundation, the Evens Foundation, Puilaetco Private Bankers, Leon Eeckman SA and Duvel Moortgat.


Inaugural exhibition: Expats/Clandestines
26th of May – 5th of August 2007

This exhibition, scheduled for the opening of Wiels, will explore the question of plural identities, which are formed beyond national borders and lines of demarcation, whether they are real or imaginary. Addressing the obvious duality between expats and clandestines as a starting point, this exhibition will focus on the phenomena of complex biographies and on the tremendous cultural mix, visibility and anonymity, presence and absence, and on the work of contemporary artists in the swirl of migration.
With Francis Alÿs, Saâdane Afif, André Cadere, Nairy Baghramian, Gabriel Kuri, Moshekwa Langa, Chen Zhen

Marcel Berlanger, Tore

On the second floor of Wiels, Marcel Berlanger presents a "theatrical" installation of 7 large paintings modulated by a light show designed by Julie Petit-Etienne. A unique visual and fascinating experience.

Short films commissioned for the opening of Wiels

Ann Veronica Janssens, Eclipse

Hiraki Sawa, Hako

Paulina Olowska/Bonnie Camplin, A like Akarova

Opening hours

Saturday – Sunday: 12 – 24:00
Monday: 12 – 20:00

Avenue Van Volxem 354 – B-1190 Brussels – t/f (32)(0)2 347 30 33 – http://www.wiels.org





For more information go to: http://www.wiels.org

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