Brussels Gallery Weekend 2022

With each year, Brussels Gallery Weekend has steadily grown and developed its series of programming, activities and participation. This year, there will be 47 galleries participating, and there is a new venue as part of the 15-year celebration, a former printing plant of the National Bank of Belgium, where there will be an installation of large format sculptures.

Along with Berlin Gallery Weekend, Brussels Gallery Weekend was a pioneer in leading a city-wide event dedicated to contemporary art, artists and galleries. Beginning with only 10-galleries, over the years, the events expanded to include the “off” programme, “Generation Brussels,” a special exhibition of younger artists, workshops, performances, talks and now nearly 50 galleries. The event has put the spotlight onto the dynamic contemporary art scene in the city and its established importance in the contemporary art market.

“Thanks to its central location and the vitality of the local scene, Brussels plays a prominent role in the contemporary art world, and we seek to further the city’s influence with a spirit of sharing,” explains Sybille du Roy de Blicquy, director of the Brussels Gallery Weekend. “For example, we are piloting the Art Across Europe project, forging links between European art scenes, in partnership with cities such as Zurich, Cologne, Düsseldorf, Madrid, and Milan.”

A centrepiece of BGW is the emblematic printing plant of the Belgian National Bank, a modernist, 20,000 square-metre space built in 1950. It will host various talks, a Duvel bar, Lillet and Ceder bars, and numerous projects and performances including the “Generation Brussels” and “Sculpture Factory” exhibitions. With the support of Art Brussels, the space will also host a unique selection of large format works put forward by participating galleries including: Baronian, with work by Xavier Mary, Arcade, with a sculpture by Maria Zahle, an installation by Hasseb Ahmed with Harlan Levey Projects, and a neon installation by Enrique Ramirez with Michel Rein, among others.

Another highlight is the Generation Brussels exhibition, an initiative launched in 2018 and curated by Louis-Philippe Van Eeckhoutte. Featuring twelve artists, including art students and recent graduates, the exhibition will explore the theme of ‘care.’ This year’s curator, Maud Salembier, explains, “In a world controlled by visible and invisible forces – at times limiting, and sometimes leading to happy coincidences – the hand that gives, heals, or repairs, the word that soothes, or the ear that listens, nature reimagined or disguised, as well as space as a vessel for minuscule signs of change, can inspire surprising processes”.

Brussels Gallery Weekend kicks off Thursday with private openings and opens to the public on Friday, 9th.

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