ECONOMIE / ECONOMY / WIRTSCHAFT

Ensemble

Interpersonal exchanges, whatever their form, have constantly shaped civilisations; economic exchanges often being predominant. Yet individuals and cultures have always grasped their material concerns critically and sought to deepen their raison d'être. The disinterested cultural expressions in all countries and eras are clear witnesses of this quest.

Solutions to many societal problems require a complementary approach. The Senate offers this multiple perspective, for example in its information report entitled "A common approach in the fight against child poverty".


Through his works, Vaast Colson (°1977, living in Antwerp) constantly questions his relationship with the public. In the window of a Brussels art gallery, he made, with the amount of his fees, a sculpture composed of pieces of one euro, while a circular opening cut in the glass allowed the audience to help themselves. Thanks to three unsuspecting 'participants', the total lifespan of Colson's sculpture was exactly an hour and a half.

Angel Vergara (°1958, lives in Brussels) documents his own performances. One day in Cologne, in parallel to an artistic fair, he presented a supermarket where only apples, symbols of erotic and spiritual passion, were on sale. It thus evokes an alternative space of interpersonal relations, on the margins of trade.

In this animated film in the form of a video clip by the Spanish collective PSJM, armies belonging to the major multinational companies engage in a destructive war. The ultimate stage of economic imperialism, the third world war is no longer a matter of nations but of companies wishing to increase their global domination.

About M HKA / Mission Statement

The M HKA is a museum for contemporary art, film and visual culture in its widest sense. It is an open place of encounter for art, artists and the public. The M HKA aspires to play a leading role in Flanders and to extend its international profile by building upon Antwerp's avant-garde tradition. The M HKA bridges the relationship between artistic questions and wider societal issues, between the international and the regional, artists and public, tradition and innovation, reflection and presentation. Central here is the museum's collection with its ongoing acquisitions, as well as related areas of management and research.

About M HKA Ensembles

The M HKA Ensembles represent our first steps towards initiating the public to today's art-related digital landscape. With the help of these new media, our aim is to offer our artworks a better and fuller array of support for their presentation and public understanding.