Museum Aan het Kanaal / Musée Au Canal

Since the closure of the Modern Art department at the Museum of Fine Art in 2011, Yamila Idrissi, the Flemish MP with responsibility for Brussels, has been actively arguing for a Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Brussels.

‘This idea can now rely on quite broad support,’ she says. ‘And at the end of May the Brussels government too came out in favour of a museum of this sort. The canal zone is a suitable location for a new landmark in Brussels. It is a district in the midst of thorough change. The arrival of a museum would help it reach full development and take Brussels to a higher level.’

Idrissi is organising a debate on her proposal for a ‘Museum Aan het Kanaal / Musée Au Canal’ (Museum on the Canal) that will examine every aspect of the project: artistic policy, architectural form, urban development, economic consequences, etc.

The speakers in this debate will be: Kasper König (ex-director Ludwig Museum Cologne / Curator Manifesta 10 - tbc), Patrick Janssens (ex-mayor of Antwerp, working on a PhD on urban development), Willem-Jan Neutelings (Neutelings Riedijk Architects / architect MAS Antwerp), artist Angel Vergara (tbc) and private collector Walter Vanhaerents.