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ALIAS

M presents ‘Alias’, a large research exhibition on a growing phenomenon in recent art history: fictional artists. The exhibition brings together some 80 artworks from national and international public and private collections in an unprecedented display. It will span five galleries. Piece by piece, the works illustrate the strategies contemporary artists use to conflate fiction and reality, and how they confound our perception of the truth.

‘Headless Man’, Claire Fontaine, 2016

‘Headless Man’, Claire Fontaine, 2016, courtesy of the artist and Galerie Neu, Berlin, photo: Guillaume Vieira

New
  • Exhibition

Sarah Smolders

Sarah Smolders' work comes into being in dialogue with a specific space and its architectural characteristics, which she carefully observes and annotates through painterly interventions and elements. Shifts and additions barely perceptible at first sight invite the viewer to slow down, view and experience the space in an unexpected way.

Campaign image expo Sarah Smolders

Courtesy of the artist Sarah Smolders, photo: Sarah Smolders

  • Exhibition
  • Collection

Atelier Bouts

Always wanted to peek inside the studio of a Flemish Master? This is your chance – or almost. In ‘Atelier Bouts’, you will discover everything about the practice of Dieric Bouts through six iconic artworks. Find out how he made them, the composition of the various layers, whether Bouts is the sole mastermind behind the works we attribute to him, and how they have been restored in recent times – some 500 years later.

‘Martyrdom of Saint Erasmus’ (detail), Dieric Bouts, ca. 1460-1464, M Leuven / Saint Peter’s Church

‘Martyrdom of Saint Erasmus’ (detail), Dieric Bouts, ca. 1460-1464, M Leuven / Saint Peter’s Church, © IPARC, David Lainé and AXIS-Group UAntwerpen, Stijn Legrand, Geert Van der Snickt

  • Exhibition
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DOKA

'DOKA' is assembled by guest curator Geert Goiris. It marks the return of the Belgian photographer to the museum after his solo exhibition in 2013. The natural state of the art collection is darkness. Most artworks rarely see the light of day. But just like a darkroom (‘doka’ in Dutch ), that magical place where analogue photographs are developed and images are created, Goiris conceives of this exhibition as a space in which images light up from the dark.

‘Sonnet’ still, Lili Dujourie, 1974, Cera-collection with M Leuven © the artist & Argos Centre for Audiovisual Arts

‘Sonnet’ still, Lili Dujourie, 1974, Cera-collection with M Leuven © the artist & Argos Centre for Audiovisual Arts

New

M-resident Lola Daels shows her research

Lola Daels creates sculptures and installations in which she questions the notion of authenticity within the current ecological and socio-political context. During her M residency, she immersed herself in two obsolete Italian techniques: scagliola (faux marble) and pietra dura (inlaid stone).

M-resident Lola Daels in her M-atelier in Cas-co

Photo: Rebecca Fertinel for M Leuven

On location St Peter's Church

The Off Hours

This autumn, M presents 'The Off Hours', a special in situ-presentation by American artist Jill Magid at St Peter’s Church.

Jill Magid, 'The Off Hours', M Leuven (St. Peter’s Church), 2023

Jill Magid, 'The Off Hours', M Leuven (St. Peter’s Church), 2023, photo: © Useful Art Services

  • Exhibition
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Take your Time

How much time do you spend looking at an artwork in a museum? The average visitor looks at each work for 28.63 seconds. That includes the time to take a selfie. In this new collection presentation, we invite you to take your time and really look at art. And to ask questions about the role of time in art.

‘Grand Disque #2’, Ann Veronica Janssens,1996-1999, Cera-collectie bij M Leuven, © de kunstenaar, foto: © Galerie Micheline Szwajcer | Uur-en Kalenderwijzerplaat, Brabant, ca. 1500, collectie M Leuven, CC0, bron: artinflanders.be, foto: Dominique Provost

‘Grand Disque #2’, Ann Veronica Janssens,1996-1999, Cera-collectie bij M Leuven, © de kunstenaar, foto: © Galerie Micheline Szwajcer | Uur-en Kalenderwijzerplaat, Brabant, ca. 1500, collectie M Leuven, CC0, bron: artinflanders.be, foto: Dominique Provost

    • Exhibition
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    Moved

    Have you ever spent hours walking behind the statue of a saint with a pair of wings tied around your shoulders? Have you dressed Jesus, rocked him to sleep or laid him in the tomb? Or perhaps offered your best jewellery to a bleeding host? 

    Jean Mayné, De processie, 1878

    Jean Mayné, De processie, 1878, olieverf op canvas, Collectie M Leuven, foto: Dominique Provost voor Meemoo. Art in Flanders

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      The Ten

      M worked with ten participants, M’s guinea pigs, on a new collection presentation. The entire process was built up as a digital experiment, in the form of a game with multiple episodes. For each episode, points were earned which the guinea pigs had to use to get their favourite works of art into the collection presentation.

      Details: Pierre Joseph Verhaghen, Amédée Cortier, Honoré d’O, Guy Mees (still), Marie Thumas, Jim Campers, Marc Mendelson, Jef Lambeaux, Onbekende vervaardiger, Charif Benhelima

      Cera collection at M (details): Amédée Cortier, Black Monochrome (Blue Black), 1970, © Yvonne Laloyaux (photo: Philippe Debeerst) | Charif Benhelima, Morningside Avenue, Harlem 2001, 2001, © the artist | Guy Mees, Trap Op Trap Af, 1970, © Lotte Boogh (photo: Cera & M Leuven) | Honoré d’O, Gnome, Extended, 1999, © the artist (photo: Philippe Debeerst) | Jim Campers, Liquid Light, 2016, © the artist | Marc Mendelson, Paysage Fétiche, 1961, © Group 2 Van Hevel (photo: Philippe Debeerst)

       

      M collection (details): Jef Lambeaux, La folle chanson (The Mad Song), 1884 | Marie Thumas, Tin Cans, 1875 until 1924 | Antependium with the Monogram of Christ, ca. 1550 (source: www.artinflanders.be, photo Dominique Provost) | Pierre Joseph Verhaghen, Lot and his Daughters, ca. 1780 (photo: Fotostudio Leemans)

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      Museum in Motion

      M’s collection is constantly changing. Thus, every year we enrich our collection with unique pieces that tell an exceptional story.

      The museum depot, 2021, M Leuven, photo: © Thomas Ost for M Leuven
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      • Collection

      Form first

      Can wood look like concrete? Do you only use a fan because you are warm? Did people play drinking games in the past? How do you use a spoon that is full of holes? And what is the use of a velvet umbrella? Welcome to our 19th-century drawing rooms, where you can discover forms and objects from the past and present. 

      Dirk Pauwels

      On location St Peter's Church
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      Between Heaven and Earth

      Just around the corner from M Leuven, the restored St Peter’s Church is the setting for a new sensory experience. M will guide you through the fascinating story of this Gothic church and help you renew your acquaintance with its art treasures: outstanding works by Flemish Masters in their authentic context.

      Permanent
      'Tussen Hemel en Aarde', 2020, M Leuven

      'Tussen Hemel en Aarde', 2020, M Leuven, foto: © Rudi Van Beek