Jan Van der Stock about 'Imagining the Universe'

In 2011, the City of Leuven and KU Leuven decided to set up a non-profit organisation: KUN[S]T Leuven. Its task was to set up large-scale cultural city festivals in collaboration with M. So far, all these projects have been resounding successes: the first was dedicated to Vesalius, the second to 'Utopia', Thomas More's book, and the third to the Arenbergs.

This autumn it is time for the fourth edition: 'BANG! City festival of the Big Bang'. The occasion is the hundredth anniversary of the Big Bang theory, the brainchild of the Leuven physicist George Lemaître. Exhibitions, concerts and other events on this theme will be held throughout the city.

M hosts two prestigious exhibitions: ‘Imagining the Universe' curated by Jan Van der Stock focuses on ancient art. For lovers of contemporary art, there is an exhibition of work by Turner Prize-winner Richard Long.

Curator Prof. Jan Van der Stock about 'Imagining the Universe'

The name Jan Van der Stock may not mean much to you, but the chances are that you have already seen his work. He put together some of the most successful exhibitions at M, including 'Rogier van der Weyden. The Master's Passion' at the opening of M in 2009, and 'In search of Utopia' in 2016. This autumn, 'Imagining the Universe' will be added to this, the main focus of the BANG! City festival.

How do you actually become a curator or exhibition maker?

"With me, that grew very spontaneously. I studied art in Leuven and, when a student in 1979, I worked as a student on an exhibition in the then municipal museum of Leuven. In 1985, I had my first own exhibition at the Royal Library of Belgium, on Cornelis Matsys. It then went from there: Tokyo, Vienna, Antwerp, St. Petersburg, Florence, Paris and Leuven. Since 2000, I work full time at KU Leuven. I teach ancient art and curatorship there to art students, among other things."

What was the idea behind 'Imagining the Universe', the exhibition you created for M?

"With our research team Illuminare from the KU Leuven, we first thought of an exhibition on origin myths worldwide. But it quickly became clear that this was not feasible. The days of unlimited budgets are over - I am old enough to remember them, but that was a long time ago now (laughs). It would also be too difficult. The South American origin myths, for example, have no link whatsoever to ours. Moreover, getting masterpieces on loan from those countries is virtually impossible. We then made the decision to limit ourselves to the way the universe was presented in this part of the world, focusing on Europe and the Arab world. I don't think that's a problem either, as long as you clearly state what your exhibit is about."

No imagination

What exactly does the title "Imagination of the Universe" imply?

"'Imagination' emphatically does not refer to fantasy, but to the way you depict things. We start seven thousand years ago, and we end in the 18th century. The Christian tradition is discussed, the Greco-Roman tradition... We show how the universe was structured according to those people, and how they depicted it. The Aristotelian-Ptolemaic model has been dominant for a very long time, from the second century AD until deep into the 16th century. It implied that the earth was central, and that all the other celestial bodies, including the stars, circled around it. Partly through Arab scientists, that Greek model later became widespread in Western Europe."

"And then there is astrology: the idea that stars and planets - the macrocosm - have an influence on our lives here on earth - the microcosm. Astrology and astronomy were inextricably linked for centuries. Scientists studied the stars and planets to determine when battles should be fought better, or what was the best time to treat your jaundice."

"People sometimes think that in the Middle Ages and ancient times, it was all fantasy, and that from a certain point - Copernicus or Newton - it becomes science. That's wrong. People's view of the universe in the past was equally based on observations. Aristotle was not an idiot, you know. His geocentric model - with the earth as the centre of the universe - neatly explained what they were seeing at the time. Until 2000 years later when someone said: that image is not tenable, we must look at it in a different way. That's how it's always gone on."

How long did you work on the exhibition?

"Three years, and that's pretty short. The exhibition on Rogier van der Weyden took seven years to finalise. 'Utopia' took us six years to complete. Exhibitions of ancient art take up a lot of time, because we as a university always link research projects to them, but also because you have to negotiate loans for a long time. Giants such as the Louvre or the Prado, can - more or less - request any piece from other museums. They have immense collections, and that gives them a lot of power. M doesn't have that leverage, so we have to start long in advance and negotiate smartly. There were pieces I spent five years chasing for 'Utopia’. In Spain and Italy, for example, you always have commissions above committees - in the long run you are with God the father. That takes an enormous amount of time."

Jan Van der Stock, 2021, Universiteitsbibliotheek KU Leuven, photo: © Miles Fischler for M Leuven

Play

Images of the universe: that seems like a fairly specialised subject, at the intersection of art history and science history. How do you know where to find the good pieces?

"That's what I do. I complied my first exhibition 36 years ago. So I have quite a bit of experience. A friend, a surgeon, asked me the same question at a café not long ago. I replied, if you cut someone open, you know where you're going to end up, right?"

"It helps that I know some collections well, but there's also a lot of searching involved. Reviewing the literature. Viewing catalogues of previous exhibitions on similar topics... Always with the feasibility in mind: for example, there is no point asking for Rembrandt’s 'The Night Watch’ for example. A loan must be feasible and affordable, the transport costs must be realistic... For example, we knew quickly that Covid would cause problems, and then we cancelled all the pieces that had to come from America. That's how you reduce risk and cost."

"The advice of experts is also very important when you put together an exhibition. I received a lot of help from my KU Leuven colleagues Geert Vanpaemel, specialist in the history of science, and Marc Vervenne, specialist in the history of religion. They have critically evaluated my proposals, ironed out errors and made suggestions. Then there were the countless suggestions and critical comments from my Illuminare team - mostly very young art scholars, some students as well. That's how it grows."

Gathering pieces is one thing, designing an exhibition is another. How do you start?

"I teach the curatorship course to final year art students - exhibition making, so to speak. The first step is always to clearly define what you want to say. Next, you need to know the size of the budgets so that you have an idea of the ambition of the project. Then you draw out a first basic concept - I still do that with markers on paper. In this particular case, you are trying to simplify the concept of 'imagination of the universe' to the point where you can make it presentable in a number of steps. Without being simplistic, but also without being purely educational. For me, an exhibition is always a balance between knowing and experiencing, between reason and emotion. It has to be a story that you can only tell through the objects. If you could replace the lineup entirely with words, you'd be better off writing a book."

"Actually, as a curator you are a kind of director, and the pieces are actors, each with their own role. For each actor you decide: he is going to tell that part of the story. When you bring the pieces together, ideally there is an area of tension: they communicate and reinforce each other. It's a play where the actors stand still and the audience moves."

"Reduction is a very important principle for me: rather a small number of top actors, than many pieces that have less to say. I no longer make exhibitions with more than a hundred pieces. 'Imagination of the universe has 83 of them, I think."

"Once the line-up starts to take shape, we'll go to the architects to draw out the plans. It's a bit like having a house designed: you tell them exactly what you want, what you want in it, what style you prefer... There are designs going back and forth, you give feedback, and finally there is a final version on the table. M’s technical team will then get to work on this. Since its opening in 2009, they have built up considerable experience. The technical aspects are taken care of, the lighting is set up, insurances are arranged, transport is organised... It is a massive job. And then just hope there are no more Covid measures (laughs)."

The Tour de France

What kind of audience do you have in mind when you set up an exhibition like 'Imagining the Universe'?

"I'm certainly not going to underestimate the museum visitors. We try to keep the content simple, but not simplistic. For me, it's about people who are open to new things, who can feel wonder. With this exhibition, wonder is certainly the basis of science and of a great deal of art."

"Aiming for everyone makes no sense. The medium doesn't lend itself to that. The Tour de France is also only aimed at people who are interested in cycling. That's just as much of a niche. A wider niche than that of art lovers, but still a niche."

Finally, which piece is most dear to you?

"That's a very difficult question for me. We had to fight for each piece, and each piece has its own story. But purely aesthetically I am perhaps most delighted with the three sixteenth-century tapestries. They were made in Brussels for the Portuguese court. Using images of the earth and the cosmos, they show the political ambitions of the Portuguese royal family at that time. Truly absolute masterpieces. It's going to be a very impressive sight when you step into that room."

'Imagining the Universe': 22.10.2021 - 16.01.2022