Things to do in Belgium this week: summer exhibitions in Ghent, a music fesitval in Lokeren, a museum night in Antwerp, and more. See you there!
Exhibition: Summer Camp #2 at Cecilia Jaime
Until 16 August Ghent
Cecilia Jaime’s gallery garden
Not all galleries are closed for the summer: Ghent’s Cecilia Jaime for one actually invites you to a special summer exhibition, Summer Camp #2. Enjoy the genre-crossing group expo featuring works by Bert De Geyter, Emma Pollet, Valery Vermeulen and many others, as well as the gallery’s city garden and a temporary summer bar.
Music festival: Lokerse Feesten
From 31 July to 9 August Lokeren
© Søren Solkær/Grandstand Media & Management
Belgian music nerds really can’t complain: there’s hardly a week without a great festival this summer. One you shouldn’t miss is Lokerse Feesten, a middle-sized 10-day festival with a varied line-up mixing Belgian and international artists. This 41st edition brings, among others, Deus, Arsenal, Vuurwerk, Belle and Sebastian, Kaiser Chiefs and Tom Jones on stage.
Opening: Ccooll poster show at Kornel
Friday, 31 July Antwerp
Every now and then coffee-bar-meets-co-working-space Kornel teams up with Antwerp duo Huis Haas to put on exhibitions focusing on graphic design and illustration. This time around they present a so-called risograph poster series in collaboration with Michigan publishing house Issue Press and CCOOLL, s creative collective specializing in illustration, photography, art direction & design. Featuring works by Amanda Jasnowski, BFGF, Carson Davis Brown, Chris Golden, Cortney Cassidy, Studio Fluit, and many others.
Art: Antwerp museum night
Saturday, 1 August Antwerp
© Mas by Filip Dujardin
Although often rather crowded, museum nights are a fun way to discover a city’s art institutions, pimping up your visit with interactive tours, concerts, performances and more. This weekend you can do so in Antwerp, when you’ll have the chance to visit a total of 21 museums with one wristband. Plus, there’s a shuttle service to help you get around and an after party at the Badboot, a super cool ship-come-pool-bar. Don’t miss “Mijn Vlakke Land” at FoMu, Ann Van Den Broek’s dance piece “Can I touch You?” and OMU’s outdoor exhibition featuring Rinus Van de Velde, Pol Matthé.
Festival: Barefoot at Nachtegalenpark
Saturday, 1 August Antwerp
© Photography Fille Roelants
Antwerp music festival Barefoot is the creative child of Charlotte De Cock (read our interview with the multitalent here), which she created after having visited the legendary Burning Man. Of course the much smaller sized Barefoot can’t compete with the American heavyweight, but nonetheless tries to capture its spirit with an approach that is ecological and open-minded. You can even take a yoga class there and festival-goers are encouraged to dress up hippie style.
Music: Binkbeats, Lefto & Friends at DOK
Saturday, 1 August, 16h00 Ghent
© Photography Jody Hartley
Ghent’s DOK is undoubtedly one of the country’s coolest summer hangouts, offering everything from drinks, food and beach volleyball to concerts and exhibitions. This weekend Lefto and Redbull Elektropedia set up shop there to bring you Dutch producer and multi-instrumentalist Frank Wienk aka Binkbeats, who creates his fascinating soundscapes by using everything from percussions to typewriters and plastic cups. With his acclaimed series Beats Unraveled he deconstructs and recreates songs he loves from Thom Yorke to Flying Lotus.
Outdoor party: Piknik Royal
Sunday, 2 August Brussels
What’s better on a sunny Sunday than having a picnic in a beautiful park? This weekend you should bring your blanket and picnic utensils to Brussels’ Park Royal for the so-called Piknik Royal, featuring a bar and lots of music. Plus, entrance is free. Let’s hope the summer sun will come back out this week!
Cover photo Camille Testard
