Kunsthal Rotterdam

In Search of Humanity brought huge media attention and many rave reviews. Television programmes like the NOS news, Khalid & Sophie, AVROTROS Nu te Zien and the talk show De Sociëteit paid attention to the exhibition, while interviews and articles appeared in all major newspapers. Visitors rated the exhibition a 9.0 and shared their enthusiasm on social media.The exhibition’s success was further intensified by the many accompanying initiatives and collaborations: during the NN Art Festival we organised an opening breakfast, the visitors participated in a special edition of ArtCouples that was organised in collaboration with Rotterdamse Helden. There were special tours hosted by UNESCO and Amnesty International, a film screening in collaboration with KINO, and an in-depth programme by Roffa Mon Amour during Friday Night LIVE. The exhibition and its many accompanying activities prompted a total number of 272,092 visitors to come to the Kunsthal over a period of 22 weeks (until 3 March 2024) — a Kunsthal record!
 

The Kunsthal in 2023 in numbers. Download the annual report for more information. 

With its high-profile, surprising and activating programme – always presenting multiple shows simultaneously – the Kunsthal is dedicated to making the enjoyment of art accessible to an audience that is as wide and diverse as possible. Swipe through the photos for an impression of last year's exhibitions, and check out the Kunsthal Annual report 2023 for the full list of exhibitions and activities.

Thanks to a contribution from VriendenLoterij, the Kunsthal will be able to realise monthly editions of the programme Friday Night LIVE for the next three years. These exciting nights out, organised in collaboration with cultural partners in the city, are aimed at a wide variety of visitors. On each third Friday evening of the month, the Kunsthal is offering a platform to (Rotterdam) partners active in fields like spoken word, film, music, dance, fashion, and theatre. For each edition, the Kunsthal makes a budget available to a different partner who is then given free rein to compile a programme inspired by the exhibitions on view at that particular moment. Since October the first 2023 editions have been successfully organised together with House of Knowledge, Modular Rotterdam, and Roffa Mon Amour,

Within the scope of the exhibition Acknowledge Rebuild, we gave a platform to initiatives in the city that focus on raising awareness and sharing knowledge about (the consequences of) our colonial past. Together with the municipality of Rotterdam, the Rotterdam Library, the Rotterdam City Archives, and Museum Rotterdam, the Kunsthal organised a number of speed dates with various parties who had submitted an application for the funding programme ‘Our colonial past and the history of slavery, and the city today’. We jointly went in search for logical leads for collaborations, which resulted in a series of activities that not only enabled the audience to come and see, but also to taste, listen, and engage in conversations.

• Spring 2024, Swiss artist Sylvie Fleury invites us to playfully reconsider our notions of gender while exploring the intersection of contemporary art and consumer culture. Drawing inspiration from the realms of fashion, film, pop culture, motorsports, space exploration, and art history, Fleury presents captivating artworks that intrigue and challenge.
• During Art Rotterdam 2024, the unveiling of Doron Langberg's 'Part of Your World' awaits. Langberg, recognized as one of his generation's foremost figurative painters, celebrates queer subjectivity through his vibrant canvases. With a palette of lush colors, he skillfully captures portraits of himself, his family, friends, lovers, and surroundings.
• Summer 2024 pays homage to American photographer Richard Avedon (1923-2004). The exhibition 'Relationships' illuminates Avedon's pioneering contributions to fashion photography and his distinct portraiture. Featuring over 130 photographs, the showcase celebrates Avedon's innovative spirit, showcasing his unparalleled ability to capture the intricacies and vulnerabilities of human connections.
• Commencing on October 5, 2024, Kunsthal proudly presents the inaugural solo exhibition in the Netherlands by British artist Thomas J Price. Through a diverse array of mediums including sculpture, performance, photography, and animation, Price delves into themes of representation and power dynamics within society, inviting viewers to contemplate their own roles and perceptions.
• In the autumn, DIVA takes center stage, celebrating the indomitable spirit and limitless creativity of iconic artists who dared to defy convention with their boldness and ambition. Featuring over sixty looks and costume designs by globally renowned designers, the ex-hibition showcases how these divas transcended boundaries through their stage per-formances, leaving an enduring mark on society.