Symposium on corporate art collections
Free Entry, Registration Required
All presentations will be translated simultaneously to French, English and Dutch
More information: www.nbb-expo.be
In connection with the joint exhibition of art works from the collections of the National Bank of Belgium and its German counterpart, the Deutsche Bundesbank, which is being staged this year, the NBB is hosting on 6 June a one-day symposium on corporate art collections. This event will provide an opportunity to examine the extent of the cultural heritage preserved in such collections, which the corporate owners are keen to share with the general public. Access to the event is free but those wishing to attend are required to register.
Belgium is known for being a country of collectors. Just last year an exhibition at the Centrale for Contemporary Art highlighted the rich contents of a dozen private collections in Brussels. However, with very few exceptions, very little is said about corporate collections. The purpose of the symposium being hosted by Belgium’s central bank in June is to give an idea of the scope and diversity of such collections, the thinking which motivates companies to build and maintain their collections, and their intended relationship with the common cultural heritage. The event will provide numerous examples of European corporate art work collections, with input from experts in charge of managing corporation collections and managers of non-profit organisations from the Netherlands, France, Switzerland and Germany operating in this field.
As long ago as the early 1970s, French automobile manufacturer Renault enabled avant-garde artists to work with car parts in an industrial environment. Macors, a small construction and renovation enterprise based at Hamois in Belgium’s Condruz countryside, offers young artists the opportunity to use its equipment and draw on its knowhow. The European Investment Bank regards its arts and culture programmes as an integral part of its corporate engagement vis-à-vis the wider community. These are just three examples, among hundreds of others, of enterprises that maintain art collections.
Sharing the cultural heritage
This symposium has some surprises in store for those people who think that these collections have no other purpose than the pursuit of financial profit. The Deutsche Bank collection, with over 55,000 pieces, can rival museum collections. However, the collection is, in itself, only part of the German multinational bank’s overall art-related programme, which includes inter alia an exhibition hall designed to host large-scale showings for the general public.
The usual practice of companies – whether from the service sector or one of the branches of industry – that collect works of art is not to keep their art treasures hidden away from the public gaze behind locked doors. They use a wide range of methods, including exhibitions, publications, loan programmes and artist-in-residence appointments, to share these works with the public and also help to promote contemporary art.
Warmoesberg 61 1000 Brussel Belgium DD/MM/YYYY trueSymposium on corporate art collections
Free Entry, Registration Required
All presentations will be translated simultaneously to French, English and Dutch
More information: www.nbb-expo.be
In connection with the joint exhibition of art works from the collections of the National Bank of Belgium and its German counterpart, the Deutsche Bundesbank, which is being staged this year, the NBB is hosting on 6 June a one-day symposium on corporate art collections. This event will provide an opportunity to examine the extent of the cultural heritage preserved in such collections, which the corporate owners are keen to share with the general public. Access to the event is free but those wishing to attend are required to register.
Belgium is known for being a country of collectors. Just last year an exhibition at the Centrale for Contemporary Art highlighted the rich contents of a dozen private collections in Brussels. However, with very few exceptions, very little is said about corporate collections. The purpose of the symposium being hosted by Belgium’s central bank in June is to give an idea of the scope and diversity of such collections, the thinking which motivates companies to build and maintain their collections, and their intended relationship with the common cultural heritage. The event will provide numerous examples of European corporate art work collections, with input from experts in charge of managing corporation collections and managers of non-profit organisations from the Netherlands, France, Switzerland and Germany operating in this field.
As long ago as the early 1970s, French automobile manufacturer Renault enabled avant-garde artists to work with car parts in an industrial environment. Macors, a small construction and renovation enterprise based at Hamois in Belgium’s Condruz countryside, offers young artists the opportunity to use its equipment and draw on its knowhow. The European Investment Bank regards its arts and culture programmes as an integral part of its corporate engagement vis-à-vis the wider community. These are just three examples, among hundreds of others, of enterprises that maintain art collections.
Sharing the cultural heritage
This symposium has some surprises in store for those people who think that these collections have no other purpose than the pursuit of financial profit. The Deutsche Bank collection, with over 55,000 pieces, can rival museum collections. However, the collection is, in itself, only part of the German multinational bank’s overall art-related programme, which includes inter alia an exhibition hall designed to host large-scale showings for the general public.
The usual practice of companies – whether from the service sector or one of the branches of industry – that collect works of art is not to keep their art treasures hidden away from the public gaze behind locked doors. They use a wide range of methods, including exhibitions, publications, loan programmes and artist-in-residence appointments, to share these works with the public and also help to promote contemporary art.
1000 Brussel, Belgium