Chambres d’Amis turns 40
10.Jan.27
In 2026, S.M.A.K. celebrates the 40th anniversary of 'Chambres d’Amis' – an exhibition that wrote history in 1986. Contemporary art was taken out of the museum context and exhibited in private homes around Ghent.
Forty years later, S.M.A.K. looks back on this extraordinary project – but also ahead – with an exhibition within the museum walls.
Since Chambres d’Amis, S.M.A.K. has organized several exhibitions in the urban space, such as Over The Edges (2000) and TRACK (2012). From each of these three exhibitions, we invite an artist to create new work, using the works from Chambres d’Amis that are currently part of the museum collection as a starting point. Heike Pallanca, Haim Steinbach, and Susanne Kriemann each design a museum room, or ‘chambre’, from their own artistic practice. How can you display artworks that were created for a specific location outside the museum once again within the museum walls?
The exhibition is framed by a documentary presentation that highlights the historical significance of Chambres d’Amis, centering on the work 'Le Décor et son Double' by Daniel Buren. In close collaboration with the Herbert Foundation, this iconic work is reinstalled, around which the archival presentation unfolds.
The archival presentations have been curated in close collaboration with Angela De Roover, Beth Lason, Luca-Ray Rogiers (alumni of Ghent University), and Sofie Frederix (Ghent University).
Were you there in '86?
Activities accompanying the exhibition
On the occasion of the exhibition ‘40 years of Chambres d’Amis’, S.M.A.K. is organising a series of debates, screenings, and other events. The focus is primarily on Chambres d’Amis itself, but also includes the other exhibitions that took place during the 1986 Summer of Art, such as Initiatief ‘86, Antichambre, and Initiatief d’Amis.
Below is an overview:
