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Press release

Exhibition programme at S.M.A.K. in 2026

Discover the complete overview here

Spring

Francisca Garcia and Mario Navarro Unearthed Conversation Digitalprintonpaper 4
4 April 2026 – 13 September 2026

Francisca García & Mario Navarro | Unearthed Conversation

Chilean artists Francisca García and Mario Navarro’s exhibition – Unearthed Conversation – is inspired by the Atacama Desert. Located at the mouth of the Loa River in northern Chile, this is a landscape shaped by diverse narratives: ancient Chango archaeological sites, a geological resemblance to the planet Mars, home to the world’s largest telescopes, and still scarred by the Pinochet dictatorship.

In their work, Francisca García (b. 1969, Santiago, Chile) and Mario Navarro (b. 1970, Santiago, Chile) each excavate the visible manifestations of the world around us from their individual perspectives. Although they maintain separate artistic practices, they are collaborating on this project at S.M.A.K.

30 May 2026 – 10 January 2027

Chambres d’Amis turns 40
Daniel Buren, Le Décor et son Double, 1986. Langdurige bruikleen Collectie Vlaamse Gemeenschap.

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. reflects on this remarkable project while also looking ahead. The museum has organized several exhibitions in urban spaces since Chambres d’Amis, including Over The Edges (2000) and TRACK (2012). S.M.A.K. has invited an artist from each of these three exhibitions to curate new museum displays of the works from Chambres d’Amis in the permanent collection. Heike Pallanca, Haim Steinbach, and Susanne Kriemann will each design a gallery, or ‘chambre’, shaped by their own artistic practice. This approach will give the works a contemporary resonance that echoes their original concept and speaks to today’s visitors.

The exhibition is further framed by a documentary presentation that contextualizes the historical significance of Chambres d’Amis. At its heart is the iconic work Le Décor et son Double by French artist Daniel Buren, reinstalled in close collaboration with the Herbert Foundation.

Carole Vanderlinden, Connexion, 2025. Oil on prepared burlap in artist frame, 120 x 88,8 cm. Courtesy of the artist.
30 May 2026 – 11 October 2026

Carole Vanderlinden

Belgian artist Carole Vanderlinden presents a solo exhibition featuring work from the past five years. Vanderlinden’s paintings on canvas and works on paper are difficult to define. They appear simple and compact, yet are highly layered.

Carole Vanderlinden’s (b. 1973, Brussels) artistic practice, which she has been developing since the mid-1990s, is primarily focused on painting but also encompasses drawing, watercolour, collage and small objects.

Summer

Joseph Beuys, Wirtschaftswerte, 1980. S.M.A.K., Ghent, Belgium.
27 June 2026 – 13 September 2026

Joseph Beuys | Wirtschaftswerte: Conservation history of an iconic ensemble of perishable goods

Joseph Beuys’ Wirtschaftswerte (1980) is on view at S.M.A.K. for several months in summer. One of the most renowned works in the permanent collection, it forms the centrepiece of an exhibition dedicated to museum conservation and restoration.

Autumn / Winter

Meg Stuart portrait
7 September 2026 – 8 November 2026

Artist-in-Residence: Meg Stuart

Artist and choreographer Meg Stuart (b. 1965, New Orleans, USA) starts a residency at S.M.A.K. in the autumn of 2026. As part of the project, a section of the museum is transformed into a collective laboratory: a living archive that explores Stuart’s practice and that of her dance company, Damaged Goods, by situating the studio in a public space.

21103013b15
10 October 2026 – 21 February 2027

Ana Lupas

S.M.A.K. presents a major solo exhibition dedicated to the work of Ana Lupas (b. 1940, Cluj-Napoca, Romania), widely considered to be one of the most significant artists of her generation in Eastern Europe. The presentation surveys a vast selection of works, revisited from the later stage of the artist’s career and life, serving as an artistic testament.

Bendt Eyckermans, The subject, 2023. Olieverf op linnen, 169 x 155 x 2,5 cm.
31 October 2026 – 21 February 2027

Bendt Eyckermans

This autumn, S.M.A.K presents Bendt Eyckermans’ (b. 1994, Antwerp, Belgium) first institutional solo exhibition in Belgium. Eyckermans’ paintings are shrouded in a dreamlike, mysterious atmosphere. Within his universe, which is characterized by a muted colour palette, he incorporates elements from his immediate surroundings alongside art historical echoes.

Any questions?

Fran Bombeke
fran.bombeke@smak.be
+32 (0)494 90 71 66

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