Kunsthal live

The introduction of Kunsthal LIVE is an innovation of our side-programming in the form of a series of events. It is in fact a strategy mainly aimed at addressing and engaging a wider and more diverse audience. In order to realise this, Kunsthal LIVE is programmed according to the motivation of our visitors and not so much aimed at specific target groups. These motivations are learning, entertaining and spiritual enrichment, themes that individually and combined are the guiding principles behind the activities. The programme is sometimes linked to the exhibition but sometimes also consists of isolated events. Kunsthal LIVE is realised through intensive collaborations with a variety of partners.

Kunsthal LIVE is positioned as an individual label under the umbrella of the Kunsthal brand. Three Kunsthal LIVE examples:

Accompanying the exhibition Hyperrealism Sculpture, The Perfect Night entailed a talk show in the gallery about the human body, the history of our physical integrity and the future image of mankind. It focused on the role and the position of the LBGTQ community, with spokesperson and queer activist Non La Decadence. The broadcast was made together with Operator, a Rotterdam radio station that streamed the entire evening’s programme on its own website, Facebook and other social media as well as through the Kunsthal’s channels. The evening later turned into an exclusive party.

During Afrovibes Take Over, the Auditorium was entirely taken over by African and Dutch makers for a day of fashion, dance, music and film. An event that stimulated encounters and encouraged new audiences to discover the Kunsthal.

During six Sundays in July and August, the Kunsthal organised the free festival Kunsthal LIVE ON SUNDAY inside, but mainly outside the Kunsthal walls. A festival of music, a city safari through the Museumpark, a children’s programme, musical performances, salsa, the All you can Art studio and guided tours of the Kunsthal. This festival is meant to forge connections between inside and outside. The outdoor programming attracts many, often new visitors who are seduced to also come inside, while the (regular) exhibition visitors are surprised by the outdoor programme.

As technology is developing at a rapid pace, the Kunsthal also continued its focus on the relationship between ‘Art + Technology’, both in its strategy and in its programming. In 2018, as part of ‘Art+Technology’, the Kunsthal organised the three-day event POST HUMAN DAYS during which we tried to catch a glimpse of the future of humanity together with our visitors. ‘To what extent is technology able to stretch our image of humanity?’ The workshops, lectures and presentations by, among others, the artist Floris Kaayk and Lucas Evers, head of WAAG Open Wetlab, were well-attended. This event was a successful sequel to the five DIGITAL DAYS in 2017 that focused on the relationship between human beings and technology as part of the Kunsthal exhibition HUMAN / DIGITAL.