TICK TACK at Kunsthalle Recklinghausen

August 24 – November 10, 2024

Under the project title "Rokade", the Kunsthalle Recklinghausen and TICK TACK from Antwerp are swapping locations for two months. At the same time, both art institutions will present an exhibition at the other location.

Under the working title "street space", TICK TACK will be showing more than 60 artistic positions from 20 countries that have previously exhibited at the Kunsthalle. At the same time, the collection of the Kunsthalle Recklinghausen will be travelling abroad for the first time as a curated exhibition to TICK TACK in Antwerp - not least a unique opportunity to promote cultural exchange between Germany and Belgium. Both exhibition venues have almost the same post-war architectural setting - the Kunsthalle on 1,000 square metres, TICK TACK on 100 square metres.

Since its foundation in 2019, TICK TACK has been one of the hottest venues for contemporary art in Antwerp. TICK TACK produces, presents and promotes international exhibitions and video art screenings, complemented by limited edition publications and an extensive digital archive. It thus fulfils the position of a non-collecting art gallery in the urban landscape of Antwerp.

The Kunsthalle Recklinghausen, on the other hand, is a municipal museum in a converted high-rise bunker from the Second World War, which was opened in 1950. Since 1956, the Kunsthalle has awarded the art prize »junger westen«, which is open to the public and from which a large part of the collection of more than 5,000 works is drawn. Among them are works by Otto Piene, Gerhard Richter, Michael Sailstorfer and, since 2021, more non-male positions such as Morgaine Schäfer, Berit Schneidereit and recent acquisitions by Alicja Kwade and Barbara Kasten supported by MKW NRW funds.

Why are TICK TACK and Kunsthalle Recklinghausen swapping venues? 
The two exhibition venues are only 200 kilometres apart. At the beginning of the Kunsthalle in the 1950s, there was a lively exchange with the Netherlands and Belgium (e.g. the exhibition "Dutch Contemporary Ar", 1953), an affinity that has come back into focus since the start of Nico Anklam's programme as director of the Kunsthalle Recklinghausen in summer 2021. "Rokade" thus not only represents a connection between the two cities, but also a continuation and revival of a long-standing international collaboration between the cultural institutions and their western neighbours.