Kunstenaar Emilia Kabakov verzet zich tegen ontmanteling M HKA

26 October 2025 - 07:20 – Open brief

We publiceren een open brief van de gerenommeerde kunstenaar Emilia Kabakov, gericht aan Caroline Gennez, Vlaams minister van Cultuur. In de brief verzet Kabakov zich tegen de plannen om het M HKA te ontdoen van zijn museumstatus en de collectie over te hevelen naar het SMAK in Gent.

Dear Minister Gennez,

If I am correctly informed, you intend to dismantle the Antwerp museum M HKA and turn it into a kunsthalle, and you would like the collection to be centralized in the Ghent museum SMAK, for which you will be responsible.

This surprises me greatly.

We donated to the M HKA both the series of books “Ten Characters” and one of our major installations, “August 20th, 1968,” about the invasion by Russia after the Prague Spring.

We donated these to the Antwerp museum in the 2000s due to our longstanding relationship with the museum and its director.

We chose to do this not only because the M HKA requested we do so, but because it houses one of the major collections of contemporary art from the former Soviet Union. It is also a museum which combines socio-political engagement with a focus on the interaction of art with the viewer. This placed our installation, which has at its heart an interactive theater maquette, within the appropriate context.

My husband and I also treasured our relationship with the late Jan Hoet, following our collaboration at Documenta IX. Mr. Hoet presented our installation “The Toilet” in Kassel, after which it was acquired by the SMAK with the stipulation that it be built and permanently installed under our supervision in Ghent. After Mr. Hoet passed away in 2014, I corresponded with the present SMAK director, Philippe Van Cauteren, about fulfilling this obligation. He told me that they were not able to construct the work. As a result, I informed Mr. Van Cauteren that our agreement was void, and the SMAK no longer has any rights to the installation. I requested that they return the components of the installation, and was told that the museum has no knowledge of their whereabouts. At this point, I also inquired about another small installation, entitled “Too Much Art,” which we donated to the SMAK. I was told that the museum does not know where this work is located either.

Given these circumstances, I do not consent for our works to be transferred from the M HKA to the SMAK. If you proceed with the dismantling of the M HKA, I kindly request that you return the installation “August 20th, 1968” to us, as we are not confident in the SMAK’s ability to ensure its safety. We will find another museum to which we will donate the work. Furthermore, I ask that you remove mention of “The Toilet” from the SMAK’s website, as it is no longer part of the museum’s collection.

Thank you very much,
Emilia Kabakov