Overview
- At a press conference in Antwerp, M HKA presented the legal opinion with artists including Luc Tuymans and Otobong Nkanga in attendance.
- The October proposal would dissolve M HKA, transfer its collection to Ghent’s S.M.A.K., shift programming to a rebranded regional museum by 2028, and convert the current building into an arts center.
- Culture minister Caroline Gennez told VRT News a two‑year transition will begin soon, and Belgium’s parliament is scheduled to debate the plan on Friday.
- More than a dozen European museum directors warned the minister the closure would be an irreparable loss, while artists such as Anish Kapoor and Emilia Kabakov asked for works to be removed from museum platforms.
- Belgium’s financial inspectorate questioned the plan’s cost savings, and reporting indicates S.M.A.K. currently lacks storage capacity for M HKA’s holdings.