Opening: Yesterday (when there were no jokes left to tell)

The opening of Jester's new exhibition Yesterday (when there were no jokes left to tell) had everything going for it - starting with the beautiful works of Julie Béna and Kamil Bouzoubaa-Grivel. Sunny weather is of course always a good thing, and we welcomed a lot of enthusiastic visitors, including many art lovers who had traveled from Brussels with a shuttle bus organized by Jester.

They were treated to the first tours of the exhibition, with detailed explanations by curator (and Jester's artistic director) Koi Persyn and both artists. Then we opened the doors of our studios, with fascinating Open Studios by our current jesters-in-residence. Arpita Akhanda showed her initial research and gave a presentation on her work and methods. Céline Mathieu wrote a text about the works she has in mind for her exhibition at Jester in spring '25, and read it aloud several times in her working studio. Dragos of Apparatus 22 showed some past works of the collective, and talked to our visitors about their artistic vision.

The amazing catering by Muna / Het Steger deserves a special mention. This remarkable initiative connects people with disabilities and those living in poverty with the cultural sector, by engaging them for behind-the-scenes catering at cultural centers, festivals and performances. All the food is also incredibly delicious, as well as Local, Ecological & Fair-trade. A great collaboration that deserves to be repeated!

The opening week could also count on solid press coverage. Some of the first publications (most texts in Dutch):

• VRT NWS (link)
• Het Laatste Nieuws (link)
• Het Belang van Limburg (link)
• GLEAN (link)
• De Zondag (link)
• Brussels Morning (link)
• Czech Centres (link)