On 24 September 2026, the exhibition A Home for the Vandenhove Collection opened in the Vandenhove pavilion at the foot of the Boekentoren in Ghent. The exhibition showcases a selection from the distinctive art collection of the Liège-based architect Charles Vandenhove and his wife Jeanne. Alongside an eclectic display of works by famous artists such as Pierre Alechinsky, Andy Warhol, Sol LeWitt and Marthe Wéry, the exhibition also features several pieces of furniture designed by Vandenhove.
Charles Vandenhove (1927–2019) is regarded as one of the most important and influential Belgian architects of the post-war period. Shortly before his death, he donated a research and exhibition pavilion to Ghent University, comprising studios, design spaces and an exhibition hall. It would be the last building he ever designed.
He also bequeathed nearly 200 modern artworks to the university. The collection includes works by leading artists with whom Vandenhove had closely collaborated on integrating art into his buildings (including Daniel Buren and Luc Tuymans), or artists who explore and investigate the meaning of form and space (such as Bernd & Hilla Becher and Jean-Paul Laenen).
Part of Vandenhoven’s art collection is now on display for the first time, in an exhibition curated by Master’s students from the Art Studies programme at Ghent University, under the supervision of Prof. Steven Jacobs. The challenge for the young curators was to present the art with which Vandenhove had surrounded himself at the Hôtel Torrentius (his former townhouse and studio in Liège) inside a ‘white cube’ (the quintessential museum space), which had been designed by the architect himself. The hanging of the works reflects the idiosyncratic way in which they formed part of his everyday living and working environment; artworks in a variety of styles, materials and formats were intermingled at different heights, covering entire walls or placed against a wall individually. The exhibition’s layout recreates that distinctive arrangement.
The exhibition marks the start of a series of events in Ghent, Liège and Brussels to mark the centenary of Charles Vandenhove’s birth in 2027.
When? 24 September 2026 – 30 January 2027
Where? Rozier 1, 9000 Ghent
See also:
