“The Friends are the ambassadors of the museum.”

Jan van den Nieuwenhuijzen (formerly of SD Worx) and Piet Bevernage (Ackermans & van Haaren) are entrepreneurs with a passion for art. Art sponsorship is also in the DNA of their companies. Our museum magazine, ZAAL Z, brought them together in the brand-new museum shop for a conversation about the Friends of the KMSKA, but both gentlemen spontaneously began praising ZAAL Z. We didn’t object.

Piet Bevernage: “I always look forward to a new issue because the choice of topics and interviewees is always surprising. Even the museum itself is highlighted from a different angle each time. I always learn something new. Moreover, the magazine is a collector’s item.”

Jan van den Nieuwenhuijzen: “As Friends, we continued to advocate for the preservation of ZAAL Z. A magazine of this quality, of course, costs money, and there are always budgetary constraints. The Friends now cover part of the printing costs, helping to make the magazine possible.”

Bevernage: “So we both hope that the magazine will continue after the reopening.”

Jan van den Nieuwenhuijzen, you became chairman in 2010, the year of the closure. Wasn’t that an ungrateful task?

van den Nieuwenhuijzen: “Yes and no. You can see a closed museum either as a threat or as an opportunity. The KMSKA closed to become better and larger. As Friends, you have to throw your weight behind that. During that period, we organized group visits to KMSKA exhibitions held extra muros, as well as to museums in Ghent and Bruges, and we continued to host our annual dinner at various locations in Antwerp – the Town Hall, the Bernaerts Auction House, and Bank van Breda – with prominent speakers. Through the business club, we also visited artists’ studios, including that of Sam Dillemans.”

How many members are there currently?

van den Nieuwenhuijzen: “Our projection was that during the closure, the number of members would drop from 900 to 600. Surprisingly, that turned out to be accurate. But as soon as the site became partially accessible and the façade was restored, we added site visits to our offerings. We were able to launch a campaign, and our membership rose again. Now there are about 1,400 members. That is exceptional for a closed museum, at a time when nearly all museums are struggling with a declining number of Friends.”

The chairmanship is being passed on to Piet Bevernage. Has there already been any consultation?

van den Nieuwenhuijzen: “Piet was already a member of the board when I became chairman. He knows the ins and outs of the Friends.”

Bevernage: “Ackermans & van Haaren has continuously supported the KMSKA since the 1990s, and we have always enjoyed being involved in what happens at the museum. The new chairman will be appointed at the beginning of June, and we are actively working on composing the board, which will be partially renewed. This is the best way to ensure continuity and bring in new impulses. We aim to reflect society in its composition.”

How do you see the role of the Friends?

Bevernage: “I don’t want to make grand statements about the future; that needs to be discussed with the new board. But I would like to highlight three themes: connection, slowing down, and multidisciplinarity. Connection means that we want to reach out not only to the people of Antwerp but also to the world beyond the city. Antwerp attracts two to three million tourists each year, and the port has many business partners. Everyone should be convinced to visit the KMSKA. We also seek connections with other museums: Ghent and Bruges, but also Brussels, Liège, and Tournai. Our children and grandchildren must also find their way to the museum. And last but not least, we must make serious efforts to ensure that our fellow citizens with a migration background also feel at home in the museum.”

What can the Friends contribute concretely?

van den Nieuwenhuijzen: “They are the ambassadors of the KMSKA. More specifically, over the past years we have contributed to the restoration of several paintings, such as The Pink Ribbons by Paul Delvaux. Acquiring new works is difficult, as our resources are too limited for that.”

Bevernage: “With the Friends, we also want to reach out to smaller entrepreneurs and self-employed professionals so they can make their contribution: for 2,000 euros per year, they can become a member as an ‘Art Entrepreneur.’ A partnership, patronage, or corporate sponsorship is often too expensive for them. The museum can use all the financial support it can get.”

Are the Friends allowed to make substantive suggestions?

Bevernage: “I’m certain that director Carmen Willems is open to that. In 1993, Antwerp was abuzz with the exhibition of the altarpieces. Those kinds of crowd-pullers bring great dynamism to the city. Besides that, I also value connoisseur exhibitions: intimate, small-scale shows with young artists in one of the new white galleries. I’m thinking, for example, of someone like Ilse D’Hollander. If you can highlight a few smaller accents per year, it keeps the museum engaging and lively.”

van den Nieuwenhuijzen: “The museum can also address current themes and link them to history: corona now and the plague in the past, or the topic of refugees. So many paintings have been made about these subjects.”

In which league should the KMSKA be playing, in your opinion?

van den Nieuwenhuijzen: “We need to be realistic, no matter how hard that is for us as Antwerp residents. (laughs) It would be too ambitious to aim for the very top international museums, like the Prado or the Louvre. Our ambition should be to firmly establish ourselves in the second league.”