Van Hoeydonck and Van Mieghem: Two Remarkable Antwerp Natives at the KMSKA
After a richly filled first half of 2025, the Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp (KMSKA) kicks off the autumn season with two atmospheric exhibitions. From September 12, the museum will pay tribute to the Antwerp artist Paul Van Hoeydonck with an intimate focus exhibition lasting one month. In the print cabinet, visitors can, from October 2, return to early 20th-century Antwerp through the colorful pastels and drawings of Eugeen Van Mieghem.
Fallen Astronaut. Tribute to Paul Van Hoeydonck
September 12, 2025 – October 12, 2025
This autumn, Paul Van Hoeydonck would have celebrated his hundredth birthday with a solo exhibition at the KMSKA. His long career took him from Antwerp to Paris and New York. In honor of this remarkable artist, the museum will present around forty works in an intimate focus exhibition for one month. Visitors can explore an overview of his early years as a painter from 1952 up to the installation of the sculpture Fallen Astronaut on the Moon in 1971. This 8.5 cm aluminum figure was left on the Moon by the Apollo 15 mission as a tribute to deceased astronauts and cosmonauts. With this work, Van Hoeydonck secured a unique place in art history: until 2024, it remained the only artwork on the Moon.
Driven by a futuristic fascination with technology and space exploration, Van Hoeydonck experimented with various styles and materials. The exhibition traces his evolution from figurative paintings and drawings to abstract collages, optical art, and sculptures in plexiglass and reclaimed materials. Always in search of new forms and techniques to depict humanity’s role in a rapidly changing universe, Van Hoeydonck’s visionary mind and unmistakably international career make this tribute an exceptional journey through the early work of an artist who made history.
Eugeen Van Mieghem. City in motion
October 4, 2025 – January 11, 2026
At the beginning of the 20th century, Antwerp was undergoing a transformation. Steamships, trams, cars, and electric lighting were making their debut, while the looming First World War also brought profound social changes. The Antwerp native Eugeen Van Mieghem captured the rhythm of the city with his lightning-fast hand and keen eye. He drew incessantly, driven by observation and social awareness. Using pencil, charcoal, ink, watercolor, and especially pastel, he depicted everyday life in all its facets: from dockworkers and transmigrants to bustling dance halls and quiet city figures. As dynamic as the city itself, the artist shared his critical, empathetic, and above all realistic perspective on the modern metropolis.
From October 2, 2025, the KMSKA will highlight Van Mieghem’s versatile oeuvre in a compelling exhibition at the print cabinet. The show focuses on his drawings and pastels, two techniques that perfectly match his energetic style. In addition to his iconic cityscapes, visitors will also see rarely or never-before-exhibited works from private collections, such as Van Mieghem’s handmade sketchbooks or his monumental harbor pastels. The exhibition also draws extensively from the donation made by the Eugeen Van Mieghem Foundation to the KMSKA in 2024. The result is a comprehensive overview of his themes and a valuable depiction of a city in motion.
“Van Mieghem remains a critical outsider, unaffected by the modern art movements that captivated his contemporaries. He opted for uncompromising realism, driven by social engagement and an unstoppable urge to draw. The exhibition sheds new light on a versatile artist who immortalized Antwerp on paper.”
- Eric Rinckhout, external curator of the exhibition Eugeen Van Mieghem. City in motion
NOTE TO THE PRESS
