MASEREEL

Titled Our Future Is To Live With Bruises, the inaugural edition of RHIZOMA, international biennial for contemporary art, took its name from a phrase in the poem Diaoptasia – Our Future Will Be (2015) by multidisciplinary artist Otobong Nkanga, who is also featured in the biennial with new works of her own.

Spanning five indoor and outdoor venues within walking distance of each other, RHIZOMA brought together multiple disciplines, ranging from video and installation to printmaking, painting, text – and more. Vulnerability, self-expression, and resilience are central themes. Moreover, more than half of the works on display were brand new creations, alongside recent and historical works that had never been seen before in Belgium.

RHIZOMA 2025 clearly demonstrated the need for a biennial that places dialogue, reflection and experience at its core. We are already looking forward to the second edition in 2027.

More information: rhizomabiennial.art

Participating artists: Amalia Ulman, Amar Kanwar, Andrea Büttner, Clara Spilliaert, Corita Kent, Eva & Franco Mattes, Jeremy Deller, Michel François, Otobong Nkanga, Pei-Hsuan Wang, Sawangwongse Yawnghwe, Vaast Colson, Wim Cuyvers.

Artistic director: Stijn Maes
Graphic design: Studio Remco van Bladel