Atoma Art Center: New life for former Forest factory as it opens with two launch shows

A former industrial paper factory dating from the 1920s is now home to a flourishing contemporary art venue, Atoma Art Center.

The project initiated by Belgian architect Gilles Dehareng and American multidisciplinary artist Nina Anduiza (pictured below) has transformed the former manufacturer of the iconic Atoma notebooks, into a 5,000m2 arts centre dedicated to contemporary artistic creation and production.

Dubbed a veritable “hub of creation” at this week’s launch event, Atoma is not only hosting a range of exhibitions, but also welcoming local artists on its first floor with 15 artists’ studios and coworking spaces. The site – with the upper floors still under construction – will also include an art library, meeting rooms and shared accommodation, with a bar and cafe due to open at the beginning of November.

With an ambition to “share spaces and create synergies,” concrete partnerships are already in place. Notably, Atoma is hosting the Botanique’s art exhibitions while the music and visual arts venue’s Orangerie and Rotonde are being renovated.

As part of this ‘hors les murs’ programme, ArtContest, shown at the Botanique for the past two years, takes up residency at Atoma for its 22nd edition. The annual contemporary art competition aims to discover, support and provide long-term guidance to young creators from Belgium or artists living in Belgium. Works from 10 selected artists are on display until 22 November.

Taking first prize was Badi Rezzak (artwork, pictured above), followed by Lennert Lefever in second place, Noé Znidarsic in third. The Cadr'art Prize was awarded to Sem Roels and the CAB Prize to Louiz Castiella.

The exhibition takes on an international dimension too, through a partnership between ArtContest, the Prix Carré sur Seine and the Centre Wallonie-Bruxelles/Paris. Three Prix Carré artists – Lina Filipovich, Pablo Hantow and Yosra Mojtahedi – are presenting their work as part of the Atoma show.

Filipovich said that her beautiful, vibrant textiles in the shape of flags evoke how spirituality has become fragmented. They have often been displayed in religious settings including the Abbaye de Maubuisson, Saint-Ouen-l’Aumône in France. Meanwhile her videos like Falling Star that depict Communist propaganda statues of a bygone era in a deserted park, demonstrate “the ritual of disobedience”.

The unmissable installations of Mojtahedi, especially the steaming black ceramic cauldron worthy of Halloween with what looks like witches’ long locks dangling above it, fill a whole room with a feeling of unease and dread.

Other ArtContest highlights are Kayin Luys’ The Nuclear Family photos that exemplify the idealised images of family life; Felix De Clercq’s charming and photo-like paintings of Brussels’ townhouses (pictured above) and Sem Roels’ Papapa installation. The drink-laden table also bearing a chess board conjures up powerful memories of a father she never knew.

The main Atoma space is occupied by the second exhibition, Embodied Practices – a fascinating mix of sculptures, installations, paintings and photographs created by some 13 multidisciplinary artists and ‘the muesli collective’. The majority of them – like Anduiza, Léa Belooussovitch, Juana Bustamante and Johan Dussart – are based in Brussels.

The show, running until 13 December, looks at how “the body can carry pain, illness and nostalgia, while material becomes connected to loss, identity, language and perception,” Yasmin Van ‘tveld, exhibition curator, art historian and feminist, explained.

“A painting can present memories without depicting any, a landscape can become the vehicle for an inner experience… Embodied Practices is, ultimately, an exhibition about gesture, matter, memory and thought.”

Atoma – an impressive partner in art to the nearby Wiels art museum – is open from Tuesday to Sunday 12.00 to 18.00, Rue Pierre Decoster 110 (Forest). Entry to both exhibitions is free.

Photos: ©BE CULTURE; Nina Anduiza & Gilles Dehareng; @Badi Rezzak; @Lina Filipovich; @Felix De Clercq; @Sebastian Vielma Fleischhacker