Events

On Friday the 5th of July we will close off the exhibition Identity Flux in a festive and culinary way – with a four course dinner in our exhibition space together with curator Nadine van den Bosch and the artists out of the exhibition.

Four course menu by chef Marnix Benschop €50,00
Wine pairing by the Gouden Ton €30,00

Reserve your seat at our dinner table by sending an email to info@garagerotterdam.nl

Doors open: 6 p.m. Start dinner: 6.30 p.m.

Why wouldn’t you date me? 
A performance by Ines Borovac at Garage Rotterdam
17 – 20 July | Performances every evening at 9 PM 
Free entry!

From ancient times, the female body has served as a currency to foster homosocial relations under the disguise of marriage. A system rendering the young woman’s consent meaningless in a world of violent, patriarchal norms. Young ladies would be socially forced to find a husband, with her only act of emancipation in many European rituals being the gesture of handing over an apple to the chosen one – symbolizing her consent and leaving her one bite away from marriage.

Today, this symbolic apple has evolved into Apple products and dating apps, commodifying love and sex. These platforms now trade not only female bodies but the digital footprints of all users, enhancing capitalist surveillance.

The performance Why wouldn’t you date me? by the Rotterdam and Croatia based artist Ines Borovac draws parallels with historical practices, through a performative act where control over personal data is reclaimed. By adapting Croatian courting customs, Borovac will engage in a series of monitored dates every evening from 17 – 20 July. The dates will be live-streamed at Garage Rotterdam and the dating process will be gamified by giving the artist’s home country (Croatia) the power to influence the dates via an interactive app on their phones. 

Join us on 17, 18, 19, 20 or 21 July at Garage Rotterdam to see the performative act Why wouldn’t you date me? by Ines Borovac live!

Finissage with DJ set by Acid Love Story: Saturday 20 July at 9 PM

This project is made possible by funding from CBK Rotterdam

Graphic Design by: Karla Žlimen

The Restore-rant
An intimate performance dinner by Michelle Woods and Anne Kluytenaar
9, 11, 13 and 15 August 2024

After a successful run in Antwerp, The Restore-rant will come ashore in Rotterdam this summer. The Restore-rant is an intimate performance-diner during which visitors are invited to discuss topics that may not always be easy to talk about in everyday life.
The dinner will take place in Garage Rotterdam where, for the purpose of the dinner, thematic rooms will be created and furnished in collaboration with various artists. Visitors will be offered a different dish, drink or experience in each room, tailored to the identity of the space and the sensory experiences it offers such as smell, sound, image and tactility. Sharing a meal in original but homely-feeling spaces creates a space for small groups of visitors to share stories and experiences. The dishes and design of the rooms combine the creators’ own autobiographical experiences with the visitors’ new interpretations and in doing so, encourage dialogue and contemplation about gender, sexuality, and self-image.

The Restore-rant will take place in Garage Rotterdam on 9, 13 and 15 August at 7 PM and on 11 August at 2 PM and 7 PM. The Restore-rant is part of the Carpool program, in collaboration with IDEM.

Purchase your ticket for one or multiple afternoon or evening sessions via this link: https://garagerotterdam.stager.co/The%20Restore-rant/tickets

We sell tickets for €2,00 and €5,00 based upon your donation choice and we work with free donations after the event.

We are looking forward to welcoming you at Garage Rotterdam!

The Restore-rant is an initiative of artist/ cook Michelle Woods and visual artist Anne
Kluytenaar. Woods has experimented with the history and performance aspects of food in her own restaurant and collective, Table Dance, and with artist residency, Morpho in Antwerp. She has also organised performative cooking-eating scenarios for various exhibitions, most recently at Museum De Pont in Tilburg.’ Kluytenaar grew up on a ship in Rotterdam, where she was witness to the gender transition of one of her parents and experienced firsthand how a space can offer both freedom and limitation, and the various ways in which people communicate about such themes. She discovered that sharing personal stories and experiences can invite others to do the same, potentially opening an otherwise difficult conversation in a natural way. Through flavour and experience, the team behind The Restore-rant wants to create spaces that are both physically and mentally accessible and that have the potential to transcend historic artistic disciplines and contribute to social discourse.

Rotterdam Direct
A project by artist Jacob van der Zwan (part of artist duo J&B), poet Anne Vegter (Rotterdam poet 2021-2022 and ‘Dichter des Vaderlands’ 2013-2017) and videographer Shefali van der Zwan
Friday 23 August 2024 | 1 PM

During Rotterdam Direct on Friday the 23rd of August, the front space of Garage Rotterdam will be transformed into a dynamic movie set. In this movie set, visitors and actors will take part in improvised conversations about personal experiences and about Rotterdam. Poet lines from the poems of Anne Vegter will be the ‘prompts’ which will shape the conversations.

Join us at Garage Rotterdam on Friday the 23rd of August to collectively explore personal stories and the city of Rotterdam.

This project is a precursor on Jacob van der Zwan his residency at Instituto Buena Bista (IBB), centre for contemporary art, based upon Curaçao.

Garage Rotterdam x Casco Art Institute
Underdeveloped study session: What about self-publishing?
Organised by Reza Afisina, reinaart vanhoe, Aline Hernández and Jip van Klaveren
Pre-opening event on Friday 13 September 2024 at Garage Rotterdam. Free entry!

Join our curators Reza Afisina and reinaart vanhoe, together with Aline Hernández and Jip van Klaveren from Casco Art Institute: Working for the Commons (Utrecht, NL), for a collective study session inaugurating Underdeveloped: exploring various forms of art practice and working methods, using the title of the show as a starting point for reflection.

During the session, you are invited to explore the multidisciplinary editorial projects of Reading Sideways Press (RSP) and Taller XD – Cooperativa Cráter Invertido, both featured in Underdeveloped. This session will serve as a starting point to learn about collective study, self-organisation, and self-publishing, and to delve into the possibilities of independent editorial production and distribution.

What can the editorial projects of RSP and Taller XD teach us about economies that operate on principles of generosity, friendship, trust, and time? What can we learn from the conditions that inform these projects’ practices and interests? And how can we build on the knowledge, imaginations, and experimentations of RSP and Taller XD locally?

The collective study session takes place on 13 September, 2024 at 5 PM, extending into the opening of Underdeveloped at 7 PM where we will continue exchanging in a more “nonkrong” way by chit-chat and hanging out. No preparation is needed. The session is designed to create time and space for collective exploration of selected publications from both RSP and Taller XD—by reading fragments, listening to each other, and contextualising through storytelling. The outcome of the session will be a “harvest” that will stay on the exhibition.

The session also connects with Casco Art Institute: Working for the Commons’ exhibition Hidden Arts: What do we do when no one sees us (Utrecht, 31 August-13 October, 2024), focusing on alternative economies of collectivity, shared resource building and arts organising.

Are you not able to join the session on Friday 13 September at Garage Rotterdam? More study sessions will be held at various institutional settings, including Casco’s headquarters, on Friday evenings from September 13th to October 6th. Stay updated through the Casco Art Institute: Working for the Commons’ website (https://casco.art/), newsletter, and social media (https://www.instagram.com/whereiscasco/).”

This event will be held in English.

During the opening of Underdeveloped on Friday 13 September at 7pm, the winner of our Spoiler open call will be announced.

Spoiler is an opportunity for (young) curators to curate the bookcase in the front space of Garage Rotterdam with artists’ publications. The front space will then serve as a ‘spoiler’ for the exhibition Underdeveloped in the main exhibition space of Garage Rotterdam. Curators Reza Afisina and reinaart vanhoe are the jury in the selection process for the first guest curator(s), inviting proposals that explore the theme of food and ecology.

Underdeveloped by our new curators Reza Afisina and reinaart vanhoe opens on Friday 13 September at 7 PM. Free entry!

Artists: Autonomy Lab (WdKA), Bellina Erby & Yen-Ting Kuan, Cooperativa Cráter Invertido, De uitpluizers, Hassan Omar Ahmad, Marishka Soekarna, ook_anders, Patrick Mudekereza, Reading Sideways Press, Spoiler (TBA), Tomi Hilsee, Vincent van Velsen, Zoë Cochia / Niffo Galerie

Unlike our previous exhibitions, Underdeveloped won’t be ‘finished’ during the opening. This unique exhibition will unfold over the coming months at Garage Rotterdam, exploring diverse forms of art-practice and working methods. Afisina and vanhoe view art not as an individual achievement but as a collaborative process. Over the upcoming months at Garage Rotterdam, they aim to create a space where artists can connect their ideas and experiences with the input of visitors. Underdeveloped emphasizes community and development over definitions or conclusions. 

Don’t miss the start of Underdeveloped during the opening next Friday 13 September at Garage Rotterdam. There will be music, food, drinks, live events and workshops. We will also announce the chosen curators of our Spoiler open call.

Organise your own event at Garage Rotterdam!

The exhibition Underdeveloped aims to create a connected chain of events. Besides the activities which already take place, you can also add your own activity in a collective Underdeveloped Google calendar.

View all activities in the collective Google calendar here and add your own meet-up: https://tinyurl.com/5ezn77tb

Brandstof is Garage Rotterdam’s re­curring program that delves deeper into the themes of exhibitions. Join us during Brandstof: warming-up during the Underdeveloped opening weekend of 14 and 15 September 2024, where curators Reza Afisina and reinaart van­hoe – together with the artists and the audience – take a closer look into collective working methods. Free entry during the opening weekend!

Saturday 14 September, 12 – 3 PM | Rumpi at the kitchen & a weaving workshop by artist Lena Poyard

Sunday 15 September, 12 – 3 PM | Ceramics workshop by Spoiler curators Floor van Meeuwen and Jorien Ketelaar

On Saturday, you can take part in rumpi at the kitchen* and a weaving workshop by artist Lena Poyard. On Sunday, you can join a ceramics workshop organised by the Spoiler curators Floor van Meeuwen and Jorien Ketelaar. During the opening weekend, you are also invited to join a collective ‘Underdeveloped’ writing session with curators Reza Afisina and reinaart vanhoe, who will be present on 14 and 15 September at Garage Rotterdam.

* ‘Rumpi’ is an Indonesian term that refers to the act of ‘chit-chatting’ or engaging in casual conversation.

OPEN CALL! Garage Cafe #2.4

Garage Cafe is a test-site-with-audience for experimenting, showing research projects, new collaborations, performances and all other types of artistic work.

For the #2.4 edition of Garage Café we are looking for fellow artists, designers, creatives, students and former students who are working on exciting (new) projects and feel the need to share this with an engaged audience.

Garage Cafe #2.4 will open its doors again on the 17th of October 2024 for 5 presentations and performances of 10 minutes accompanied by food, drinks, and time to discuss.

This open call closes on the 18th of September 2024. The event will take place on the 17th of October 2024 at 6 PM at Garage Rotterdam.

Do you want to present your project at Garage Rotterdam? Apply via https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeVbDSO_gx9HP9T-mB17CXA0yuKtC5DN691fEVoNtXOsNrfxA/viewform

Design visuals: Eva Garibaldi

Garage Café is supported by Erasmusstichting and Gemeente Rotterdam

Through gather­ings, re­-modeling and collective working methods taking place live at Garage Rotterdam, Afisina and vanhoe aim to create a space where artists can connect their ideas and experiences with the input of visitors.

The first Underdeveloped exhibition addresses social and cultural urgencies in Rotterdam, using the space of Garage Rotterdam and the online platform lumbung.space as a digital living room and publishing tool for visitors to share both processes and outcomes with. Underdeveloped aims to build a connected chain of events, emphasizing community and development over definitions or conclusions.

Be welcome to talk, watch, read, cook, eat, print and more….

Garage Rotterdam offers free guided exhibition tours with every exhibition (entrance tickets are €2,00). Reserve a guided exhibition tour for yourself or a group via info@garagerotterdam.nl.

Garage Rotterdam is open every Wednesday until Friday from 12.30 – 5.30 PM. Exhibition tours will be hosted in either Dutch or English.

Join us during an exhibition tour at Garage Rotterdam in our upcoming exhibition Underdeveloped by curators Reza Afisina and reinaart vanhoe.

Upcoming Saturday 28 September! Play with RSP: Family & Neighbors warming-up
2 – 5 PM. Free entry!

Join the artists Nuning, Andy & Cahaya of Reading Sideways Press (a publisher of books for art, literature and sport) for some ‘loopschooling’, also known as running technique excercises at Garage Rotterdam. No fitness or prior experience needed!

Reading Sideways Press (RSP) was founded with the intention of bringing various research practices and explorations under one banner. RSP’s books combine its founders interests in the contemporary art and alternative cultural production, combined with their interest in sports and urban cultures.

The event Play with RSP, forms the backdrop to Andy’s discussion of his podcast ‘Everyday Runners’ and his running-related drawings. Nuning and Cahaya will hold a pencil sharpening and drawing activity where they discuss how they draw together. Both activities aim to create space for reflection, quietude, play and sharing.

Due to neighborhood day in Hoogkwartier we offer free entry to this event and our exhibition Underdeveloped on Saturday! Care to donate? Pay as you please at Garage Rotterdam. Donations will be used for further activations of Underdeveloped.

Garage Café returns on the 17th of October 2024 at Garage Rotterdam!
Walk-in 6 PM – start presentations 6.30 PM

Garage Café is a test-site-with-audience for makers to show their experiments, research projects, new collaborations, performances and all other types of artistic work.

On the 17th of October, the artists Desperate Hobbies, Nesie Junyi Wang, Lisette Alberti & Rising Lai, Louisa von Moreau, Nik van der Meulen & Rosa Schuurmans will present their projects with the audience.

Tickets (€2,00) can be purchased at our door. You are also invited to enjoy a vegetarian soup created by Lonneke Jonker (€5,00) during the evening.

Design: Eva Garibaldi

Garage Café #2.4 is supported by Gemeente Rotterdam and the Erasmusstichting.

Make zines from rice paper, ceramics in the front space of Garage Rotterdam and enjoy a delicious soup on Saturday 19 October and Sunday 20 October, together with Spoiler curators Floor van Meeuwen and Jorien Ketelaar.

This event takes place on Saturday and Sunday from 2 – 4 PM and costs €2.00 (exhibition ticket Underdeveloped), free entrance with Museumjaarkaart or Rotterdampas.

Join us on Saturday 2 November at Garage Rotterdam for an afternoon with the artist Crater Invertido, showcasing work in the exhibition Underdeveloped by curators Reza Afisina and reinaart vanhoe.

There will be food, books, music, alongside the exciting Spoiler program! (rice typography making & silkscreen slogan session)

A Garage Rotterdam exhibition ticket of €2,00 also grants you access to the day program.

Part of the project mul-thee-fuhngk-shuh-nl by Spoiler curators Floor van Meeuwen and Jorien Ketelaar, are two events on Saturday 2 November from 2 to 4 PM.

The first event is a collective rice typography making that will be part of a soon released rice zine (16 nov). The second event includes collected slogans from visitors which will be silkscreened to make fabric patches to repair your clothing.

Bring your t-shirt and to silkscreen on it and bring your garments that need repair to mend it right away! Soup and tea will be served.

You can attend both events with a Garage Rotterdam exhibition ticket of €2,00. Free entry with Rotterdampas and Museumjaarkaart.

On Sunday the 13th of October you are invited to join a clothing sharing fundraiser for mutual aid organizers in Lebanon, Palestine and Egypt organized by the 𝒟𝑜𝑒 𝐻𝑒𝓉 𝒵𝑒𝓁𝒻 𝒲𝑒𝓇𝓀𝓅𝓁𝒶𝒶𝓉𝓈, 𝒢𝒶𝒷𝓇𝒾𝑒𝓁𝒶 & 𝓂𝓊𝓁-𝓉𝒽𝑒𝑒-𝒻𝓊𝒽𝓃𝑔𝓀-𝓈𝒽𝓊𝒽-𝓃𝓁 at Garage Rotterdam.

Bring clothes you don’t wear anymore, get free clothes, swap them for new ones, eat vegan soup with us and contribute to a new zine in the making!

Everything for free! Suggested donation of €10,- (or pay what you can). You are also invited to add groups to the donation list.

This clothing sharing fundraiser is part of the exhibition Underdeveloped in Garage Rotterdam.

Natafelen: a travel of flavors at Garage Rotterdam

Friday 15 November | 6 PM

Join us during the upcoming special edition of Natafelen, where curators Reza Afisina and reinaart vanhoe invited Homesick Canteen – part of the exhibition Underdeveloped – to prepare joyful dishes. Expect to be surprised by a travel of flavors, vegetarian options will be available!

Homesick Canteen is an initiative by the artists Bellina Erby and Yen-Ting Kuan. Homesick Canteen collects how people from different cultural and geographic backgrounds use the recipe to archive emotions, memories and relational ties. It aims to explore the inner world and mental support of diaspora people and develop a possible coping strategy through casual conversation in the kitchen. With a special menu, they strive to offer a sense of home and comfort during Natafelen at Garage Rotterdam.

Take_a_way collective will serve coffee and tea. This evening will also showcase the tableware created during the Spoiler project MUL – THEE – FUHNGK – SHUH – NL by Floor van Meeuwen & Jorien Ketelaar.

Dinner | €50,00 (excluding drinks) Reservations via info@garagerotterdam.nl

This edition of Natafelen is made possible with the help of Stichting Mano

Part of the project mul-thee-fuhngk-shuh-nl by Spoiler curators Floor van Meeuwen and Jorien Ketelaar are two events on Saturday 16 November. View the full programme below!

12 – 3 PM | Workshop by the Rotterdam-based artist duo Family Dinner

Family Dinner works on the intersection of food, community and art. For this event we will be making a vegan soup and ink (from the food scraps) and discussing the theme of Process. Do you want to join the workshop? Fill in this form. Limited spots available!

5 – 9 PM | Release rice zine + rice dinner.

Join us for the release of the collective made rice zine. With contributions from friends, acquaintances and visitors of Underdeveloped we bundled memories, recipes, thoughts and illustrations all around the theme of rice. We will also serve some experimental rice dishes.

You can attend both events with a Garage Rotterdam exhibition ticket of €2,00. Free entry with Rotterdampas and Museumjaarkaart.

On Sunday 17 November, a bustling sellonbike sale will take place at Garage Rotterdam*. This is your chance to find unique objects while picking up your ceramics made during the Spoiler project MUL – THEE – FUHNGK – SHUH – NL.

*Open call: would you like to be part of the sellonbike sale? Send an email to pers@garagerotterdam.nl mentioning what you would like to sell during the day.

Sunday 17 November is also your last chance to visit the exhibition Underdeveloped, curated by Reza Afisina and reinaart vanhoe and there will be music by the two bands Periot and Voos. Don’t miss it!

On Friday 29 November, curator Nadine van den Bosch will open her last exhibition for Garage Rotterdam: Ghosts of Futures Past includes the work of the artists Jaasir Linger, MingJou Chen, Oscar Santillán, Saar Scheerlings, Sondi and Venus Jasper.

The artworks in Ghosts of Futures Past show a constant back-and-forth between the past, present, and future. They bring up images of ghosts from the past and possible futures, making us think about how history continues to affect us and what the future might hold. How do we find meaning in a quickly changing world, and how we relate to our surroundings, our future, and our past?

Join us for the festive opening with live music on Friday 29 November! During the opening of Ghosts of Futures Past, the second edition of Spoiler (open call) will also be launched.

Garage Café #2.5

Join us for Garage Café: a test-site-with-audience for experiment, showing research projects, new collaborations, performances and all other types of artistic work.

Speakers of the upcoming edition: Paracetamol Zero, Cecilie Fang, Szu-Han Lin & Wen-Hsuan Lin, Marie Caye and Jenny Konrad.

Garage Café #2.5 will take place on the 11th of December 2024. Walk-in 6 PM, start presentations 6.30 PM.

Entrance €2,00 (door tickets)
Soup by Lon Luna €5,00

The evening will be moderated by Nicole Sciarone.

Visuals for Garage Café #2.5 are designed by Lili Huston-Herterich

Garage Café is supported by Erasmusstichting and Gemeente Rotterdam

Join us at Garage Rotterdam in beginning of 2025, for a presentation by Dorin Buduşan on Eastern European history, anthropology, folklore, critical theory and the ghosts that are fighting our battles with us.

This lecture is part of the project Ashes to Ashes by Helena Łomnicka, who was selected for Garage Rotterdam’s Spoiler open call. With her proposal, Helena curated the bookshelf in the front space of Garage Rotterdam with artist publications that explore the theme of hauntology, in connection with our recently opened exhibition Ghosts of Futures Past.

The lecture will take place on Sunday 12 January from 2 – 4 PM and will be held in English. Free entry!

Graphic design: Jan Wojda

Join us during Brandstof on Saturday 18 January 2025 at 4 PM for a performance by the artist MingJou Chen, displaying work in the exhibition Ghosts of Futures Past.

The artist MingJou Chen finds beauty in how we gather information through our senses and memories. By experimenting with different forms of media — blending body movement, film, objects, sound and speech — she explores a nonlinear approach to storytelling. 

According to MingJou, performance serves as a medium to communicate experiences and gain insight into understanding personal differences. By studying body movement and through collaborations with artists across diverse fields, MingJou Chen aims to create profound connections and encourage significant exchanges.

Join us at Garage Rotterdam on 26 January for a workshop on story-telling, (dis)arming mythological archetypes and exploring the monsters that grow out of our limbs by Seré.

This workshop is part of the project Ashes to Ashes by Helena Łomnicka, who was selected for Garage Rotterdam’s Spoiler open call. With her proposal, Helena curated the bookshelf in the front space of Garage Rotterdam with artist publications that explore the theme of hauntology, in connection with our recently opened exhibition Ghosts of Futures Past.

This event will take place on Sunday 26 January from 2 – 5 PM and will be held in English.

Graphic design: Jan Wojda
Photography by: Kristýna Le Thi

Visit Garage Rotterdam on the 2nd of February for a lecture on the genealogies of “spirituality”, exorcisms on reality TV, magic under capitalism, significance of the non-secular and haunt-logical qualities of the esoteric by Spoiler curator Helena Łomnicka.

This lecture is part of the project Ashes to Ashes by Helena Łomnicka, who was selected for Garage Rotterdam’s Spoiler open call. With her proposal, Helena curated the bookshelf in the front space of Garage Rotterdam with artist publications that explore the theme of hauntology, in connection with our recently opened exhibition Ghosts of Futures Past.

This event will take place on Sunday the 2nd of February from 2 – 4 PM and will be held in English.

Graphic design: Jan Wojda

Join us on Friday 7 February 2025 to close off the exhibition Ghosts of Futures Past in a festive and culinary way.

Enjoy a vegetarian four-course menu together with your family members, friends, curator Nadine van den Bosch and the artists out of Ghosts of Futures Past.

Four-course menu by chef Marnix Benschop €50,00
Wine pairing by Gouden Ton €30,00

Reserve your seat at our dinner table via info@garagerotterdam.nl

Join us for the opening of Underdeveloped #2 on Friday 21 February at 7 PM!

We — 51 Personae, Collective Cartographies against Neoliberal Development (Serda Demir, Iliada Charalambous, Santiago Pinyol, Kari Robertson, Julia Wilhelm), Faizi, Kasi Graphic (Angga Cipta and Chad Cordeiro), (Studio) Lon Luna, Luke Murphy, Mg Pringgotono, mul-thee-fuhngk-shuh-nl, ook_anders, Rotterdam Atletiek Olympia, Sudan art panel (Hassan Omar Ahmad, Hassan Abbas Ossam Abdullah, Mohammed Abdullah, Yahya Adam), Take-a-Way, Tomi Hilsee, Vincent van Velsen, WdKA-Autonomy Lab, Yingfei Li, Yen-Ting Kuan and Limestone Books, Yunjoo Kwak, Garage Rotterdam, Stichting Mano, Reza Afisina and reinaart vanhoe and all visitors and friends of Underdeveloped — welcome you to join us for our next iteration.

Underdeveloped #2 is part of a series of three exhibitions over 2024/25 at Garage Rotterdam, challenging traditional notions of growth by highlighting diverse forms of art practices and working methods. Rather than emphasizing individual artistry, this exhibition series approaches art as a collaborative effort and one of building together. The exhibition focuses on alternative education, infrastructure, language and perspectives.

Once again, Garage Rotterdam will be transformed into an intimate living room, a communal environment in which you can contribute to the exhibitions’ evolution at any time. You are invited to make use of a kitchen, a carpet with audio recording tools, a library and several other tools which are part of Underdeveloped #2.

Instead of exhibition events on fixed days and times, Underdeveloped #2 believes that anyone who walks into Garage Rotterdam at any time, creates a 24/7 living space which encourages informal encounters. The public program of Underdeveloped #2, named Being welcomed, fosters a close connection between art and the local community. In this mindset, public moments are less planned.

Expect spontaneous activities, collective cooking, collaborative workshops, open discussions and community participation – transforming art into a tool for shared awareness. The Underdeveloped activity approach intends to create a space for concrete actions. All potential events within the exhibition address both local and global issues such as ecology, social solidarity and alternative economies. Every Saturday, one of the curators and/or artists will be present to talk with you.

Stay tuned for unplanned events here. All activities are free to attend with an exhibition ticket (€2,00 or free entry with ICOM or Rotterdampas).

Filmscreening Fragments of Home. On a loop all afternoon from 12.30 pm onwards. Talk by director Jacob van der Zwan at 13.30 pm.

This weekend, it is – sadly – three years ago that Russia invaded Ukraine, that is why it is time to show the short film Fragments of home, about a Ukrainian refugee.

In the film, an English and a Ukrainian woman collide in a bicycle accident, through which they develop an unlikely and empathic connection for unimaginable experiences. “I wanted the viewer to get to get to know someone on the street, a stranger, whose world is completely unknown to you.” says the director.

Fragments of Home explores the transformative power of connection. Milena Kompaniiets and Lucy Brownhill are the actors in the film, infusing their performances with their personal experiences.

“My grandfather came to the Netherlands as a child refugee from Hungary. He carried that experience with him throughout his life and told us about it. The Cold War, therefore, felt close to our family. How happy he was (and we with him) when the Soviet rule of Hungary ended. Now, with the war between Russia and Ukraine, all those feelings come back. Yet again, a devastating war in Europe. ‘Fragments of Home’ is inspired by my conversations with my grandfather and the stories of Ukrainian refugees.” says the director.

Come see the film at Garage Rotterdam tomorrow!

Free entry with an exhibition ticket (€2.00) or ICOM/Rotterdampas

Fragments of home, 14 minutes, English.

Cast
Milena Kompaniiets
Lucy Brownhill
Dymphna van Dooremaal
Daniel Barreto Kuijper
Shefali van der Zwan
Eric Stockx
Ken Stockx

Written and directed by Jacob van der Zwan

First AD: Guido F.G. Jeurissen

Production manager: Felix Dukker

D.O.P. Jorick Buurstra

First AC: Paula Hankes

Gaffer: Bas de Haas

Sound mixing: Arjen van Doezelaar

Editing: Jacob van der Zwan

Color grading: Guido F.G. Jeurissen

Casting agency: INCasting

MUAH: Jesse de Graaf

Production assistent: Kiki Haasnoot

Music by
Dymphna van Dooremaal
Sonatine flute and bassoon Eugéne Bozza

This year we are participating in Museumnacht 010 again!

On Saturday evening 1 March, from 8 PM until 1 AM, we will open our doors with our exhibition Underdeveloped #2 and the following special activities:

20.00 – 23.00 | Operasi Plastik Workshop

Create a pouch from plastic waste at the KEN KEN and GUD GUD Circular Material Lab with the artist MG Pringgotono

20.00 – 00.00 | Performance ‘Let me introduce myself’

An interactive performance taking place all evening long by the artists Chiara Tammaro, Johnny Groenteman and Jorien Ketelaar.

20.00 – 00.00 | Reading and note-taking at night

Together with the artists Yen-Ting Kuan and Limestone Books

21.00 – 00.00 | Screenprinting at Garage Rotterdam!

During Museumnacht 010, the artist duo Kasi Graphic (Angga Cipta and Chad Cordeiro) will encourage you to join them for a screenprinting session. Learn how to print at Garage Rotterdam and join the artists for a chat!

The whole evening you can also get a special drink and snack in the kitchen in the middle of our exhibition space, part of Underdeveloped #2

We are looking forward to welcoming you during Museumnacht 010!

Photography by Studio Evert

Join us at Garage Rotterdam on Sunday 2 March from 15.00 – 18.00 for a workshop on creating a Plastic fused Light box, together with the artist MG Pringgotono in the KEN KEN & GUD GUD Circular Material Lab.

KEN KEN & GUD GUD Circular Material Lab is an open space and studio, dedicated to upcycling and recycling practises, transforming waste materials into functional objects for everyday use.

This project follows the “Collect, Brainstorm and Execute” principle: Collect – Gathering and sorting available materials, Brainstorm – Exploring the properties and characteristics of materials through discussions and experiments, Execute – Realizing ideas using the tools available in the space.

Inspired by two imaginary characters – one who always sees possibilities in every challenge and the other who appreciates every achievement, no matter how small – KEN KEN & GUD GUD encourages boundless exploration and creativity.

This project showcases circular material practises from Operasi, Plastik, Stuffo, 8o5nl and Sell on Bike Book.

This workshop is free to attend with an exhibition ticket (€2,00 or free entry with ICOM/Rotterdampas)

Multiple workshops by Mg Pringgotono will take place during the exhibition period of Underdeveloped #2. Stay tuned here!

Visit Garage Rotterdam on Friday the 28th of March (9 PM) for the official Art Rotterdam Party!

Enjoy an evening filled with music by the artist Marishka Soekarna, art out of our exhibition Underdeveloped #2 and inspiring conversations with artists and art lovers.

We are looking forward to welcoming you. Free entry!

Crafting Together Workday | Hot-Glue-Stick-Maps workshop
Saturday 29 March from 13.00 – 17.00 at Garage Rotterdam

Led by sculptor, painter, printmaker and publisher Linda Zeb Hang, the Hot-Glue-Stick-Maps workshop is a hands-on, collective workshop for texture atlas identification, exploring social, personal boundaries, and synthesized spontaneity. Participants will use proletarian materials, such as hot glue, wax paper, cardboard and aerosol as tools to consider how structure and freedom interact.

This workshop will activate an outdoor hanging installation by the artist and architect Tomi Hilsee, who shows work in Underdeveloped at a Garage Rotterdam. During the workshop, participants will weave culminating designs from the structure, to give some public expression to the street.

Both artists are active members of the Doe Het Zelf Werkplaats / DHZ, a bike repair garden located at a public park in Rotterdam Noord. Centered around Learning Together and anti-judgement, previous knowledge of bikes or tools are not necessary to get started. The Garden of Learning at DHZ hosts many herbs and operates on similar values of building community and leadership through an economy of reciprocal generosity, growing together and taking interest.

Join us during this workshop on Saturday 29 March from 13.00 to 17.00 PM. Free entry!

Saturday 12 April from 2.30 – 4 PM in the Underdeveloped Library at Garage Rotterdam

Led by Little Book Project, Poetry Story Time unfolds within the exhibition Underdeveloped #2. The event opens with a reading on 12 April, of the poetry picture book 注音練習 (Bopomofo Exercise). This book highlights the story of an illiterate grandmother who quietly finds her own way to literacy and claims her identity. The reading will be presented in the poem’s original language – Mandarin Chinese – followed by an English translation.

After the reading, you are invited to delve deeper into this story and reflect on your own. Who is the main character beyond the role of ‘mom’ (or ‘grandma’)? What memories shape her, what details have been overlooked? We will conclude the reading session by drawing a portrait of ‘mama’ – a simple, childlike sketch – inspired by memories.

Join us to listen, reflect and create. This reading session is free to attend with an Underdeveloped #2 exhibition ticket.

Storytime leader: Little Book Project / Rachel Wu

Little Book Project is a picture book store based in Rotterdam, for kids and kids at heart. Through their collection, they connect readers to stories and illustrations by Taiwanese and other East Asian artists. Learn more via Instagram

On Sunday the 4th of May at 2 PM, Take-a-Way collective presents: To fit an ocean in a cup, a celebratory publication sharing the collective energy of three years of creating together! A book full of drawings, collages and background stories about each other’s personal recipes and coffee and tea rituals.

On the last day of the exhibition Underdeveloped#2 at Garage Rotterdam, the Take-a-Way shop will be open and coffee and snacks will be served.

We are looking forward to welcoming you!

Free entry with an exhibition ticket. (€2,00 or free entry with a Museumjaarkaart/Rotterdampas)

Join us during the festive opening of Unknown Landscapes on Friday 23 May, 7 PM at Garage Rotterdam. Unknown Landscapes is the first exhibition by curator Cynthia Jordens for Garage Rotterdam.

Artists: Yael Bartana, Monali Meher, Danaë Moons, Katarina Zdjelar, Yeesookyung

From a sense of urgency regarding our human rights and environmental crisis, the concept of transformation is explored through three exhibitions at Garage Rotterdam, under the heading How to live together. 

The first exhibition in this series, Unknown Landscapes, of which the title refers to Monali Meher’s installation Unknown Landscape, revolves around the concept of repair. Interpreted through the lens of philosopher Eva von Redecker, this exhibition explores repair as the opposite of ‘revolution’. Although both suggest a transformation, the concept of repair does not involve a radical break, but rather a change that creates something new, through and out of the in-between spaces of the old. A reparative approach is not about a ‘technological fix’ or a return to the past without critical examination, but rather about recognizing a damaged or broken social, cultural or ecological context. 

How can art contribute to a new grammar of existence? How can we find new meanings in what has been repaired? The exhibition Unknown Landscapes navigates on a state of brokenness and connects harm and reparation to care and transformation. 

Join us on Thursday evening the 5th of June for another edition of Brandstof, to dive deeper into our exhibition Unknown Landscapes.

About the performance
Nadia Bekkers (graduated from the School for New Dance Development, 2026) is one of the performers featured in Katarina Zdjelar’s installation Not A Pillar Not A Pile (2017/2025) in Unknown Landscapes. In recent years, Bekkers has focused on her work with the collective Papaya Kuir, of which she is a co-founder. During Brandstof, Bekkers presents a new performance in which she enters into a dialogue with her own film footage from her new living environment: the mountains of Spain. Inspired by magical realism and dreamlike atmospheres, her performance explores questions surrounding masculinity and violence.

Brandstof tickets | €5,00.
You can RSVP online (appreciated but not mandatory) or purchase a ticket at our door.