In this way, they can not only play a connecting role between generations, communities, and cultures, but also help to dynamize and update existing collections, strengthen the museum’s societal role, and lower the barriers to museum visits and artistic experiences. Art and heritage are about us.

The new ICOM definition highlights the necessity for museums to evolve into dynamic spaces for democracy, polyphony, inclusion, critical thinking, and dialogue. In addition to their core function of preserving, safeguarding, and making material and intangible heritage accessible, museums must also engage with current debates and societal developments. No longer merely “houses of conservation” for specific collections, museums are transforming into vibrant, hybrid cultural hubs, capable of bridging the past and the future, different disciplines and areas of expertise, and diverse communities and individuals.

With an original and dynamic exhibition program focused on our layered identities, Abby seeks to transcend the dichotomy of us-versus-them thinking and strengthen social connections. While museums too often remain “cultural territories” for a niche audience, Abby is an open house for a much broader and more diverse public. Through a fundamentally participatory approach, shared spaces, and broad collaborations, Abby fully embraces inclusion, accessibility, and polyphony. With art and heritage as mirrors and identity as a central theme, Abby creates a playful, accessible, and relatable space for reflection, encounter, and transformation.

II. A Museum with Personality: The Seven Parameters of Abby

Abby Kortrijk researches, experiments, and programs based on a framework of thought and values that give the museum its personality and focus. Inspired by the historical monastic context of the abbey that houses the museum—where seven niches in the cloister wall (the ‘seven stations’) symbolize the path to completion—each Abby project must meet seven key parameters.

1. "In the Beginning, There Was Creation": Art and Creativity as a Driving Force

Abby breathes art and places imagination, (co-)creation, and artistic quality—both past and present—at its core for two fundamental reasons.

The first is content-driven. Since the dawn of humanity, art and creativity have expressed who we are and how we relate to one another. Art is a universal language, understood and spoken by all. Abby celebrates both the intrinsic quality of art and its ability to illuminate complex subjects in an accessible way, serve as a creative tool for exploring new perspectives and insights and act as a mirror in which we recognize ourselves and others.

The second reason relates to Kortrijk’s specific artistic landscape. With a widely attended triennial for visual arts, strong temporary exhibitions, and a dynamic network of galleries, collectives, and private collections, Kortrijk has a thriving visual arts scene. However, since the closure of the Broelmuseum in 2015, the city has lacked a dedicated space to showcase its municipal art collection, a high-quality exhibition venue and a central hub and attraction with a broad (inter)national reach. Although museum activities continued behind the scenes, the opening of Abby in 2024 marks the return of a physical visual arts museum in Kortrijk after nearly a decade. At Abby, innovative collection presentations are complemented by impactful temporary exhibitions. Artists and creators play key roles in scenography, interior design, and curatorship. Through an open studio and participatory projects, art and creativity are activated within the broader public.

2. "And Then Came Humanity": Identity as a Common Thread

With visual art and heritage as a mirror, Abby explores what connects, defines, and distinguishes us as human beings, across borders and generations. This choice of identity as a central theme is not coincidental: it sets Abby apart from other art museums, it relates to Kortrijk’s history as the ‘City of the Battle of the Golden Spurs’, where identity debates are deeply ingrained and it reflects the natural and metaphysical connection between art, heritage, and identity.

"For masterpieces are not single and solitary births; they are the outcome of many years of thinking in common, of thinking by the body of the people, so that the experience of the mass is behind the single voice." (Virginia Woolf)
Art, heritage, and identity define and connect individuals and communities, shaping our existence with meaning and purpose. They bridge past, present, and future, forming time- and culture-bound layers in the transhistorical flow we call ‘cultural memory’. Shaped by the legacy of a shared past, they reflect the values, norms, tastes, and stereotypes of their time and culture.

“In life and in art, one must begin again every day.” (Louis Couperus)
Since artworks, heritage practices, and identities are products of their time, collective experiences, and cultural memory, their inherent mutability follows naturally. They are living matter, evolving with new cultural climates, shifting practices, and emerging ideas—or even initiating these changes from the margins. Art, heritage, and identity are constantly seeking new appropriate (expressive) forms, stimulating questions, and meaningful answers. In other words, they are always a ‘work in progress’. They are also continuously confronted and enriched by new meanings, shifting valuations, and revised interpretations—like layers of sediment accumulating over time.

“I contain multitudes.” (Walt Withman)
In their layered nature, art, heritage, and identity are deeply interconnected. There is no absolute category, no singular label, no fixed essence by which a person or a work of art can be definitively defined. Just as a work of art breathes diverse influences and evokes multiple interpretations and emotions, people, at any given moment, fragment into—or are held together by—various, sometimes conflicting, sub-identities.

“Art is about us.” (Abby)
Perhaps this is why experiencing or creating art can be so comforting, moving, or transformative—because art is, at its core, about us. In all its complexity and ambiguity, art helps us navigate our own intricacies. Conversely, we continuously infuse art with meaning and significance. "What is art?" and "Who am I?" are, in this sense, mirror questions. Through us, all of cultural history flows. Within us, we accumulate the rings of an everlasting intergenerational and polyphonic dialogue. And just like artists, we too possess the creative power to build new worlds for ourselves and for each other, drawing from the foundations of our cultural memory and shaping them through our identities.

3. Reflective: Open Inquiry and Collective Learning as a Mindset

The search for who we are and how we relate to one another is universal and ever-relevant. Abby Kortrijk, using art and heritage as a medium, aims to create space for curious questions, evolving answers, unexpected connections, and inspiring insights on this layered theme. Abby directs its gaze as much toward the broader ‘human condition’ as toward the peculiarities of human identities, embracing both established artists and creators on the margins.

Abby is also curious about other perspectives—nothing is more refreshing than seeing through different eyes. Through an open dialogue between creators, people, and the museum, Abby seeks to forge new connections and reimagine art, heritage, and identity from different angles. Collaboration with a diverse network of partner organizations, external experts, and local communities fosters knowledge exchange, cross-pollination, and collective learning. Abby makes this expertise accessible and shares it with both the general public and the cultural sector through lectures, debates, workshops, publications, and colloquia.

4. Representative: Polyphony and Multiperspectivity as Ways to Broaden Perspectives

Polyphony and multiperspectivity are essential principles for exploring the many facets of our identities. To this end, Abby firmly integrates social engagement and broad, structural collaborations into its policy. The museum actively works to build a diverse community of individuals, groups, and organizations, as well as an interdisciplinary network of artists, thinkers, and creators who collectively ask questions and seek insights through visual art.

The thematic exhibitions highlight transhistorical, interdisciplinary, and intergenerational connections, emphasizing the universal nature of our collective search for identity. A continuous dialogue with the public—through participatory projects, shared spaces, and platforms for debate—enriches the themes that Abby explores from the ground up; after all, everyone is an expert in identity. Engaging individuals and communities from their own expertise generates new perspectives and fosters co-ownership, representation, and accessibility. In this way, the museum becomes an open house where people of all ages and backgrounds feel welcome, represented, and involved.

5. Participatory: Cross-Pollination Between People and Creators

Abby Kortrijk introduces "de Stadsliving" ("the city's living room"), a new museum concept: an accessible, open house where residents of Kortrijk and visitors, people and creators share space, co-create programs, and develop participatory projects. At the institutional level, Abby also experiments with participation, challenging existing labels and categories. What roles can a museum play? Who has the authority to speak about art? Who is allowed to curate and guide? How do people shape the museum, and vice versa? In doing so, Abby not only questions who we are but also what a museum, a city, and a community can be.

Building on this participatory foundation, Abby seeks to open up what was once closed—both spatially and conceptually. The historic Groeninge Abbey: a walled and secluded Cistercian monastery until well into the twentieth century. The art and museum world: still too often perceived or presented as an exclusive, high-threshold domain for the cultural elite. The Kortrijk collection: an eclectic assemblage of artworks, originally intended for the homes of the affluent, rather than for the wider public. Heritage: not rigid, immutable traditions, but living practices. Identity: a fragile, ever-relevant, and inexhaustible theme, yet too often confined by societal expectations and constraints or reduced to polarizing categories.

6. Playful & Dynamic: The Museum Visit as a Transformative Experience

“You must not lose your adolescence, because then you also lose yourself in a state of affairs, in the confinement of ‘this is who I am’—and along with the question, you lose the answer as well." (Wannes Gyselinck)

Art is a game, and so is identity: push and pull, challenge and entice, renew and rediscover, put on a mask and take down a façade. Abby Kortrijk stays connected to our inner child and embraces the creativity and authenticity of playful minds.

With innovative scenography, bold programming, stimulating workshops, and shared spaces and museum roles, Abby invites the public to join in the play. In this way, the museum becomes a dynamic place where people of all ages can continue to recognize and reinvent themselves, and where art and heritage from all eras continue to fascinate and inspire.

Just as our identities are constantly evolving, so is Abby. There is no permanent exhibition—Abby surprises with thought-provoking temporary collection presentations and exhibitions, in spaces that periodically change in design and purpose. There is no fixed program—a vibrant network of communities and organizations helps shape what is shown and what takes place. In this way, Abby becomes a total work of art that is never finished—it evolves, explores, and experiments together with its audience.

7. Sustainable and Fair: Impact on People, Not on the Environment

Abby Kortrijk pioneers as a visual arts museum by focusing on a single central theme, introducing innovative forms of co-ownership and participation, and creating cutting-edge museum spaces. In addition to this, Abby aims to be a museum for the future by committing to sustainability and fair compensation.

Abby prioritizes sustainable techniques and reusable materials in its construction process, scenographic choices, and museum design. Through smart collaborations with regional partners, procurement budgets can be optimized, and display cases, scenographic walls, and other exhibition materials can be shared and repurposed. In the hospitality section of the Paviljoen, the focus is on short supply chains, local production, and partnerships with regional chefs and communities. Abby also leverages Kortrijk’s status as a UNESCO Creative City, actively involving local designers, makers, product developers, and game designers in shaping the site and its programming.

But above all, Abby strives for a sustainable and fair approach in its content and operations. Abby is committed to clear agreements and fair compensation for artists, experts, and volunteers. Most importantly, through collaboration and exchange with people and creators, Abby seeks to establish long-lasting processes and connections that extend far beyond the duration of an exhibition or participatory project.

III. New Perspectives on the Collection

However, this new approach differs significantly from the methodology of the former Broelmuseum. First and foremost, the collection is now studied and made accessible in new ways. Abby is not a city museum that presents a chronological, historical, or educational overview of the (art) history of the city and region based on collection pieces. While the previous focus on local and regional (decorative) artists and Kortrijk-based scenes and themes remains relevant, it is no longer the museum’s primary perspective. As outlined earlier, Abby’s mission is to use art and heritage as a mirror to explore the broad theme of ‘identity’ in all its complexity. The heterogeneous nature of the municipal collection is a strength in this approach, as it allows for a multitude of perspectives on this theme. Identity is reflected not only in the imagery and subject matter of certain pieces but also in their form, function, and history—including when, why, and for whom they were created and collected, as these aspects reveal much about how identities are shaped, reinforced, or transformed

IV. Polyphonic exhibitions

V. A House with Many Rooms:

The Stadsliving as a New Museum Space

Both conceptually and spatially, Abby is designed as a house with many rooms. Visitors can explore two main routes:

• Temporary exhibitions are displayed in the underground halls and the 16th-century chapel.
• The Stadsliving includes:
  • A Living with an innovative collection presentation
  • A Dining Room (Abby Café), which is part of the museum’s program
  • A Participatory Salon
  • An Open Atelier
  • A Public Garden

Additionally, the Stadsliving serves as an informal reception area for visitors, a ticket office for the paid exhibition route, a distinctive museum shop and a space for lectures and salon discussions on art, heritage, and identity

In the Paviljoen, the long table is a nod to the former refectory of the abbey. Visitors gather here to discover the program, meet, read, work, and share a meal or a drink. Display cases in the bar showcase curated, rotating collection pieces. The menu itself is part of the program, emphasizing how food is intrinsically linked to our cultural identities. In collaboration with a broad and diverse network of organizations and communities, this space hosts rituals, shared recipes, and artistic dinners.

Anyone entering the Dormitorium from the Paviljoen or the park steps into a vibrant living room for the city. The collection presentation makes art that was once intended to decorate wealthy bourgeois homes accessible to all, placing it in dialogue with contemporary art. Just as people occasionally redecorate their own living spaces, artists and communities continuously reshape the identity of this shared living room. In this innovative museum space, you are invited to linger and explore—settle in with a drink, admire the art, read a book, take a break from your museum visit, or join a salon discussion.

Upstairs, the Salon serves as an experimental space for local communities and partner organizations. It hosts participatory projects, as well as lectures and debates. In the Atelier, the public can actively engage in creative work, with educational workshops tailored to different groups. Additionally, young artists and artists-in-residence are given space to work and showcase their creations.

Creativity and innovation are part of our DNA. They are the result of human interaction—wherever we meet and inspire one another, new things emerge. Art invites dialogue about who we are and how we relate to each other. Yet, traditional museums often remain high-threshold, sterile, and closed-off, with halls where visitors move cautiously and fleetingly through the space. With the Stadsliving, Abby introduces a new museum experience—one that feels like a second home and celebrates human imagination. Open, warm, and connecting, it creates space for reflection, encounter, co-creation, and transformation.