A340 Muzeum - Past Exhibitions

ADDITIONAL - TEMPORARY - DISTRESS

Dear Colleagues,
Dear Friends,

Atelier 340 Muzeum is 30 years old. It is in a situation of additional temporary distress. In fact, we have to find 40 000 Euros before the 30^th of September 2009 so as to pay back the bank loan used for the renenovation and the extention done to our buildings and to the park which will be used for artists' site-specific work.

You may remember, in 2007, we experienced temporary distress and we were seeking financial assistance amounting to 35 000 Euros: 346 people supported us in different ways. That operation allowed us to pay back our loans and to undertake our activites for 2007 and 2008. Among other things:

Holding the exhibition « All colours permitted, as long as they don't interfere with business » 2007
Exporting this exhibition to BWA Contemporary Art Gallery at Katowice (Poland) 2008
Exporting the same exhibition to the National Museum of Szczecin (Poland) 2009
Co-editing the catologue for that exhibition 2008
Exhibition for the students from the scultpure and textile design class at La Cambre 2008
Editing several images by Belgian and foreign artists in postacard form 2008
Installation in front of Jette town hall of a vegetable sculpture by Jakko Pernu (Finland) 2008

During previous episodes of financial distress we were also able to count on the support of the French Community, which analysed our previous work, re-evaluated the situation and increased our subsidy to bring us closer to a level on a par with our activities (both for the form and for the content).

But, whilst, thanks to this re-evalution, we arrived finally at the end of this long and serious shortage, there is still a gap to be bridged, a legacy of the past. All this support made it possible for us to fulfil our obligations, but we are not at the end of our pains. We absolutely have to solve these last problems otherwise we might just disappear. Unfortunately a re-scheduling of the repayments is not possible.

We have thought of four ways of getting this sum, which will allow each of you to express his or her support depending on his or her capacities:

1) 40 enthusiastic sympathisers, generous contemporary art lovers, faithful, more or less regular visitors to our Drève de Rivieren, private individuals or companies, each advance us 1000 Euros which we will pay back by the month of September 2010. These « bridging loans » will help us to avoid imminent shipwreck and get the ship afloat again.

2) We can also propose one or other of our specialised « services »:

Transporting art works
Carpentry work for museums or other parties
Selling publications: postcards, catalogues,...
Renting our premises (possibily with catering)
Selling various artists' work from among the artists who have worked with us... Any other suggestions will be welcome.

Of course, we will send a bill for our services.

3) 800 art enthusiasts who are less wealthy but just as keen to assert their support, each buy a sponsor's card (50 Euros), and thus get free access to all our activities and a 30% reduction on our publications. By way of thanks they will receive a gift of 10 postcards which they can choose from our editions and we shall extend the validity of the sponsor's card until the end of 2010.

4) Purchase of the collection of our postcards: 280 subjects for a 160 Euros.

We are not complaining,

we are not unhappy,

on the contrary we are optimistic...

... and we are also working on our program which will be well worth seeing, a program which is the subject of a contract we have with the French Community.

We are also preparing:

The exhibition for our 30th anniversary which will take place throughout 2010 and will present Atelier 340 Muzeum's collection and archives, as well as various installations by artists
Opening our park (September 2009) intented for artists' site-specific work
Preparing an exhibition « The Surprise Impact of Meaning », and international exhibition with the cooperation of representatives from various european museums
Presentation of the work of a group of Polish artists, Łódź Kaliska, comprised of panoramic photographs, videos and performances
An international exhibition with the team « Nature/Sculpture », a circuit around about ten private and semi-public gardens in the municipality of Jette
Irreligia Belgique ( the « follow-up » to Irreligia Poland of 2001-2002) in partnership with other belgian institutions and in cooperation with various belgian and foreign academics...
An exhibition on the theme « Art and mushrooms »

As regards publications:

We are preparing to edit in the form of postcards images by contemporary artists from various countries to be distributed at a national and international level

Publishing a new postcard catalogue on CD-Rom for distribution in Belgium and abroad

We are preparing:

An Irreligia Poland DVD
An Irreligia Poland co- edited catalogue

Let us not forget:

Introduction to sculpture classes for children
Courses on different subjects during school holidays
Expanding the Documentation Centre
Continuing to renovate our buildings

We must press on, the 30^th of September is almost upon us!

Thank you for reacting as quickly as possible!

Of course we are entirely at your disposal should you wish to have more information or in order to find original solutions which would suit you better.

Kind regards

Wodek

President-Concierge

ING 310-0308220-40 IBAN: BE 02 3100 3082 2040 BIC/SWIFT: BBRUBEBB