How We Program

We know that we cannot see every perspective ourselves. That is why we actively collaborate with artists, designers, researchers and residents of the city.

• through the Kenniscentrale, we engage specialists and partners
• through the City Editioral Team, residents have a say in what we do
• Through collaborations with artists, designers and other makers, collectives and institutions, we broaden perspectives. Co-creation is an important form of collaboration that we use to achieve this.
• Through the Collectief Centraal advisory group, we invite our focus group to contribute ideas on programming choices, exhibition concepts, titles and campaign visuals.

Through our programme, we bring together different perspectives and invite visitors to see things differently: both art and the worlds beyond it. As a visitor, it is up to you to decide what you think of these perspectives.

We can play a guiding or reflective role in this: by showing, questioning and, where necessary, placing things in an art-historical or broader historical context. But we always do so from the conviction that culture emerges through interaction, not in isolation.

Our vision and mission are directly reflected in our programming, which takes shape at the intersection of four elements: Programme, Exhibitions and Spaces, Digital and Website, and Target Audiences.

Our programme consists of exhibitions and public activities that explore current issues through the lens of art, design and history.

We choose topics not only based on their current relevance, but also on their ability to bring different perspectives to light and explore them in greater depth. The collection is an important starting point, but not the only one: contemporary artists and developments in society also guide our choices. This is reflected in our current programme.

Our choices take shape in various exhibition strands and programmes throughout the museum, such as the Stallen, Annex and Utrecht Lokaal. Each space has its own role within the wider whole, ranging from major thematic exhibitions to experimental and local programming.

You’ll also encounter our programming beyond the museum’s walls, because art isn’t something you only find in a museum. These activities are part of our deCentraal programme. Across all our programme strands, we collaborate with several cultural partners in Utrecht.

The Stables
Large-scale, often thematic or art-historical exhibitions that draw on the collection and offer a contemporary perspective on art, design, fashion or (urban) history.

The Annex
A space for contemporary art, where artists reflect on the main exhibition and offer an alternative perspective on the theme.

In Depth
A programme strand in which artists, designers, collectives and thinkers shed new light on the collection or develop work in relation to it.

Utrecht Local
The Centraal Museum has strong ties to Utrecht and therefore provides a platform for artists who shape the city and are shaped by it. Utrecht Local offers space to makers of different ages, backgrounds and career stages who are connected to Utrecht, bringing their work to the attention of a broad audience.

Framework
Video art on the museum façade, allowing us to literally programme beyond our walls and often tie in with the exhibition’s theme.

DeCentraal
Under the banner of deCentraal, Centraal Museum develops programmes beyond the museum’s walls. Through artworks in public spaces, murals, the rotating plinth outside the museum and on the station square, and other presentations across the city, we bring art and social issues to a broad audience.

The rotating plinth on the square outside the museum, for example, temporarily displays sculptures that tie in with the museum’s programme. The sculpture changes every year, and many of them are subsequently exhibited on the station square between Utrecht Central Station and Hoog Catharijne.

While exhibitions in the museum offer greater depth, deCentraal actively seeks out encounters in public spaces. It shows how art relates to the city and its residents, and increases the museum’s presence in everyday life in Utrecht. In this way, we aim to lower barriers for new and broader audiences and build a pathway towards greater connection.

Oud Amelisweerd Country House
At Oud Amelisweerd Country House, in partnership with the Hartwig Art Foundation, we present artist-driven solo exhibitions by Dutch artists who have been active for at least twenty years and enjoy international recognition.

This programme centres on artistic practice. Artists are given the opportunity to present existing or new work in dialogue with the historic setting of this magnificent country estate. The interplay between contemporary art, heritage and landscape is a key point of departure.

In doing so, we provide a platform for artists whose long-standing practices reflect on current developments and contemporary issues.

Partners in the city
Our partners include Impakt, Le Guess Who, Gaudeamus, Keti Koti Utrecht, the Netherlands Film Festival, Queer Film Festival Utrecht and the Municipality of Utrecht.

The redesigned website is also part of the research into the possibilities for a ‘digital museum’. This will be a hub for stories and knowledge about themes from across the city. Explore these stories in Dive Deeper.

We aim to reach a broad audience: from seasoned museumgoers to people for whom visiting a museum is less of a given. We actively work to engage different groups, including through partnerships, co-creation and programmes outside the museum. At the same time, we offer greater depth for visitors who are already familiar with art and culture. Our starting point is not a single target group, but layered content that embraces a multitude of perspectives.

We do this by:

• to show different perspectives
• lowering barriers through programmes both inside and outside the museum
• to create space for both recognition and confrontation