Reading the region: Talk on Collecting

Talk: The TWODO Collection & Collecting in a Euregional context.

📅 April 15, 2025, 7:30 PM


📍 NAK Neuer Aachener Kunstverein
As the TWODO Collection comes to an end after 24 years, NAK Neuer Aachener Kunstverein invites you to a discussion on the past, present, and future of collecting. This talk brings together key figures from the TWODO collectors’ group alongside euregional collectors and exhibition organizers to reflect on the legacy of TWODO and explore contemporary collecting models. What does it mean to collect art today? How do different regions approach collecting? And which models will shape the future?


Guests:
-> Jennifer Braun (The Gen Z Art Critic)
-> Albert Groot (Collector, TWODO Collection)
-> Frank-Thorsten Moll (Director, IKOB)
-> Dr. Marcel Schuhmacher (Director, Kunsthaus NRW Kornelimünster)
-> Prof. Wilhelm Schürmann (Collector, TWODO Collection)
-> Susanne Titz (Director, Museum Abteiberg)


The evening will conclude with drinks and informal conversations in the foyer of NAK.

About the TWODO Collection & Exhibition
Founded in 1999, the TWODO Collection was an experimental initiative where a group of 24 collectors engaged in a collaborative approach to acquiring contemporary art. Each year, an artist was invited to develop a new project independently of NAK, fostering direct dialogue between collectors and artists. The collection not only provided financial support for artistic production but also redefined the role of collectors as active participants in artistic processes.


Now, as the TWODO group discontinues its joint collecting activities, NAK presents a retrospective exhibition showcasing the outstanding projects and artists involved over the years. At the same time, this marks an opportunity to reflect on new forms of collecting: How have models of patronage evolved? What role do institutions play in sustaining collections? And which approaches may now be outdated?
Join us for this in-depth conversation about collecting in the Euregio and beyond.


📍 In cooperation with: Very Contemporary, Neuer Aachener Kunstverein, TWODO Collection, Kunsthaus NRW and the IKOB museum Eupen.


💡 Kindly supported by: Stadt Aachen, Sparkasse Aachen, TWODO Collection

📅 March – July 2025
📍 Ludwig Forum Aachen & Greylight Projects Heerlen


The Reading the Region Research Residencies (RRRR) invites two artists to engage with the theme of gardening as both a metaphor and a practice. Gardening serves as both a metaphor and a practical framework for exploring ecological, social, and philosophical questions. In contemporary art, it reflects the balance between care and control, highlighting themes of sustainability, environmental responsibility, and the natural cycles of growth and decay.


At Greylight Projects, the concept of artistic permaculture is central—just as permaculture fosters self-sustaining ecosystems in nature, Greylight Projects nurtures an artistic environment where practices and collaborations develop organically. This approach emphasizes sustainability, adaptability, and cross-pollination, ensuring a thriving and resilient creative community.


At Ludwig Forum Aachen, the LuFo Garden serves as a space for artistic, ecological, and community-driven projects. Functioning as an open-air extension of the museum, it invites dialogue between nature, art, and public engagement. The garden reflects themes of sustainability and transformation, mirroring the evolving role of museums as sites of experimentation and collaboration.


With this in mind, the Reading the Region Research Residencies (RRRR) offer the artists the space to explore the intersections of art, ecology, and regional identity. The program, a collaboration between Ludwig Forum Aachen and Greylight Projects Heerlen, brings together artists for a three-month residency focused on engaging with the Euregio Meuse-Rhine. The residency encourages artistic research, exchange, and public dialogue, with each artist introducing their work through public lectures and concluding with open studio presentations to share their findings.


For this residency the artists Marcus Kaiser and Kaya Erdinç are invited to spend three months immersing themselves in the local context, developing new works, and engaging with the public through presentations and discussions. Throughout their residency, Kaiser and Erdinç will share their evolving research through public presentations, conversations, and open studios, inviting audiences to engage with their ideas and processes. These events will serve as a platform for broader discussions on art, ecology, and regional identity, fostering exchange across disciplines and borders.


Join us in Aachen and Heerlen to experience how artistic research and collaboration can open new perspectives on our relationship with the environment and the region we inhabit.


The Reading the Region Research Residencies (RRRR) is a collaboration between Ludwig Forum Aachen, Greylight Projects and additional for the residency of Marcus Kaiser the GTB Lab Heerlen

Marcus Kaiser

🎼 Marcus Kaiser (DE) is a composer, musician, and visual artist whose work blends video projections, sound, live music, and spatial interventions. With a background in both fine arts and cello performance, his interdisciplinary approach explores the relationship between architecture, ecosystems, and sonic environments. During his residency, he will collaborate with GTB Lab in Heerlen, an innovative research facility dedicated to advancing circular construction practices, where he will experiment with spatial and ecological processes. In addition, he will work with composer and artist Germaine Sijstermans, continuing their shared exploration of composition and installation as intertwined artistic practices.

Kaya Erdinç

🔍 Kaya Erdinç (NL) is a writer, amateur artist, and gardener who approaches poetry as a compass for navigating shifting experiences of privacy. His work unfolds in a dialogue between language, image, and sound, with a strong focus on cycles of return and recurrence in cultural and social structures within the Euregio. During his residency at Greylight Projects, he aims to create a context for collective reflection, exploring how subtitles mediate visibility and invisibility in relation to image and sound.

Characterising the Region with What the Flag?!


Date: Starting on May 18, 2025 (International Museum Day) at the Kunsthaus NRW and from 1st of June they new artist flags are shown at various art institutes in the Euregion.


Following the previous editions of What the Flag?! Euregio, the project continues in 2025 with a renewed focus: "How can we connect?". In a time where borders—both physical and mental—are increasingly questioned, this edition delves into the role of art in fostering connections between people, institutions, and regions. The flag remains central as a symbol of community, communication, and change.


This edtion of What the Flag?! explores the power of artistic expression in bridging divides—both literal and metaphorical. Traditionally seen as symbols of identity and division, flags are reimagined as tools for dialogue, prioritizing shared experiences over separation. Through collaboration among ten art institutions in the Meuse-Rhine Euregion, the project challenges national and cultural boundaries, building a network of exchange and mutual understanding.


By exhibiting these artist-designed flags at various locations, What the Flag?! transforms the act of flag-waving from a declaration of territory into a gesture of solidarity. The project asks: How can we create spaces where differences do not divide but instead enrich? How can art serve as a bridge, breaking down barriers of language, nationality, and perception?


Artists are invited to reflect on the many facets of connection—political, emotional, historical, and technological—by creating flags that express their individual perspectives. Whether addressing societal fragmentation, migration, or the impact of new communication tools, the artists contribute unique voices to a shared exploration of unity and division.


Location: The kick-off and archive exhibition will take place at Kunsthaus NRW, Kornelimünster. From July 1st, the new artist flags will be displayed across all Very Contemporary venues.