Brussels

1. Robert Suermondt, Middlemarch

Swiss-born, Brussels-based artist Robert Suermondt works with photographs that he either takes himself or finds in newspapers and magazines. Using these images as a starting point he then manipulates them into intriguing collages. “These adverts tend toward abstraction. Their contrasting effects offer cut lines between full and empty, between the shadow and light on the body and clothing,” says the artist. This show focuses on his most recent collages as well as a new development in his practice: the Vento Box, a mix of painting and collage.

2. Stefan Rinck, Sorry We’re Closed

Berlin-based Stefan Rinck has made a name for himself with his otherworldly, often gloomy sandstone sculptures depicting strange mythological characters and humanoid animal figures. Inspired by German folklore, history and fairytales, he plays with power symbols and medieval emblems, commenting on political history, sometimes with a dash of humour.

3. Claudio Parmiggiani, Bozar

After Meessen De Clercq’s exhibition of Mario Merz, another representative of Arte Povera, an Italian movement of the ’60s and ’70s that focuses on using organic material and found objects, is coming to Brussels. Bozar puts on an exhibition spotlighting Claudio Parmiggiani’s Delocazione method, a process involving the creation of an installation which is then set on fire, unravelling memories and making the invisible visible. His so-called shadow sculptures are “sculpted by fire and time, born of fire and of its ashes”, says the artist.

4. H-URBAN II, CIVA

What role do green spaces play in Brussels, and how much space does the city give its inhabitants? What is ‘Brusselisation’? Brussels’ CIVA is hosting an exhibition that addresses all these questions and more, with photographers like Hilda Strandvik, Florence Ninove and Sophie de Henau all exploring the capital’s urban identity in their own style.

5. US 80s, Cinematek

There’s no use denying it: the bulk of us probably shed a tear while watching E.T. head back to his extra-terrestrial peeps. But there’s more to ’80s film culture than the Spielberg blockbuster and its ilk, as evidenced by Brussels’ Cinematek, who have put together a whole summer’s-worth of American ’80s cinema. From horror slasher features to Cold War inspired three-act structures, the programme offers insight into Hollywood at the time.

Antwerp

6. COLLECTIE XXXIII, M HKA

With COLLECTIE XXXIII, Antwerp’s museum for contemporary art has put together an exhibition and an accompanying publication that seeks to provide an understanding of their collection and how it come about. With about twenty groups of pieces by eminent Belgian and international artists such as Luc Deleu, Vaast Colson, Luc Tuymans, Jimmie Durham and James Lee Byars, the MKHA aims to draw attention to the cornerstones of their mission as an art institute.

Ghent

7. Boomtown Festival, various locations

With the Gentse Feesten almost halfway over, the Boomtown festival took over Kouter square on Tuesday for five days of musical divergence. With a mix of household names from the indie rock genre to promising Belgian newbies, Boomtown festival never fails to impress. Line-up for tonight? Efterklang, Amenra, The Black Heart Rebellion and more.

8. Vandenhove collection, Museum Dhondt-Dhaenens

The University of Ghent has just become the proud owner of Belgian architect Charles Vandenhove’s private art collection, which includes works by Anselm Kiefer, Henri Michaux, Simon Hantaï and Antoni Tapies. As a first step in the academic research that it will inspire, the Museum Dhondt-Dhaenens is loosening its highly personal grasp of post-war European art and opening it up to the public.