The MAS collection consists of more than 500,000 objects about art, cultural traditions and history of the city and port of Antwerp. But also of Europe, Asia, Africa, America and Oceania.
In the multimedia project 'In many hands' twenty-five people shine their light on the Congolese collection of the city of Antwerp. They speak about an object of choice from the one hundred highlights in the exhibition.
This conference, strongly linked to the theme of the MAS exhibition 'Antwerp à la carte', aimed to increase our awareness of food systems as dynamic cultural phenomena. The conference took place between 21-23 September 2022.
The Antwerp Hand biscuits are the most well-known tourist souvenir from the city. In the MAS collection, we find many packagings of the biscuits. However, behind the scenes of the little biscuit, there is more than one story to tell.
Since 2012, the Mestizo Arts Platform (MAP) collective has been maintaining and renewing the Altar of Antwerp: a participatory installation that invites us to reflect on the meaning of 'what we have lost' in the city. This has been a part of the MAS' permanent collection since 2017.
V-bombs hit Antwerp hard in the winter of 1944-45. The blast at Cinema Rex was the deadliest bomb strike in history. The City at War exhibition features a large V1 practice bomb, surrounded by small, personal souvenirs. They show how deeply the attacks affected the lives of residents.
Photographer Mark De Fraeye and his wife donated some of their photo series to the MAS. De Fraeye's series 'Ahopsan Forest' is a visual manifesto for the preservation of the forest in South Korea.
In 2020, the MAS is taking a whole new course with its youth program "MAS in Young Hands". What must be stored in the MAS? According to young people, what is heritage and where do we find it in the city? With these and other questions, young people go to work online and offline and will inspire an artist in residence.