Art Zone

ART EXPO

Art of Faith loves music and visual art. During the festival weekend, there will be another kick-off of an art exhibition in Bornem Abbey. The expo will be on display in the abbey throughout May and the theme of the exhibition for this edition is ‘Coming home’.

The Art of Faith Festival aims to be a place where Christians can come home to live their faith. In day-to-day life, many Christians feel alone in their work, at school and other places in society. The Art of Faith Festival therefore wants to give people of all ages and from all Christian backgrounds a warm welcome, as well as build them up and encourage them in faith and then send them out into the world to be the light. In this way, the festival aims to be a testimony to unity among Christians.

The theme ‘Coming home’ will evoke different associations for everyone. Coming home can be in a physical place, a place in nature, or with a person. As believers, we may also come home to God. What does coming home mean to you? How would you capture it? Get inspired by the theme and submit your artwork. Various art forms can be submitted such as paintings, ceramics, glass art, conceptual etc. From the submissions, a selection will be made for the art exhibition.

Deadline to submit your proposal:14^th of March 2025!

Who: For anyone who feels connected to the Art of Faith Festival.

How: Send a photo and a short description of your artwork to: gerdine.baaij@aoff.be

After the selection, we will contact you as soon as possible. We look forward to seeing your work, so please don’t hesitate to send in your design.

General conditions to participate in the exhibition:

The submitted artworks will undergo a selection process
Artworks that participate must not be offered for sale or have a visible price label.
When participating, you must bring and collect your artwork to and from Bornem Abbey yourself.
Artworks will be exhibited in the abbey from 3^rd of May to 1^st of June.
Each artist may provide additional info material about their artistic work, such as flyers, brochures or name cards (without prices). These will be placed on a separate table in the exhibition space.
The exhibited works will only include info related to the work in question.
The artworks will be displayed in the abbey and there will be supervision of the exhibition during the festival.

Submit photos

Submit photos of your artworks by the 14th of March 2025. Photos should be of good quality so that the artwork is clearly visible. If it is 3D work such as sculptures, please send photos from different angles. Please include the dimensions of the artwork.

Jury

The jury will let you know by the 31st of March which artworks will be admitted to the exhibition.

Provide information

Before the 12th of April, send us the following information about your artwork in a Word document: name artist, name artwork, dimensions, material, and explanation (max. 100 words). We will turn these into info signs.

Set up exhibition

Deliver your artwork from the 28th of April to the 1st of May to Bornem Abbey. On the 2nd of May, the exhibition will be set up by AOFF.

Collect artworks

From the 2nd to 7th of June you can collect your artworks again at Bornem Abbey.

ART BRUNCH

Art of Faith Festival organises a meeting place for Christians who are artists. Being an artist is often a lonely position where you don’t always find like-minded people who understand you. The Artbrunch is meant to be a starting point for meeting. The brunch will be organised in an interactive format so that there is room for meeting and networking with people from different disciplines, encouragement, networking, and who knows, maybe beautiful collaborations will arise during this brunch.

We need each other!!!

When: Saturday 3 May from 10:00 to 11:30 at the Abbey.

For whom: For artists and creatives of all ages and disciplines.

Registration is required and can be done through this link.

Testimonial Gerdine Baaij (responsible for Art Zone)

Over 10 years ago, I started organising art exhibitions in the Marekerk church in Leiden. Through this work, I got to know many artists and it was the start of building my network. Through small meetings, I kept coming into contact with new people and organisations. This is where I started to learn that artists need each other. In 2017, I started working for Operation Mobilisation with the task of organising missionary art projects. I came in contact with the global art branch of OM: Inspiro Alliance. Through this organisation, I learned a lot, met beautiful people and also got my first Artmentor who supported me in my development as an artist/curator. This network was a support for me in beautiful and difficult times. In 2019, I started working for OM in Belgium and I had a great experience working with a group of passionate artists in the creation of a travelling exhibition on the Flemish Primitives. Through this project, I came into contact with Art of Faith Festival and am now involved as coordinator of the Artzone. Last autumn, I went to Vilnius, Lithuania, to a conference for artists. Purpose: to encourage each other in the ministry or art form you are working in. I went home a different person again because it was so good to get together with like-minded people. Art of Faith also wants to be a place to encourage artists, which is why we organise an Art Brunch where artists can meet, learn from each other, catch their breath and be encouraged. Be welcome! Feel at home! You are not alone!

Testimonial SUE BALL

Last year, I had the special opportunity to participate in the art brunch and art exhibition ‘Art of Faith.’
It was an experience that enriched my heart and mind.

This experience opened an unexpected door: I was invited to exhibit my work in a gallery.
The gallery exhibition now gives me the opportunity to share my work with a much wider audience.
It feels like a blessing and confirmation that art can be a powerful tool to share God’s truth and love, and show it in a place where art and community come together.

I would encourage anyone who makes or appreciates art to embrace such moments.
You never know what conversations, opportunities or connections can emerge from them – and how they can bless others.