Aan de slag bij het M HKA?

Working at the heart of contemporary art

At M HKA, you work at the heart of contemporary art, alongside colleagues with a wide range of expertise and perspectives. Exhibitions, public programmes and the museum’s day-to-day operations constantly intersect, making the work varied and calling for collaboration, initiative and an open mind.

We give staff the space to take responsibility and help shape ideas. Flexible working conditions also support a healthy balance between work and personal life.

Our values

Four core values guide how we work and collaborate at M HKA: openness, care, connection and integrity. They shape our day-to-day work, the choices we make and the way we engage with visitors, artists, partners and colleagues.

Openness

M HKA is an open meeting place for art, artists and audiences. We aim to be accessible, welcoming and respectful, creating space for dialogue and the sharing of knowledge.

Openness also means approaching questions and challenges with an open mind and taking different views, experiences and backgrounds into account. We critically examine our own institutional and cultural habits and strive for transparency in policies, decisions and communication. We share knowledge and expertise and build open relationships with different communities.

Care

At M HKA, care means acting thoughtfully and responsibly. We weigh opportunities and risks carefully and pay particular attention to the responsible stewardship and lawful acquisition of our collection and of the tangible and intangible heritage entrusted to us.

That care also extends to people. We aim to create a positive working environment with room for openness, dialogue and personal development. Respect, consideration, courtesy and reasonableness are central to the way we work together. We also use time and resources consciously, taking quality, sustainability and relevance into account in our decisions.

Connection

Connection is central to M HKA’s mission. We create links between artistic and societal questions, the international and the regional, artists and audiences, tradition and innovation, reflection and presentation.

We build lasting and meaningful relationships based on collaboration, co-production, reciprocity, activation and negotiation. Through the idea of a constituent museum, we understand the museum as a shared and democratic project involving audiences, artists and staff. We welcome feedback and expect staff to engage with the museum’s mission, vision, objectives and work.

Integrity

At M HKA, we act honestly, with integrity and in accordance with our values. There is room for personal values and convictions, provided they are compatible with the values of the institution and with the responsibilities that come with our professional roles.

Integrity also means providing accurate and reliable communication, information and knowledge, as well as high-quality and efficient services. We act responsibly and value objectivity. Everyone has the right to equal and fair treatment, in accordance with the law and with the agreements in place at M HKA.

 

Areas of focus

Alongside our four core values, three areas of focus run throughout M HKA’s work: diversity and inclusion, sustainability and a focus on the future. They inform our day-to-day choices and objectives, as well as the relationships and collaborations we build.

Diversity and inclusion

At M HKA, diversity and inclusion are not an additional task, but part of our everyday work. This applies to our exhibitions and collection, as well as to our staff and audiences. We actively seek dialogue between different perspectives and believe our work can contribute to equality, emancipation, freedom and social change.

We follow the principle of non-discrimination and recruit staff on the basis of skills, talents and how they complement the team, irrespective of factors including age, gender, origin or disability. For us, inclusion also extends beyond physical accessibility. We aim to make our exhibitions, activities, collection, knowledge, insights and communication as accessible and approachable as possible.

Sustainability

Sustainability means considering the long-term impact of what we do. It runs throughout the organisation: from caring for our collection, data and infrastructure and safeguarding and sharing knowledge sustainably, to the way we use resources and reach different audiences.

Environmental responsibility is an explicit part of this. Together with other museums, cultural organisations, artists and activists, M HKA wants to contribute to a more sustainable future. Climate justice and awareness, reducing emissions and waste, and responsible consumption are important guiding principles. This commitment shapes how we manage our building and resources, as well as our exhibitions and the care of our collections.

Future focus

M HKA aims to develop new insights and workable models that look ahead. As a place for thinking otherwise, we create space to explore other possibilities and develop new perspectives.

We make connections, examine questions from different perspectives and seek innovative solutions with sustainability in mind. In doing so, we draw on our capacity for reflection, international knowledge and expertise. We develop and share good practice, working towards an organisation that not only responds to change but also actively considers what a museum might become in the future.

These values and areas of focus are developed further in M HKA’s Ethical Code.

About us

Contribute to our mission

M HKA is a museum for contemporary visual art, film and visual culture. It is an open meeting place for art, artists and audiences.

M HKA aims to play a leading role in Flanders while building an international profile rooted in Antwerp’s avant-garde tradition. We connect artistic and societal questions, the international and the regional, artists and audiences, tradition and innovation, reflection and presentation.

At the heart of the museum is its collection, with a focus on acquisition, management and research.

M HKA is recognised as a Cultural Heritage Institution of the Flemish Community.