Contact
Frans Masereel Centrum
Masereeldijk 5
2460 Kasterlee (BE)
info [at] fransmasereelcentrum [dot] be
+32 (0) 14 85 22 52
Team
Ellen Asaert – Communication and Mediation Officer
Zofia Detemmerman – Project Coordinator Collection
Ivan Durt – Residency /Studio Coordinator
Nathan Gotlib – Studio Coordinator
Stijn Maes – Director / Senior Curator
Els Maes – Financial administrative assistant
Maria Moorkens – Technical assistant / Concierge
Frédèrique van Duppen – Project Coordinator
Stefan Willekens – Technical assistant
N.N. – Business Coordinator
Eveline Lambrechts, Serge Proth, Lana Van Goethem – art education program
Aline Bouvy, Melanie Deboutte, Jef Declercq, Stella Lohaus, Tim Roerig, Anne-Claire Schmidt, Marnie Slater, Narcisse Tordoir, Guy Woueté – visiting tutors 2024
Dylan Buckley, Alexandra Antonopoulo, Laia Gombau Martínez – interns 2024
Visits
The Frans Masereel Centrum is open to visitors only during exhibitions and events or by appointment.
In the spring of 2024 we opened the doors on Sunday March 24 for Open Masereel, an arts festival including a Print Art Fair and the presentation of Hibernus #2.
Guided group visits are also possible. For a guided tour of our studios we ask you to book at least three weeks in advance via info [at] fransmasereelcentrum [dot] be . The cost is 65 euros for a guided tour of one hour for a group of up to 16 people. Customized formulas are negotiable.
Accessibility
Bike
The Frans Masereel Centrum is located near bicycle point 87.
Public transport
Take the train to Turnhout or Geel. From these stations there is a bus connection to Kasterlee (line 490 / 492). At the Houtum bus stop in Kasterlee get out and turn right into the Zaardenstraat at the traffic lights. The first street on the right is the Masereeldijk. You will find the Frans Masereel Centrum at 200 meters on the right.
Car
To get to the Frans Masereel Centrum take the Exit 24 on highway E34 (“Turnhout-Kasterlee-Geel”) or via Exit 23 on highway E313 (“Geel-West”).
Drive to the center of Kasterlee and follow the Frans Masereel Centrum signboards.
International
Thalys: Antwerp-Central
Eurostar: Brussels South
Airport: Brussels Airport
History
Since its inception in 1972, the Frans Masereel Centrum has become one of the most stimulating and inspiring environments for artists, critics and curators to explore printed matter in all its facets, or to engage within a broader practice. Located in a wooded rural area, equipped with a dynamic graphic workshop, the emphasis is on experiment and creation within the field of printmaking.
The main building was designed by architects Lou Jansen and Rudi Schiltz in the late 1960s; its unique circular print studio is located on the ground floor. Fons Mertens, the founder of what is now called the Frans Masereel Centrum, and Lou Jansen were both fascinated by the construction and shape of windmills. This translated into a remarkable architecture, consisting of a central round core with a large dome.
Fons Mertens, who was a young and visionary artist, started to collect old printing presses when offset took over from stone lithography at industrial printers. He managed to persuade the Belgian Government, in the person of Minister Frans Van Mechelen, to take over the infrastructure shortly after the building’s creation, in 1972. It was renamed ‘National Centre for Graphic Arts Frans Masereel’, in memory of Frans Masereel, one of the most important Belgian artists of the 20th century, who died at the beginning of 1972. Besides his wide scattered woodcuts, Frans Masereel is also an important international reference because of his social criticism and pacifism.
In the spring of 2019, the Frans Masereel Centrum opened a new wing, designed by Japanese architect Hideyuki Nakayama and Ido Avissar of the Paris agency LIST. The expansion is where now the collection archive, the digital studio and the exhibition space are situated. More information on this project can be found in this film by Hideyuki Nakayama Architecture.
The celebration of our 50th anniversary in 2022 coincided with the redevelopment of our outdoor space. In the coming years, we foresee the construction of a brand new artists’ pavilion, the opening up of our extensive collection to researchers and the further development of our artistic program.
Contact
Frans Masereel Centrum
Masereeldijk 5
2460 Kasterlee (BE)
info [at] fransmasereelcentrum [dot] be
+32 (0) 14 85 22 52
Team
Ellen Asaert – Communication and Mediation Officer
Zofia Detemmerman – Project Coordinator Collection
Ivan Durt – Residency /Studio Coordinator
Nathan Gotlib – Studio Coordinator
Stijn Maes – Director / Senior Curator
Els Maes – Financial administrative assistant
Maria Moorkens – Technical assistant / Concierge
Frédèrique van Duppen – Project Coordinator
Stefan Willekens – Technical assistant
N.N. – Business Coordinator
Eveline Lambrechts, Serge Proth, Lana Van Goethem – art education program
Aline Bouvy, Melanie Deboutte, Jef Declercq, Stella Lohaus, Tim Roerig, Anne-Claire Schmidt, Marnie Slater, Narcisse Tordoir, Guy Woueté – visiting tutors 2024
Dylan Buckley, Alexandra Antonopoulo, Laia Gombau Martínez – interns 2024
Visits
The Frans Masereel Centrum is open to visitors only during exhibitions and events or by appointment.
In the spring of 2024 we opened the doors on Sunday March 24 for Open Masereel, an arts festival including a Print Art Fair and the presentation of Hibernus #2.
Guided group visits are also possible. For a guided tour of our studios we ask you to book at least three weeks in advance via info [at] fransmasereelcentrum [dot] be . The cost is 65 euros for a guided tour of one hour for a group of up to 16 people. Customized formulas are negotiable.
Accessibility
Bike
The Frans Masereel Centrum is located near bicycle point 87.
Public transport
Take the train to Turnhout or Geel. From these stations there is a bus connection to Kasterlee (line 490 / 492). At the Houtum bus stop in Kasterlee get out and turn right into the Zaardenstraat at the traffic lights. The first street on the right is the Masereeldijk. You will find the Frans Masereel Centrum at 200 meters on the right.
Car
To get to the Frans Masereel Centrum take the Exit 24 on highway E34 (“Turnhout-Kasterlee-Geel”) or via Exit 23 on highway E313 (“Geel-West”).
Drive to the center of Kasterlee and follow the Frans Masereel Centrum signboards.
International
Thalys: Antwerp-Central
Eurostar: Brussels South
Airport: Brussels Airport
History
Since its inception in 1972, the Frans Masereel Centrum has become one of the most stimulating and inspiring environments for artists, critics and curators to explore printed matter in all its facets, or to engage within a broader practice. Located in a wooded rural area, equipped with a dynamic graphic workshop, the emphasis is on experiment and creation within the field of printmaking.
The main building was designed by architects Lou Jansen and Rudi Schiltz in the late 1960s; its unique circular print studio is located on the ground floor. Fons Mertens, the founder of what is now called the Frans Masereel Centrum, and Lou Jansen were both fascinated by the construction and shape of windmills. This translated into a remarkable architecture, consisting of a central round core with a large dome.
Fons Mertens, who was a young and visionary artist, started to collect old printing presses when offset took over from stone lithography at industrial printers. He managed to persuade the Belgian Government, in the person of Minister Frans Van Mechelen, to take over the infrastructure shortly after the building’s creation, in 1972. It was renamed ‘National Centre for Graphic Arts Frans Masereel’, in memory of Frans Masereel, one of the most important Belgian artists of the 20th century, who died at the beginning of 1972. Besides his wide scattered woodcuts, Frans Masereel is also an important international reference because of his social criticism and pacifism.
In the spring of 2019, the Frans Masereel Centrum opened a new wing, designed by Japanese architect Hideyuki Nakayama and Ido Avissar of the Paris agency LIST. The expansion is where now the collection archive, the digital studio and the exhibition space are situated. More information on this project can be found in this film by Hideyuki Nakayama Architecture.
The celebration of our 50th anniversary in 2022 coincided with the redevelopment of our outdoor space. In the coming years, we foresee the construction of a brand new artists’ pavilion, the opening up of our extensive collection to researchers and the further development of our artistic program.
