Unframing Walter Leblanc: an expanded conversation on the notion of archives

Walter Leblanc’s legacy continues to unfold, not only through his artworks but also through the documents, ideas and networks that shaped his practice. Taking place at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp, where Leblanc began his artistic journey, this symposium invites artists, curators, researchers and students to engage with the notion of the archive as a living and generative space for knowledge and creation. Organized by the Academy with ArchiVolt (Nico Dockx and students), the Centrum Kunstarchieven Vlaanderen and the Walter & Nicole Leblanc Foundation, the event seeks to ‘unframe’ Leblanc by activating his archive as a tool for renewed interpretation and critical exchange.

Over the past year, we have expanded our research to explore alternative approaches to artist legacies and archives—investigating how different methodologies, disciplines, and practices can renew our understanding of the past and inform the present. Across three thematic panels, participants will explore the cultural and historical context of Leblanc’s work, discuss its resonance in contemporary artistic practices, and reflect on the future of artist archives today.

For who?

Interested in the field of Arts and heritage? Art Archives? Artistic Legacies?

For students, artists, researchers and curators.

Programme

09:30: Welcome

10:00: Introduction — Johan Pas, María Inés Rodríguez, Jan Stuyck

10:10: Context — G58, Zero, Nouvelle Tendance

Annelien De Troij, Francesca Pola & Tijs Visser, moderated by Johan Pas

The first panel revisits the artistic, intellectual and geopolitical environment in which Walter Leblanc emerged. Experts will examine the vibrant postwar networks, including G58, Zero and Nouvelle Tendance, that shaped his practice and positioned him within a broader European and international context.

11:30: Screening documentary Driven by Light, 2024

This newly released documentary offers a poetic and in-depth portrait of Walter Leblanc’s work and legacy, drawing on archival footage and contemporary testimonies.

12:30: Lunch

14:00: Activating Artist Archives — A dialogue with contemporary practices

Alexis Gautier, Hana Miletić & Raf Wollaert, moderated by Nico Dockx

How does an artist’s legacy remain alive and relevant today? This conversation brings together artists and writers who have recently engaged with artists’ legacies to share how archival encounters, reinterpretations, and collaborative gestures can shape new artistic languages.

15:10: Keynote: Lisa Le Feuvre

Renowned curator and thinker Lisa Le Feuvre offers a keynote address on the evolving responsibilities of institutions and individuals in preserving and reactivating the work and legacy of artists within contemporary culture.

16:10: Preserving and Promoting Artist Legacies

Ursula Davila-Villa, Hélène Guenin & Rossana Miele, moderated by Nele Luyts

This final panel looks at the strategies and challenges involved in safeguarding and sharing artist archives. Through diverse institutional and curatorial perspectives, it explores how archival practices are being reimagined in Belgium and internationally.

17:00: Conclusion — María Inés Rodríguez

17:10: Drinks

Practical

When: Thursday, October 9, 2025 (10u – 17u30)

Where: Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp

Mutsaardstraat 31, 2000 Antwerp

Registration: Free entrance, no registration needed.