Allan Sekula

Allan Sekula (1951− 2013) was a visual artist, filmmaker, writer and activist. Deeply rooted in both conceptual and socially engaged art, his practice interwove critical texts and documentary photography into complex structures of meaning. Taking the form of sequential narratives, his work consistently addressed the economic and social consequences of neoliberal ideology and globalisation. During his career, Sekula repeatedly returned to the theme of maritime space, paying particular attention to the issue of working conditions at sea. Having grown up in a port city in the harbour area of Los Angeles, the artist felt a special connection with Antwerp. He was fascinated by local stories of the town of Doel and the Internationaal Zeemanshuis, and these are reflected in some of his projects, including his film The Forgotten Space.

In 2010, M HKA organised his solo exhibition Ship of Fools, conceived in dialogue with the artist’s subsequent invitation to participate in the São Paulo Biennial in Brazil. M HKA also curates the artist’s unique collection of artefacts: The Docker’s Museum, an extensive project that critically rethinks the idea of collecting. Through the stories of minor objects and the idea of motion (the movement of mass over a distance), he connects miners and dockers, nuclear plants and ports in a narrative that reflects on the functioning of the economy and our human world at large.