A rather unusual exhibition has opened up in Antwerp. The MAS Museum on the River is staging an exhibition of objects from Café Strange, the iconic Antwerp gay bar, as a tribute to the bar’s landlord, Armand Everaert, who recently died. The bar went bankrupt three years ago and its entire contents were subsequently auctioned off. ‘In this way, we want to keep the memory of Armand and of Antwerp's oldest LGBT bar alive,’ said exhibition curator Vincent Boele.
A bell with a banana clapper, a picture of a half-naked man and a vase with drawings of Robin Hood. Until three years ago these objects, on show on the museum’s second floor, were on display in the Strange.
When the bar was declared bankrupt, MAS bought some of the objects to exhibit them at a later date. Last weekend, Armand, the landlord, who stood behind the bar for 40 years, passed away.
The Strange was an icon of Antwerp nightlife from 1980 to 2021 and, for a long time, a safe haven for the port city’s LGBTQI+ community. For them, Everaert was a true pioneer, which is why, following his death, it was now decided to give the objects a place in the museum.
‘We chose items that were typical for the bar,’ explains Vincent Boele, curator at MAS. ‘For example, you immediately see a picture of a half-naked man. There were four of these pictures hanging in Café Strange. Anyone who has ever been inside will immediately recognise the pictures. Everybody also knows the bell with the banana clapper, as well as the vase with Robin Hood drawings. It is a kind of symbol for the gay community.’
Search for photographer
The showcase also contains some typical pub paraphernalia including a notebook with orders and a sign with the inscription ‘Portion of Cheese, 2-’. ‘This way, we still keep a piece of Armand's DNA alive via his handwriting,’ Boele says.
‘Somebody else would probably throw it all away, but for a museum, handwriting is something personal and valuable.’
Vincent Boele also wants to launch an appeal in connection with photographs from the bar. ‘It would be nice to find out who the photographer was because we could then mention them and collect more background information on the photos.’
All objects will be on display at MAS until 2 December. Admittance to the exhibition is free of charge.