From left to right: Lana, Jef, Jean, Alise, Adriënne, Anna & Koi. Photo by Lars Duchateau. About the curators:
Jef Declercq (°1994, BE) is an independent curator, art historian, writer and gallery worker based in Brussels. He holds a master in Art History from Ghent University (2019), and in 2020 he completed the postgraduate programme in Curatorial Studies at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts (KASK). In 2022, he was part of the Young Curators Programme at the Belgian Pavilion within the 59th Venice Biennale. Declercq has initiated multiple exhibition projects, both in traditional exhibition spaces and in unconventional environments. He was one of the founding members of the STOFWOLK collective (2016 - 2018, Ghent). Jef Declercq has curated a solo exhibition of Yoel Pytowski (2021, Ghent) and co-curated Publiek Park (2021, 2023 & 2025). He has been involved with the Proximus Art Collection (2022), HORST Arts & Music Festival (2022). Jef Declercq has conducted research for Kunst in Opdracht (2022), and his writings have been published by the Belgian Pavilion, Art & Education and HART magazine.
Contact: jef (at) publiekpark (dot) be
Koi Persyn (°1996, BE) is a curator and writer based in Brussels. He obtained a master's degree in Fine Arts (2019), followed by a postgraduate degree in Curatorial Studies (2020), both at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Ghent. During his education, Persyn founded a residency programme at Het Paviljoen in Ghent. He participated in the exchange programme with BIDAI in Kanazawa (JP, 2017) and was selected for the Young Curators Program (2019) as a trainee for the Belgian Pavilion at the Venice Biennale. Together with Laila Melchior, Persyn won the Lichen Curatorial Prize 2021 and they carried out their exhibition proposal at Jester (fka CIAP) in Genk (2022). Together with Anna Laganovska, he was the curator of Border Buda (2023-2024), a cultural project focusing on residencies and art in the public space of the Buda area, an industrial zone on the border of Machelen, Vilvoorde and Brussels. Persyn is a curator at Komplot, a guest lecturer at La Cambre, both in Brussels, and the project coördinator of Off the Grid, the residency and presentation platform of Cas-co in Leuven.
Contact: koi (at) publiekpark (dot) be
Anna Laganovska (1996, LV) is an independent curator and researcher based in Antwerp. She has studied art history and theory at the Art Academy of Latvia and cultural studies at KU Leuven. She has completed the post-graduate programme in curatorial studies at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Ghent and the course in curating and commissioning public art at University of Gothenburg. In 2024, she was selected as a participant of the Global Cultural Relations Programme, organised by the EU’s Cultural Relations Platform. Anna Laganovska has worked as a curatorial assistant at Frans Masereel Centrum, and since 2023 she is mainly active as an independent curator. Her recent curatorial projects include Flowers at Room Temperature, the central exhibition of Antwerp Art Weekend at De Studio, Antwerp (2023); Snowflake Blockbuster at Kunsthal Extra City, Antwerp (2022); Spells and Promises at Creative Factory, Turnhout (2024); Border Buda in the public spaces of Machelen, Vilvoorde, and Brussels (2023–2024); and Publiek Park in Ghent (2021), Antwerp (2023), and Brussels (2025). She was also the curator of Anna Malicka’s solo exhibition Pūra Lāde (((pure lady))) at Kim? Contemporary Art Centre in Riga (2025). She is part of Faellowship collective, focused on communal listening as a form of study.
Contact: anna (at) publiekpark (dot) be
Adriënne van der Werf (1991, NL) is a curator, researcher and writer based in Middelburg (NL) and Ghent (BE). She holds a bachelor in marketing communication and a bachelor and master of arts in art history from Ghent University. Since 2018 she has developed multiple curatorial projects focussing on performative aspects of artistic and curatorial practices. Within her projects and exhibitions, she likes to question the autonomous exhibition space by working with or adding real elements. In the past she (co-)curated Etcetera VI & VII, Civil Disobedience, about artistic disobedience (2018), Maintenance, about reproductive labour: cleaning (2019), Enter Through The Void, Exit Through The Gift Shop, about art, leisure and tourism (2020) and Tarot Editions, a project and edition for which 78 artists were invited to make one tarot card each (2021). In 2022 she completed the post-graduate programme in curatorial studies at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts – Ghent (KASK). Currently she holds the position of curatorial assistant at Vleeshal Center for Contemporary Art.
Contact: adrienne (at) publiekpark (dot) be
About the assistants:
Lana Jones (°1996, AU) works with artists, architects and designers to deliver creative research and production for objects, buildings and exhibitions. She sees research as an important tool to creating pieces that have ongoing significance and impact; and the catalyst to creating outcomes that connect contemporary patterns of behaviour to broader cultural and historical narratives. By commencing each project with an intensive research phase, Lana delivers work that provides insight into the cultural and political forces influencing our contemporary moment, including how we live, work and consume.
Contact: lana (at) publiekpark (dot) be
Jean Watt (b. 1998, UK) is based between London and Ghent. She is currently studying on the Curatorial Studies postgraduate at KASK and is one of six curators for the 2025 exhibition programme at Het Paviljoen. Since 2023 she has been running the site-specific project A Place to Rest, situating artwork in unusual spaces. Her writing has been published with Ocula, émergent and East of Borneo. She has a BA in History of Art from University College London.
Contact: jean (at) publiekpark (dot) be
Alise Pētersone (b. 1999, LV) is a cultural researcher and communications strategist with a background in Multimedia Communication and Cultural Studies. Based in Ghent, she is currently pursuing a master's degree at KU Leuven, focusing on the intersection of digital culture, fashion, and subcultural movements. She has worked with contemporary art institutions and cultural projects to develop engaging digital storytelling and audience-focused strategies. Her work focuses on making art more accessible through creative communication, social media, and public engagement.
Contact: alise (at) publiekpark (dot) be
Jef Declercq (°1994, BE) is an independent curator, art historian, writer and gallery worker based in Brussels. He holds a master in Art History from Ghent University (2019), and in 2020 he completed the postgraduate programme in Curatorial Studies at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts (KASK). In 2022, he was part of the Young Curators Programme at the Belgian Pavilion within the 59th Venice Biennale. Declercq has initiated multiple exhibition projects, both in traditional exhibition spaces and in unconventional environments. He was one of the founding members of the STOFWOLK collective (2016 - 2018, Ghent). Jef Declercq has curated a solo exhibition of Yoel Pytowski (2021, Ghent) and co-curated Publiek Park (2021, 2023 & 2025). He has been involved with the Proximus Art Collection (2022), HORST Arts & Music Festival (2022). Jef Declercq has conducted research for Kunst in Opdracht (2022), and his writings have been published by the Belgian Pavilion, Art & Education and HART magazine.
Contact: jef (at) publiekpark (dot) be
Koi Persyn (°1996, BE) is a curator and writer based in Brussels. He obtained a master's degree in Fine Arts (2019), followed by a postgraduate degree in Curatorial Studies (2020), both at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Ghent. During his education, Persyn founded a residency programme at Het Paviljoen in Ghent. He participated in the exchange programme with BIDAI in Kanazawa (JP, 2017) and was selected for the Young Curators Program (2019) as a trainee for the Belgian Pavilion at the Venice Biennale. Together with Laila Melchior, Persyn won the Lichen Curatorial Prize 2021 and they carried out their exhibition proposal at Jester (fka CIAP) in Genk (2022). Together with Anna Laganovska, he was the curator of Border Buda (2023-2024), a cultural project focusing on residencies and art in the public space of the Buda area, an industrial zone on the border of Machelen, Vilvoorde and Brussels. Persyn is a curator at Komplot, a guest lecturer at La Cambre, both in Brussels, and the project coördinator of Off the Grid, the residency and presentation platform of Cas-co in Leuven.
Contact: koi (at) publiekpark (dot) be
Anna Laganovska (1996, LV) is an independent curator and researcher based in Antwerp. She has studied art history and theory at the Art Academy of Latvia and cultural studies at KU Leuven. She has completed the post-graduate programme in curatorial studies at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Ghent and the course in curating and commissioning public art at University of Gothenburg. In 2024, she was selected as a participant of the Global Cultural Relations Programme, organised by the EU’s Cultural Relations Platform. Anna Laganovska has worked as a curatorial assistant at Frans Masereel Centrum, and since 2023 she is mainly active as an independent curator. Her recent curatorial projects include Flowers at Room Temperature, the central exhibition of Antwerp Art Weekend at De Studio, Antwerp (2023); Snowflake Blockbuster at Kunsthal Extra City, Antwerp (2022); Spells and Promises at Creative Factory, Turnhout (2024); Border Buda in the public spaces of Machelen, Vilvoorde, and Brussels (2023–2024); and Publiek Park in Ghent (2021), Antwerp (2023), and Brussels (2025). She was also the curator of Anna Malicka’s solo exhibition Pūra Lāde (((pure lady))) at Kim? Contemporary Art Centre in Riga (2025). She is part of Faellowship collective, focused on communal listening as a form of study.
Contact: anna (at) publiekpark (dot) be
Adriënne van der Werf (1991, NL) is a curator, researcher and writer based in Middelburg (NL) and Ghent (BE). She holds a bachelor in marketing communication and a bachelor and master of arts in art history from Ghent University. Since 2018 she has developed multiple curatorial projects focussing on performative aspects of artistic and curatorial practices. Within her projects and exhibitions, she likes to question the autonomous exhibition space by working with or adding real elements. In the past she (co-)curated Etcetera VI & VII, Civil Disobedience, about artistic disobedience (2018), Maintenance, about reproductive labour: cleaning (2019), Enter Through The Void, Exit Through The Gift Shop, about art, leisure and tourism (2020) and Tarot Editions, a project and edition for which 78 artists were invited to make one tarot card each (2021). In 2022 she completed the post-graduate programme in curatorial studies at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts – Ghent (KASK). Currently she holds the position of curatorial assistant at Vleeshal Center for Contemporary Art.
Contact: adrienne (at) publiekpark (dot) be
About the assistants:
Lana Jones (°1996, AU) works with artists, architects and designers to deliver creative research and production for objects, buildings and exhibitions. She sees research as an important tool to creating pieces that have ongoing significance and impact; and the catalyst to creating outcomes that connect contemporary patterns of behaviour to broader cultural and historical narratives. By commencing each project with an intensive research phase, Lana delivers work that provides insight into the cultural and political forces influencing our contemporary moment, including how we live, work and consume.
Contact: lana (at) publiekpark (dot) be
Jean Watt (b. 1998, UK) is based between London and Ghent. She is currently studying on the Curatorial Studies postgraduate at KASK and is one of six curators for the 2025 exhibition programme at Het Paviljoen. Since 2023 she has been running the site-specific project A Place to Rest, situating artwork in unusual spaces. Her writing has been published with Ocula, émergent and East of Borneo. She has a BA in History of Art from University College London.
Contact: jean (at) publiekpark (dot) be
Alise Pētersone (b. 1999, LV) is a cultural researcher and communications strategist with a background in Multimedia Communication and Cultural Studies. Based in Ghent, she is currently pursuing a master's degree at KU Leuven, focusing on the intersection of digital culture, fashion, and subcultural movements. She has worked with contemporary art institutions and cultural projects to develop engaging digital storytelling and audience-focused strategies. Her work focuses on making art more accessible through creative communication, social media, and public engagement.
Contact: alise (at) publiekpark (dot) be