Open Box: After Hours returns to the founding spirit of Forum Box: a space where artists encounter the professional field through direct action. Once per month, during off-hours, the gallery becomes a live testing ground for experimental, time-based, and situational work inside the ongoing Forum Box exhibition.

This program is designed primarily for young and emerging artists seeking a professional platform to test ideas in a live context, while also welcoming established artists ready to step outside conventional exhibition formats and embrace unpredictability. What matters is not your career stage, but your readiness to enter this experimental condition.

Presence over Product.
After Hours prioritizes live presence over static presentation. We are not simply presenting works; we are creating live situations in which the boundaries among artist, curator, and audience can shift in real time. We are looking for a presence that cannot be replayed.

How the Evening Works: The “Rule”
Each After Hours evening is structured by a simple “Rule”;  the invisible script of the night. The Rule does not limit your artistic expression; it gives your work a specific vantage point. Because After Hours takes place within an ongoing exhibition, the Rule acts as a bridge between your performance and the existing artworks. You are not just using a room; you are navigating a pre-existing landscape.

We first select a group of artists based on their Call for Action proposals. Only then do we draft a specific Rule of Engagement in response to the chemistry, technical needs, and energy of the selected acts. On the night of the event, the Rule is activated. It might shape how the audience moves in the space, how long an action lasts, or how the viewer can influence the performer. For example, the volume of a sound performance might change depending on the distance between the audience and an artwork in the gallery.

We make sure that the rule respects the limitations and does not create a safety hazard or a technical impossibility at the last second.

Your Role as Artist
You are the catalyst. The curator provides the code; you provide the action. Success in this format requires a willingness to engage with uncertainty and respect for the ongoing exhibition surrounding you. Artists are responsible for their own props and equipment and must remove everything from the space immediately after the experiment concludes.

Possible Formats
After Hours supports:

• Performance art and live installation
• Spoken word, screenings, and hybrid formats
• Sound art, DJ sets, and audiovisual performance
• Works-in-progress and open rehearsals
• Artist-led workshops and live sessions
• Live Visual Interventions
• Uncategorized Actions: If your work doesn’t fit a label but is live, unpredictable, and situational, we want to see it.

The scale of the work must remain compatible with the physical and technical limits of the gallery and the ongoing exhibition. High-risk or large-scale productions may require further discussion. Nothing can be mounted on the walls, no constructions may require a lift, exhibition lights cannot be moved from their positions, and smoke machines are not allowed.

Revenue Model
After Hours operates through a transparent revenue-sharing system. The base ticket price is 17.5 € (regular) and 11.5 € (students), with potential tiered pricing if multiple artists perform on one night. 40 % of total ticket sales forms a stipend pool for that evening’s participating artists, divided equally unless otherwise agreed. There are no participation or rental fees.

Timeline

• Review: Applications are reviewed on the 21st of each month.
• Planning: Proposals submitted by the 21st are considered for events scheduled 1–2 months ahead.
• Notification: You will hear from us by the end of the same month regarding your proposal’s fit for an upcoming slot.

Event Windows & Timing

• Events take place once a month on weekday evenings.
• Access for setup starts at 17:00, immediately after gallery closing.
• Because we operate within an ongoing exhibition, exact dates are aligned with the gallery’s curatorial calendar and activities.

Important Distinction

1. This is not an application for a month-long exhibition.
2. This is not part of Forum Box’s official exhibition programme.
3. After Hours is a one-night live activation format.
4. For independent events with full creative control and ticket retention, please see our Venue Hire program.
5. The event takes place under the terms of the ongoing exhibition. Forum Box staff are always present to supervise the artworks.

Feel free to contact us if you have further questions:

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