Chris Dercon

Dercon studied History of Art at the Rijksuniversiteit Leiden, then Theatre Research and Film Theory at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.[https://www.tate.org.uk/press/press-releases/new-director-tate-modern-announced New Director of Tate Modern Announced] Tate, press release of June 15, 2010.

Dercon began his career as a teaching assistant at Rijksuniversiteit Leiden in the Department of Theatre Research where he initiated the Theatre Tape Festival. In 1980 he worked as an assistant curator at the Gemeentemuseum The Hague on a project about the history of world exhibitions and textiles. Starting in 1981 till 1983 he was a collaborator at the Galerie Baronian-Lambert in Ghent.

[https://www.volkskrant.nl/nieuws-achtergrond/verkoop-kunst-uit-musea-moet-aan-banden~bcbcdba1/ Verkoop kunst uit musea moet aan banden] de Volkskrant, April 13, 1999.

As of 1982, he worked as a free-lance art critic for the De Standaard newspaper as well as contributing to Belgian Radio and Television (RTBF) in Brussels.

Johan-Frédérik Hel Guedj (November 7, 2018), [https://www.lecho.be/dossier/portraits/le-belge-chris-dercon-du-theatre-du-peuple-au-grand-palais/10067079.html Le Belge Chris Dercon, du théâtre du peuple au Grand Palais] L'Echo.

From 1983 onwards, he also began teaching video and cinema at the KU Leuven, and at the Hoger Instituut voor Beeldende Kunsten, St Lukas, Brussels.{{cite web

|url=https://www.bozar.be/fr/magazine/168733-le-souffle-de-l-artiste

|title=Le souffle de l'artiste

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In 1988 he was appointed program director at PS1 in New York where he worked until 1990.

Valérie Duponchelle and Claire Bommelaer (July 18, 2019), [https://www.lefigaro.fr/arts-expositions/chris-dercon-inventons-des-expos-pour-le-public-de-demain-20190718 Chris Dercon: «Inventons des expos pour le public de demain»] Le Figaro.

Martin Bailey (May 31, 2010), [https://www.theartnewspaper.com/archive/tate-modern-bound Chris Dercon as Tate Modern's new director] The Art Newspaper.

Dercon was then appointed to his first directorship at Witte de With in Rotterdam, where he worked until 1995.{{Cite web

|url=http://www.fkawdw.nl/en/participants/chris_dercon

|title=Chris Dercon - Participants - FKA Witte de With

|website=www.fkawdw.nl

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In 1995, he curated the exhibition at the Dutch pavilion during the that year's Venice Biennale, featuring Marlene Dumas, Maria Roosen and Marijke van Warmerdam. From 1996 to 2003 he served as director of Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam.

From 2003 to 2011 Dercon served as the director of the Haus der Kunst in Munich.{{cite web

|url=https://www.connaissancedesarts.com/musees/tate-modern/andrea-lissoni-nouveau-directeur-artistique-de-la-haus-der-kunst-11128351/

|title=Andrea Lissoni, nouveau directeur artistique de la Haus der Kunst

|date=4 November 2019

}}

In his first year, he notably invited Ydessa Hendeles to guest-curate Partners, combining work by Diane Arbus, Maurizio Cattelan, James Coleman, Hanne Darboven, Walker Evans, Luciano Fabro, On Kawara, Paul McCarthy, Bruce Nauman, Giulio Paolini, Jeff Wall and Lawrence Weiner{{cite book |last1=Hendeles |first1=Ydessa |title=Partners |date=2003 |publisher=Verlag der Buchhandlung Walther König |isbn=3-88375-755-1}} with Hendeles's own artwork Partners (The Teddy Bear Project) (2002), a large-scale installation built around an archive of family-album photographs, each including the image of a teddy bear.{{cite web |last1=Hendeles |first1=Ydessa |title=Ydessa Hendeles, "Partners (The Teddy Bear Project)," 2002 |url=https://yhaf.org/partners/the-teddy-bear-project.html |publisher=Ydessa Hendeles Art Foundation |access-date=26 April 2025}}

Dercon was appointed director of the Tate Modern in London in 2011 where he stayed until 2016.Kati Krause (March 18, 2011), [https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703597804576194050492368020 Tate Modern Finds Its Match] Wall Street Journal. In his position as Tate Modern director, he succeeded Vicente Todolí ranking second to Sir Nicholas Serota.James Pickford (April 24, 2015), [https://www.ft.com/content/c716dc80-ea8f-11e4-96ec-00144feab7de Tate Modern director follows Tate Britain director out of door] Financial Times. During his tenure, he oversaw the opening of the museum's first dedicated space to live art and installations as part of plans to explore new areas of visual culture like video, photography and performance art.Li-mei Hoang (July 16, 2012), [https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-arts-tate-tanks/london-gallery-opens-space-dedicated-to-live-art-idUSLNE86F02P20120716 London gallery opens space dedicated to live art] Reuters.

Whilst at Tate Modern, Dercon sat on the committee which chose Ferran Barenblit to be the new Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art (MACBA) in 2015.Alex Greenberger (24 July 2015), [https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/ferran-barenblit-named-director-of-macba-4610/ Ferran Barenblit Named Director of MACBA] ARTnews.

Nominated by Berlin's State Secretary for Cultural Affairs Tim Renner in 2015, Dercon was appointed general director of the Volksbühne Berlin from 2017Mark Brown (April 24, 2015), [https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2015/apr/24/tate-modern-boss-chris-dercon-berlin-volksbuhne-theatre Tate Modern boss to leave for leading role at Berlin's Volksbühne theatre] The Guardian. until 2018, succeeding Frank Castorf.Johanna Luyssen (April 13, 2018), [https://www.liberation.fr/planete/2018/04/13/a-berlin-le-controverse-directeur-de-la-volksbuhne-chris-dercon-demissionne-deja_1643125 «Tschüss»: A Berlin, le controversé directeur de la Volksbühne, Chris Dercon, démissionne déjà] Libération.Melissa Eddy (April 13, 2018), [https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/13/theater/chris-dercon-quits-volksbuehne.html Protest-Hit Director Quits Berlin Theater] New York Times. His first season began with a wide variety of productions including a 10-hour dance event in which the audience were asked to join in, and an installation by filmmaker Apichatpong Weerasethakul. But the first major world premiere of Dercon's tenure, a new play by Albert Serra, who had not previously worked in the theater, was panned by critics. He experienced the fierce opposition of part of the Berlin scene, that considered that Dercon's appointment was a betrayal of the theater’s roots. Only six months after arriving, he quit the position. Klaus Lederer, Berlin’s senator for culture, said in a statement that Dercon failed in his vision for the Volksbühne.{{Cite news |last=Eddy |first=Melissa |date=2018-04-13 |title=Protest-Hit Director Quits Berlin Theater |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/13/theater/chris-dercon-quits-volksbuehne.html |access-date=2022-05-05 |issn=0362-4331}}

From 2019 Dercon was the President of the Association of French National Museums-Grand Palais for an initial five-year term, where he oversaw the renovation of the Grand Palais,{{Cite web

|url=https://www.grandpalais.fr/fr/qui-sommes-nous

|title=Qui sommes-nous ?

|website=www.grandpalais.fr

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Alex Marshall (November 8, 2018), [https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/08/arts/design/chris-dercon-paris-grand-palais.html After Strife in Berlin, Chris Dercon Is to Run the Grand Palais in Paris] New York Times. working with François Chatillon.{{cite news

|url=https://www.lesechos.fr/weekend/livres-expositions/comment-le-directeur-du-grand-palais-invente-le-musee-du-futur-1262532

|title=Comment le directeur du Grand Palais invente le musée du futur|newspaper=Les Echos |date=6 November 2020

}}

Dercon served on the jury which selected Kapwani Kiwanga as winner of the Marcel Duchamp Prize in 2020.Alex Greenberger (19 October 2020), [https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/kapwani-kiwanga-prix-marcel-duchamp-1234574335/ Kapwani Kiwanga, Artist Who Centers African Histories, Wins France’s Top Art Prize] ARTnews. In 2021, he was a member of the search committee that recommended Elvira Dyangani Ose to be the next director of MACBA.Maximilíano Durón (16 July 2021), [https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/elvira-dyangani-ose-director-macba-1234599066/ Barcelona’s MACBA Names Elvira Dyangani Ose as Next Director] ARTnews.

In 2022, Dercon was appointed director of the Fondation Cartier pour l'Art Contemporain.Alex Greenberger (6 October 2022), [https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/chris-dercon-leaves-grand-palais-fondation-cartier-art-basel-paris-1234642086/ Grand Palais’s Director Departs for Fondation Cartier Ahead of First Art Basel Fair in Paris] ARTnews.

Dercon currently serves as a board member for Wiels in Brussels, the Fondation d’Entreprise Galeries Lafayette in Paris, the Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen in Germany, the Visual Arts and Museums Commissions of the Ministry of Culture of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.{{Cite web|url=https://www.e-flux.com/announcements/39582/seeks-new-director/|title=Seeks new director|website=www.e-flux.com}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.lafayetteanticipations.com/fr/artiste/chris-dercon|title=Chris Dercon|website=Lafayette Anticipations}}{{Cite web

|url=https://www.arabnews.com/node/1711551/saudi-arabia

|title=Saudi Visual Arts Authority gets board of directors

|date=29 July 2020

}}

He is also a member of the International Council of the Museum Berggruen.[http://www.icmuseumberggruen.de/en/international-council/members International Council] Museum Berggruen. In 2021, he was part of the selection committee that chose Elvira Dyangani Ose as first woman and the first black person to lead MACBA, where he is also part of the acquisition committee.Maximilíano Durón (July 16, 2021), [https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/elvira-dyangani-ose-director-macba-1234599066/ Barcelona’s MACBA Names Elvira Dyangani Ose as Next Director] ARTnews.

Dercon has been a member of film festival juries at Brussels, Rotterdam, Locarno and Sarajevo (2014).[https://www.sff.ba/en/page/chris-dercon-jury2014 2014 Jury: Chris Dercon] Sarajevo Film Festival.

Since 2018, Chris Dercon has been in a relationship with actress Birte Carolin von Knoblauch.Martine Robert (February 12, 2019), [https://www.lesechos.fr/industrie-services/services-conseils/le-batisseur-chris-dercon-a-la-tete-de-la-rmn-grand-palais-963825 Le Belge Chris Dercon à la tête de la RMN Grand-Palais] Les Echos.

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Category:1958 births

Category:Living people

Category:21st-century Belgian historians

Category:Belgian art historians

Category:Belgian art curators

Category:Tate Modern Directors

Category:Officiers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres

Category:People from Lier, Belgium

Category:Leiden University alumni

Category:Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam alumni