This autumn, the Museum At the Stream (Museum aan de Stroom, MAS) in Antwerp invites visitors to explore the universal language of dance with ‘Universal Tongue‘, a monumental video installation by Dutch visual artist Anouk Kruithof. On view from 25 October 2025 to 4 January 2026, the exhibition presents thousands of dance images from around the world, carefully sourced from social media, revealing how dance transcends borders as a shared cultural language.

Kruithof, born in Dordrecht in the Netherlands in 1981,  has long been fascinated by dance as a form of self-expression and empowerment. For this project, she collaborated with an international team of 52 researchers to collect 8,800 social media videos, comprising 250 hours of footage and 1,000 distinct dance styles from all 196 countries on earth. The result is an exuberant four-hour video installation spread across eight screens, displaying a total of 32 hours of footage – all synchronised to a pulsating soundtrack.

Antwerp Alderman for Culture Lien Van de Kelder (Vooruit) commented: “Antwerp dances! For ten weeks, the MAS will pulse to different rhythms: from tango to Bollywood, from graceful pole dance to ritual Gregorian movement. Come and dance with us. Dance is a universal language that brings people together and moves the hearts of the city.”

Anouk Kruithof, whose practice spans sculpture, photography, collage, video, books, websites and social interventions, aims to expose what she calls “the nerves of our time” by addressing contemporary social, psychological and ethical dilemmas.

Mapping Antwerp’s digital dance landscape

In parallel with the exhibition, ErfgoedLab Antwerpen—the city’s platform for heritage professionals—used ‘Universal Tongue’ as a springboard for research into online dance communities and digital dance heritage. With dance increasingly thriving online, the project explored what this digital shift means for dance as intangible cultural heritage. How do dance communities adapt? Can we speak of digital dance communities?

To answer these questions, ErfgoedLab mapped Antwerp’s dance scene and interviewed 67 dancers and dance organisations. In the final room of the exhibition, visitors can listen to their insights and reflections on emerging digital trends in the dance world.

Ten weeks of dance at the MAS

In celebration of Universal Tongue, the MAS will host ten weeks of dance-related activities, including a special presentation in the Kijkdepot or Viewing Depository and a wide-ranging public programme.

Kijkdepot

From 25 October, the Kijkdepot will focus on dance as a lens through which to explore the MAS collection. Eight representatives from Antwerp’s dance communities—Denis Inghelbrecht, Yawar Mistty, De Lá Pra Cá, Serge Medard, De Wevers, Opera Ballet Vlaanderen, Nina Plantefève and Antonia Volodina—joined MAS curators in the museum’s depots to select an object meaningful to their own dance tradition. 

Each also contributed a personal object they wish to preserve for the future. Together, these eight perspectives offer an intimate and diverse view of the MAS collection through the prism of dance heritage.

A versatile dance programme

Over the course of ten weeks, the MAS will get Antwerp dancing. From Bollywood and tango to pole dance, dabke and Gregorian movement, four themed #MASmoves dance evenings will feature workshops, performances and talks. 

Visitors can also enjoy a free open dance floor on the first floor of the Boulevard, overlooking the Scheldt—an invitation to dance spontaneously and bring along one’s own music and rhythm.

Family Sundays

Every second Sunday of the month, families can join in on themed dance workshops in the MAS. Activities will include hip-hop and Bollywood sessions, as well as creative workshops where participants design musical outfits that fuse fashion with rhythm.

Practical information

• Exhibition: ‘Universal Tongue’.
• Location: MAS – 3rd floor.
• Dates: 25 October 2025 – 4 January 2026.
• Admission: Pay what you wish

From vogueing and twerking to Sufi spinning and musical chairs, Universal Tongue immerses visitors in the global language of dance. The installation invites exploration at one’s own pace, revealing a vibrant panorama of dance styles gathered from social media—proof that dance is a living, viral language connecting cultures across continents.

Art and museums in Antwerp

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• Antwerp fashion museum MoMu will mark 40 years of The Antwerp Six with exhibition.
• ANTWERP | Museum Mayer van den Bergh opens exhibition ‘Public Favourites’, from Mad Meg to Delft Blue, look at art through other people’s eyes.
• ANTWERP | Museum Night 2025 on Saturday 2 August.
• ANTWERP | Middelheim Museum celebrates 75 years with a summer full of new ways to experience the art park.
• M HKA 2025 |​ Bruno Zhu – Panamarenko – ‘The Situation is Fluid’ – Today’s Place – Hugo Roelandt.
• ANTWERP | ‘These Branching Moments’ – ‘.tiff 2025′ – ”OM/MOTHER’: 3 new exhibitions at FOMU, from 28 June 2025.
• ANTWERP | ‘Panamarenko. Infinite Imagination’ exhibition until 4 May 2025 at KMSKA.
• ANTWERP | ‘Compassion’ in the MAS: the many faces of compassion.
• 2025 at the museums of Antwerp.
• 2025 at Royal Museum of Fine Arts of Antwerp (KMSKA): René Magritte, Marthe Donas, Panamarenko, Hans Op de Beeck.
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• ANTWERP | Rubens Experience and Rubens Garden at Rubenshuis.
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• A visit of the Flemish Tram and Bus Museum – Vlaams Tram- en Autobusmuseum (VlaTAM) in Antwerp.
• ANTWERP | Discovering queer(ed) art with the Queer Tour at the KMSKA fine arts museum.
• REVIEW | Illusion Antwerpen, an active and photogenic museum.
• Antwerp museums and sports facilities team up with European Disability Card for accessible leisure activities.
• Museum Mayer van den Bergh.
• ANTWERP | Inside Rubens House.
• Museum Plantin-Moretus in Antwerp.
• ANTWERP | Museum Vleeshuis up for restoration.
• BOOK | ‘Antwerp. An Archaeological View on the Origin of the City’ by Tim Bellens.
• Red Star Line Museum.
• Paleis op de Meir. 
• DIVA, Antwerp Home of Diamonds.
• ANTWERP | Red Star Line Museum of (e)migration.