Jan Hoet (b. 1936, Leuven) is well known not only in Flanders but also abroad for the often controversial passion with which he defends his views on contemporary art. He studied at the Academy of Art in Brussels and from 1961 was for fourteen years a teacher in Ghent. In 1969 he set up the Kunstacademie Westhoek, where he continued to teach until 1975. From 1975 to 2001 he was director of the Museum of Contemporary Art in Ghent, which in 1999 moved into a building of its own, the SMAK. He created such internationally acclaimed exhibitions as 'documenta 9' in Kassel (1992), 'Over the Edges' in Ghent (2000) and 'Sonsbeek 9' in Arnhem (2001). From an art history point of view, his most important project was 'Chambres d'Amis' in Ghent (1986), where the art literally broke out of the museum: international artists presented their work in dozens of private houses and flats. This project won the prize for the best European exhibition of the year. He has put together exhibitions all over the world, from Montreal to Lisbon, from Tokyo to Mexico City. In 2003 he retired as director of the SMAK but in the same year took up a post as artistic director of the MARTa Museum in Herford (M is for 'meubel' [piece of furniture], ART is self-explanatory, and a is for ambience). This museum was designed by the architect Frank Gehry and since it opened in 2005 has already had more than a hundred and fifty thousand visitors. Jan Hoet has received many prizes and honorary titles, including the East Flanders Culture Prize and the Goethe Medal. He is an honorary doctor at Ghent University, Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres de la République Francaise and has been knighted by the Belgian monarch.
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