Art in the Lock
Hvide Sande, 1–14 August 2027
ABOUT THE EXHIBITION
Exhibition theme 2027: Between sea and fjord
Every August, one of the West Coast’s most unusual art exhibitions opens its doors: Kunst i Slusen takes place in the 120-metre-long operating corridor inside the lock structure beneath the drainage lock in Hvide Sande—an industrial space of raw concrete and steel, far from polished gallery walls.
The exhibiting artists for 2027 will be announced in spring.
Christian Estrup, artist 2026
Jens Thordal, artist 2026
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Sunday 1 August at 1 pm. Come and meet the artists and experience the opening of this year’s exhibition.
Sunday 1 August open until 4 pm.
Monday 2 August – Saturday 14 August, daily 11 am – 4 pm.
Evening opening Wednesday 4 August and Wednesday 11 August, 7–9 pm.
Free Admission for Everyone
Britta Bauer, artist 2026
Michael Ruby, artist 2026
THIS YEAR’S ARTISTS 2026
Michael Ruby
Works with metal and lead, hammered directly over the coast’s concrete structures—groynes, bunkers, and eroded surfaces. The materials absorb weather, wear, and time as physical imprints. Many years of practice on the Jutland West Coast, and previous stays at the ART56° artist residency in Hvide Sande.
Britta Bauer
Works with flotsam and materials driven ashore by the sea, assembled into graphic collages she calls Sea Boxes. The works explore movement, loss, and transformation, and traces of global circulation. Previous stays at the ART56° artist residency in Hvide Sande.
Jens Thordal
Works with coastal light in Denmark and Greenland—not “just” as atmosphere, but as structure and a marker of climatic shifts and geopolitical attention towards the North Atlantic. Has lived and worked at the ART56° artist residency in Hvide Sande.
Christian Estrup
Works with degraded and oxidised surfaces, and in his rusty, weathered paintings experiments with nature’s own chemical and mechanical processes—sped up. Lives and works in Hvide Sande, and is part of the steering group behind the ART56° artist residency.
ABOUT THE SLUICE
The sluice structure – functionalist engineering art as a framework for the works
The drainage lock in Hvide Sande is an impressive technical facility measuring 120 metres in length and 24 metres in width. The 14 gates, each 6.25 metres wide, are operated by electric motors located in the operating corridor where the exhibition takes place.
The robust structure has been continuously renovated and maintained, and still appears essentially original, as it was when it opened back in 1931.
PARTNERS
Art in the Sluice is organized in collaboration with:
SPONSORS
CONTACT
DO YOU HAVE QUESTIONS, A GOOD IDEA—OR FOR OTHER REASONS WOULD LIKE TO GET IN TOUCH WITH KUNST I SLUSEN? PLEASE DO NOT HESITATE TO CONTACT US!