13 September 2025 - Stormkop, Antwerp
A conversation, a get-together, a rave.
Out Of Space is a multidisciplinary festival about the future of the city. The festival poses the question: ‘Is there still space?’ – space for experimentation, encounters, creation, leisure and culture. At Stormkop, a repurposed shipyard in the Antwerp docklands, we bring together artists, thinkers, activists, musicians and city dwellers around themes such as urban transformation, offspaces, free space, and rave culture.
The day moves between reflection and celebration: from talks and installations to performances, parties and live music. With a programme that focuses broadly on art, debate and celebration, we want to create space for new ways of imagining urban coexistence.
Onaffegem: the heart of the talks
The conference takes place in Onaffegem, a city imagined and built by the children of Stormkop over the summer — a city that is never finished, always under construction. During the day, it is the central venue for lectures, pitches, interventions and performances. In the evening, Onaffegem transforms into an intimate live setting with, among others, Imane Guemsey and Burkina Azza (Burkina Faso).
Partners like Universiteit Antwerpen, CCQO and Cameltown help to curate the content section.
Talks & pitches
Out of Space invites speakers who actively reflect on urban space, from grassroots to policy.
Iva Čukić (Ministry of Space, Belgrado) will open the festival with a talk about how citizens can reclaim public space. Her collective fights for inclusive urban development, commons and citizen participation.
A special moment in the programme is the pitch-session ‘Are We Out of Space?’, in which local organizations and activists can share their stories: how they deal with urban displacement, temporary use of space, or cultural autonomy. Each will be given 10 minutes, as a public intervention and a call for connection.
Besides that, there's also a talk by Tothem – a collaboration between Toestand, Archipel, Blikfabriek and Endeavour – explaining their research about offspaces in Flanders.
Music & performance
The musical programme kicks off in the afternoon with live sets and DJs on 'the Field'. As evening approaches, the focus shifts to the KK Main Hall and the Klub stage, where people dance to electronic and global rhythms until the early hours.
Highlights:
- Burkina Azza – percussion collective with West-Afrikan rhythms
- Jessen – dark breaks, rave and bass
- Bader Shashit (Yalla Soundsystem) – Arab diaspora club culture
- Sisso & Maiko (Nyege Nyege) – hyper energetic Singeli music from Tanzania
- DJ Shoplifter (Horst), Europarking, Ettienne 4U, Echofarmer, Lina Ejda x Zarina…
There will also be acts like Flink (Antwerp punk), Radio Zonder Dak (live radio by and with homeless people), an open air cinema and tattoo/screenprint-interventions.
Practical
- 13 September 2025
- Stormkop, Droogdokkenweg 4, 2030 Antwerpen
- 13:00 – 05:00
- www.outofspace.be
- Contact: benjamin@onder-stroom.be
Out of Space is a project of Onder Stroom in collaboration with Kamping Kerosine, Aria (Antwerp Research Institute for the Arts), Cameltown & Stormkop and is made possible in part by 'de Burgerbegroting'.