KERAMIS OBJECTIVES
PRESERVATION
Keramis is a museum that acquires, preserves and promotes material and non-material testimonies about the activities that took place on its site, which was once home to the Boch faience factory. It promotes the cultural value of the three old bottle kilns that belonged to the Boch faience factory and are priceless remnants of industrial archaeology, and raises their profile for the purposes of tourism.
PRESTIGE
Keramis promotes the prestige of the ceramics collections it holds for Wallonia, the Wallonia-Brussels Federation and the Province de Hainaut, and adds to these collections. With the Royal Museum of Mariemont, it studies, popularises and promotes their respective collections of old and contemporary ceramics.
CREATION
Keramis is a place of art and specialist creation in the medium of ceramics. It is perceived as a means of creation and reflecting the world around us. It supports and encourages visual artists using this medium today by exhibiting and acquiring their work. Keramis ensures that knowledge about ceramics is preserved and passed on to specialists and the general public.
VALUES OF THE KERAMIS ASSOCIATION
HERITAGE VALUES
The collections form the heart of the museum’s mission. Oriented to both the past and the present, they attempt to anticipate the future and on many levels offer a vision of the world of ceramics. The specific architecture of the site, constructed around the three listed kilns, is also a heritage in itself that we must preserve and value in dialogue with other regional assets.
HUMAN VALUES
Keramis is carrying on a century and a half of history: that of faience itself, but also economic, social and cultural history. As well as its mission to protect this memory, Keramis wishes to form a community of people who are sensitive to the ethical and cultural values of the ceramics of yesterday and today, such as creative freedom, sharing and multiculturalism.
CONNECTION VALUES
Keramis is actively involved in a network of local cultural institutions, such as museums, the tourist office and arts centre, and public bodies and associations. This network connects citizens and cultural actors who share the same values.
EDUCATIONAL VALUES
Keramis has set itself the goal of developing an educational activity that is permanently connected to the world of teaching and the public.
ABOUT THE NON-PROFIT ORGANISATION (ASBL)
Founded in 2009, Keramis is a non-profit organisation that brings together public authorities (La Louvière, Province of Hainaut, Wallonia-Brussels Federation, Walloon Region) and private bodies (Boch Keramis Foundation).
The Board of Directors comprises representatives from these public authorities and specialists in visual arts. It is supported by a science committee comprised of specialists and representatives from universities.