Sonic Acts Biennial 2022 is staged across various locations, interweaving an exhibition, a sound art programme, a symposium, installations, lectures, films, AV performances, workshops, DJ sets and more.
W139 is a presentation and production space for contemporary art in the heart of Amsterdam. W139 was established in 1979 and celebrates more than forty years of providing artists time and space for free explorations. W139’s public programme marks a renewed positioning of the institution and continues its long history as a supporter of artistic and social resistance, as a platform for dialogue and encounter, as a facilitator, and a collaboration partner for radical imagination and inclusion.
The W139 is open from 12:00 to 18:00 from Tuesday to Thursday, and from 10:00 to 20:00 from Friday to Sunday.
*W139 is wheelchair accessible but does not have a wheelchair accessible toilet. We have arranged that our guests can use the wheelchair accessible toilet at Hotel Krasnapolsky until 22:00. Facemasks are freely available on location; we kindly request that visitors wear them while inside the gallery space.
Situated in a former munitions factory, Het HEM is a new home for contemporary culture. Taking a playful and open approach to both creating and experiencing art, Het HEM develops multidisciplinary art programmes that shed new light on the world around us. These programmes come to be in collaboration with contemporary creative makers and thinkers, whose philosophy serves as a guide for new directions of thought. In addition to several exhibition spaces, Het HEM has a living room with a library, two restaurants, a bakery, a library, a terrace on the waterfront, and a hi-fi music bar.
Het HEM is open from 12:00 to 23:30 on Friday and Saturday, and from 12:00 to 22:00 on Sunday.
Het HEM is not a heated space. In light of this, we encourage visitors to come wearing warm and comfortable clothing. Het HEM will not be heated.
→ VISITING FOR INNER EAR(TH)? Read our guide here!
*Het HEM is wheelchair accessible. The top floor is accessible via lift for wheelchairs and mobility scooters, please ask at the reception for access to the lift. Het HEM has a wheelchair accessible toilet on the ground floor.
Likeminds is a network of diverse, young, urban artists that give a voice to contemporary city culture. In combining dramaturgy, performances and community enrichment they aim to be a mirror of Amsterdam. Dynamic, inspiring and unique, Likeminds is comprised of two parts: a platform to develop young talent, and a professional theatrical ensemble. Likeminds has been in existence for more than ten years, nurturing dozens of young talents into professional theatre makers, musicians, and visual artists.
Likeminds is open for Sonic Acts audience from 10:30 to 23:00 on Saturday 15 October, and from 10.30 to 18:30 on Sunday 16 October.
*The ground floor and conference room of Likeminds are wheelchair accessible. The upstairs studios are not wheelchair accessible. There is a wheelchair accessible toilet on the ground floor.
OT301 is a nonprofit project in which public functions, work spaces and housing are combined to contribute to the fields of art, politics and subculture. The project is run by a diverse, international community that organises itself in an association called EHBK (Eerste Hulp Bij Kunst / First Aid in Case of Art). Originating as a squat near Vondelpark in 1999, OT301 today is collectively owned and committed to the values of autonomy and self-organisation. The project houses a night club, a gallery, artist studios, a cinema, the restaurant De Pepper, and provides an alternative space for artistic, cultural, and political endeavours.
OT301 is open for Sonic Acts audience from 22:00 to 5:00 on Friday 30 September.
*OT301 is wheelchair accessible. There is a wheelchair accessible toilet on the ground floor.
Zone2Source is an international platform for art, nature and technology. Using the environment of Amsterdam’s Amstelpark as a living lab, artists develop projects inside and outside of the glass pavilions, proposing and crafting alternative experiences of our ‘natural’ space. Zone2Source is concerned with a return to the source in order to better explore relations between humans, nature and technology. Through exhibitions, workshops, presentations and discussions Zone2Source reimagines how we might better deal with a 21st-century world.
Zone2Source is open from 12:00 to 18:00 from Tuesday to Sunday from 30 September until 16 October.
*The glass pavillion of Zone2Source is wheelchair accessible. There is no wheelchair accessible toilet.
Founded in 1530, Singelkerk is a hidden church in the busy centre of Amsterdam, the building’s true purpose largely unrecognisable from the street outside. Located between Amsterdam’s Singel and Herengracht, Singelkerk is the biggest Mennonite church in the Netherlands and houses a large church organ, meeting rooms and an expansive library. Over the years the building’s complex has grown, and today Singelkerk regularly hosts a variety of public and private events.
Singelkerk is open for Sonic Acts audience from 19:30 to 23:30 on Sunday 16 October.
The entrance to the venue is at Herengracht 431.
*Singelkerk is wheelchair accessible. There are wheelchair accessible toilets.
Info Desk
If you bought a Passepartout or Weekend Pass, you can pick up your wristband at one of the relevant wristband pick-up points.
The opening times of the Info Desk and wristband pick-up points are as follows:
Friday 30 September
16:30–20:00 W139
21:30–04:00 OT301
Friday 7 & Saturday 8 October
12:00–23:30 Het HEM (wristband pick-up point)
Sunday 9 October
12:00–19:00 Het HEM (wristband pick-up point)
Saturday 15 October
10:00–23:00 Likeminds (wristband pick-up point)
Sunday 16 October
10:00–18:00 Likeminds (wristband pick-up point)
19:30–23:00 Singelkerk
Passepartout-holders who have not yet picked up their wristband can enter earlier events by showing their e-ticket.
Due to limited capacities, a small number of these programmes require a special reservation ticket. Reservation tickets can be found here. Biennial Passepartout-holders can make their reservations for free using the promo code PPT.
The airport closest to Amsterdam is Schiphol Airport. The fastest way to get to Amsterdam Centraal station – and the city centre – is by train (15 minutes). More information about train travel in the Netherlands can be found on the NS website or use this door-to-door travel planner (both in English).
Parking
For those of you who come to Amsterdam by car, a complete map/list of parking spots in Amsterdam is available here.
Accommodation
Amsterdam offers an array of hotels and hostels located in and around the city centre. You could also rent an apartment, or spend a night on a houseboat or in a canal house. If you are travelling to Amsterdam on a shoestring, your cheapest option may be to couch surf during your stay. More information about accommodation in Amsterdam can be found here.
Getting around Amsterdam
By foot
Walking distances to the Biennial locations vary. From Amsterdam Centraal station, it takes a ten-minute walk to reach Singelkerk and W139. Reaching Likeminds and OT301 takes about half an hour by foot.
By bike
Information about bike rental companies can be found here.
Public transport
To travel by public transport you can buy and charge an OV-chip card at Amsterdam Centraal station. You can also purchase a disposable card for one hour, for a single day, or for multiple days. For all information on public transport in Amsterdam visit the GVB website or use this door-to-door travel planner (both in English).