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In a press release A Tale of a Tub announced its new director team. Isabelle Sully will become the new Artistic Director and Sofie Post will be the Business Director at A Tale of A Tub. With the arrival of Post and Sully, A Tale of A Tub will continue to be a ‘testing ground’ where artists and other (art) professionals are given time and space to research and engage with today’s social issues. Operating from the former bathhouse of the renowned Justus van Effencomplex in Rotterdam, A Tale of A Tub has offered a critical view of society through the lens of contemporary art since 2014. The program reflects current (inter)national developments through exhibitions, performances, conversations, (film) screenings and publications (on and offline).

Isabelle Sully (1991) is a curator, artist and writer. Originally from Melbourne/Naarm, she now lives in Rotterdam where she established Unbidden Tongues in 2020, an imprint through which she has published the work of Lorraine O’Grady, Ruth Wolf-Rehfeldt, Adrian Piper, Karen Brodine, Naomi Pearce and Theresa Hak Kyung Cha. In 2022 she co-founded the curatorial platform Playbill with Martha Jager—an event-based project dedicated to the presentation of language- and text-based artistic works on the (small) stage at Torpedo Theater, Amsterdam—where they have presented works by Moniek Toebosch, Sarah Schulman, Mieko Shiomi and Anna Daučíková, among others. In late 2023 she co-initiated Tangents with Annie Goodner and Becket Flannery—a new English-language art review platform focused on the happenings of the Dutch cultural scene within and beyond the borders of the Netherlands. Alongside these projects, from 2020 she has worked at Kunstverein, Amsterdam, where she has held the position of Assistant Director-Curator from 2022, delivering projects on Alexis Hunter, Lou Hubbard and Christopher D’Arcangelo as well as supporting the institution through a major relocation.

Sully: ‘A Tale of A Tub is an excitingly unique institution, one that has a relatively young yet impactful history of working directly within the residential, historical and community-based context in which it resides. I’m so looking forward to learning from and contributing to this history amidst a great team—especially at a time when the social value of art in the Netherlands is in question.’

Sofie Post (1990) is an arts professional with a rich background in cultural management and fundraising, currently also serving as the Head of Development at Scapino Ballet Rotterdam. She’s experienced in overseeing fundraising activities, managing stakeholder relationships and developing strategic initiatives. Sofie’s career spans diverse roles, from Programme Financing & Relationship Management at the International Film Festival Rotterdam to serving as Business Director for theatre company Bruckman Projecten. With extensive board experience and a strong background in cultural management, she brings a wealth of expertise to the role.

Post: ‘I’m thrilled to start this new adventure at A Tale of A Tub, together with Isabelle. I look forward to contributing to the dynamic program, making the complex connections between art and society tangible and accessible. Together, we can enrich the dialogue on the vital role of art in our shared environment.’

On behalf of the Supervisory Board, Norbert de Munnik: ‘The supervisory board is delighted with the arrival of Isabelle Sully and Sofie Post. From an artistic point of view, we were aiming at new initiatives that would endorse the long-term vision of the Tub and we are convinced that Isabelle will be the right person for that. Given the present day and possibly the future way of financing the art world, we are also very pleased with the appointment of a business director like Sofie, who has made her mark in the world of fundraising. The board and the entire Tub team are looking forward to working with the two new directors.’