Since 2006, four selected artists have taken over the lock's operating gallery each summer with works created specifically for this space and for a shared theme that changes from year to year. This year's theme and the four artists will be announced in spring:

When: Sunday 1 August to Saturday 14 August 2027 – opening reception Sunday 1 August at 1 pm
Where: The drainage lock, Hvide Sande
What: Contemporary art by four selected artists in the lock's 120-metre operating gallery

The exhibition has become a fixture of summer in Hvide Sande, and for many visitors it's their first time behind the lock's thick brick walls. Here the art meets the everyday sounds of water, gates and machinery, and the works take on a resonance they couldn't have anywhere else. Keep an eye on kunstislusen.dk and hvidesande.by as the theme, artists and opening hours are revealed.

The drainage lock in Hvide Sande is an impressive piece of engineering, 120 metres long and 24 metres wide. Its 14 gates, each 6.25 metres wide, are operated by electric motors housed in the very gallery where the exhibition takes place.
The robust brick structure has been renovated and maintained over the years and still stands in its original yellow brick, just as it did when it opened in 1931. Kunst i Slusen is organised jointly by Hvide Sande Havn, Holmsland Klit Turistforening and Kystdirektoratet.

Every August, one of the West Coast's most unusual art exhibitions opens its doors for 14 days. Kunst i Slusen takes place in the 120-metre operating gallery inside the lock structure itself, beneath the drainage lock in Hvide Sande – an industrial space of original yellow brick and steel, a world away from polished gallery walls.