The 35th edition of Heritage Days will take place this weekend, 16-17 September, in Brussels. Coinciding with the year of Art Nouveau for the Belgian capital, the theme of this year’s event will be “Art Nouveau, art for all?”
Across the Brussels city region, 102 thematic places and activities, 35 “essentials” and 22 embassies and ambassadors’ residences will welcome guests this weekend. This year, Heritage Days will also coincide with Car Free Sunday, ensuring an even more pleasant discovery day.
1. Thematic places and activities
There are 102 guided visits to museums and townhouses, walks along Art Nouveau rich streets and thematic performances for people to choose from this weekend. Part of the programme, organised in collaboration with Visit Brussels, will focus on the origins of the Art Nouveau style and the discussion on whether it belonged to elites or to the public.
The style found its expression in the creation of private residences for a wealthy and enlightened clientele. To appreciate the genius of these prestigious houses, one must venture inside the buildings. Thus, the question arises: is Art Nouveau nothing but an elitist and private movement? However, the organisers point out that “to think so would be to forget one of its creators’ ambitions: to make beauty visible and accessible to all.”
Several activities will remind people of the primordial intentions of the artistic movement, such as painter Cortvriendt’s home-workshop, or visits to schools that display several examples design aimed at offering children a place of study that also enables them to develop their taste for beauty, including the ‘Jardin d’Enfants’ Kindergarten by Victor Horta and Henri Jacobs’ Institut Diderot.
Moreover, in a context that is both more intimate and emotional, funerary art represented an opportunity for artists to create works with several hands, which can be observed by strolling through the Brussels cemetery.
2. Essentials
35 buildings will be accessible to visitors for Heritage Days, including museums, parliaments, yes more of them, masonic temples, churches and cathedrals. The highlights include the Brussels Centre for Fine Arts Bozar, the Brussels Parliament, the Parliament of the French Community in Hôtel de Ligne, the Flemish Parliament and the National Bank of Belgium.
Other not to miss locations include the Grand Hospice and Le Botanique. Grand Hospice is a former housing centre from the 19th century, designed by architect Henri Partoes. Pending extensive renovation work to develop housing units and communal services, the Brussels Public Welfare Centre (CPAS/OCMW) decided to make this site available for a temporary occupation scheme. pali pali, an accelerator of cultural, social and solidarity projects, was selected to organise the occupation until the end of 2023. The resulting programme allows the site, and in particular the gardens, to be opened to the public, including through a garden summer bar.
Le Botanique is a former botanical garden, designed by architect Tilman-François Suys and built under the supervision of artist and decorator Pierre-François Gineste. Following the traditional structure of orangeries, Suys designed an imposing central rotunda with a dome, flanked by two wings, each ending in a slightly projecting pavilion. Today, Le Botanique hosts numerous cultural events, mainly art exhibitions and concerts, including the famous Les Nuits Botanique festival, which has featured artists including Prince, Oasis, Muse, Stromae and Jeff Buckley.
3. Diplomatic World
Last year, 19 embassies in Brussels opened to the public for the first time for Heritage Days. This year, 22 embassies and ambassadors’ residences plan to open their doors and welcome guests with cultural programmes and guided tours of the often impressive buildings.
“The Heritage Day at the Chinese Embassy includes exhibitions, videos, folk music performances, handicraft workshops and food tasting. You will experience China’s diversified cultural heritages and the beautiful environment of the embassy. We look forward to seeing you this Saturday”, Ambassador Cao Zhongming told Travel Tomorrow.
Besides guided tours of the building, the Embassy of Azerbaijan will be organising an exhibition displaying the country’s carpet weaving tradition, as well as piano concerts by Sabina Mammadova, accompanied by vocalist Vusala Jabir, and video presentations of traditional dances, Mugham music and instruments.
“Carpets are an integral part of Azerbaijani culture, celebrations and ceremonies. During Heritage Days, we invite visitors to discover the different schools of weavers, each distinguished by their chosen motifs and colour palette”, Ambassador Vaqif Sadiqov told Travel Tomorrow. “Visitors will also have the opportunity to enjoy a live concert from Ms Sabina Mammadova and Ms Vusala Jabir every afternoon, as well as learn more about traditional Azerbaijani music from video presentations.”
For the Embassy of Kazakhstan, the Heritage Days will kick off a series of cultural events this autumn, including cinema nights and folk orchestra concerts. “For this year’s [Heritage Days] program, we are set to showcase a new installation of a Kazakh house replica, crafted by artisans from Kazakhstan, adorned with items that exemplify authentic and rare handiwork”, Ambassador Margulan Baimukhan told Travel Tomorrow. “Visitors will have the opportunity to enjoy dombra and piano performances at specific hours and sample traditional Kazakh dishes and wines from Kazakhstan.”
“We will also acquaint our guests with the history of our building, which is listed in Brussels’ Inventaire du Patrimoine Architectural, and share insights into our culture and our relations with Belgian and European partners”, ambassador Baimukhan added.
