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As soon as we enter, our gaze is lost in the majesty of the decor that welcomes us. Decor further magnified by the paintings of one of the masters of Belgian art of the 20th century: Pierre Alechinsky.
Currently, the Empain villa lends its walls to expressionist and even surrealist works, some of them monumental, by the painter, engraver, and founding member of the Cobra group. An exhibition designed as an ode to travel, which reveals the artist’s Japanese and Chinese inspirations, and which is part of this dialogue between Eastern and Western cultures, so dear to the Boghossian Foundation. This same dialogue from which the Art Deco movement drew when it was born. “The discovery of non-European civilizations, and particularly Asian ones, at the beginning of the 20th century will have a strong influence on the development of the artistic movement. It is for this reason that the works of Pierre Alechinsky fit perfectly into the spirit of the House”note Caroline Schuermans.
Luxury and elegance
In the Villa Empain, however, we hardly focus only on the exhibitions it presents. It is in itself conceived as a work in its own right which can be discovered step by step, according to the pieces that parade. Everything here has been designed Art Deco. This is also one of the characteristics of this style which flourished in the interwar period: from floor to ceiling, from architecture to interior (and exterior) decoration, art and crafts combine to respond to the concept of a total work of art developed in the 19th century in Europe, and which found its culmination in the Art Nouveau of the end of the century, to which Art Deco succeeded.
Geometric lines and noble materials – marble, precious wood, stained glass, etc. – impose their presence with elegance, as we move forward into large, intelligently designed spaces, which allow natural light to penetrate. These openings offer a view of the garden and its impressive swimming pool, also characteristic of the style. The wallpaper, the furniture, the stairs, the objects…, everything seems to have been frozen in the past. However, this is not the case. The entire Villa Empain has been restored, reproduced identically or strongly inspired, the result of a more than eventful history.
“What we see today is the result of incredible restoration work that we owe to the Belgian architect Francis Metzger, who based himself on the original plans”explains our host. Built in 1930, the villa was born from the will of Baron Louis Empain who then wanted “pay yourself the fashionable architect”Michel Polak, to whom we owe the Résidence Palace, located rue de la Loi in Brussels, which has since become the Europa building.
Briefly occupied by Louis Empain, the property was first bequeathed to the Belgian state to make it a Museum of Decorative Arts, of which the baron was fond. But this new assignment will only be short-lived. War struck and the building was requisitioned by the Germans. It remained there until 1944, before becoming the seat of the USSR embassy. This did not please the Empain family, who recovered their property to turn it into an exhibition space. After a succession of owners, the last of whom caused a lot of damage, the Empain villa was in an advanced state of disrepair when the Boghossian Foundation acquired it in 2006. It was listed the following year.
“This restoration was an immense challenge, because the materials used at the time were extraordinary. It was therefore difficult to find identical ones, on the one hand, and on the other hand, it was necessary to find craftsmen who mastered still these period techniques, which are becoming more and more rare.” It took four years in total for this project. Two years of scientific research and then two years of actual work. “Which is actually quite quick when we see the scale of the work that had to be done”notes Caroline Schuermans. The ultimate reward for this immense work, the Empain villa received the Europa Nostra prize from the European Union in 2011.
Inside a collector
In the basement of the villa, the space is dedicated to the immersive exhibition: “Echoes of Art Deco”, designed as a journey through time, into the interior of a collector. “It is a space which is each time reworked according to the exhibitions. Here, the idea was to show the abundance of these 20s and 30s, where classic codes were reinvented.” From these reconstituted pieces escape musical notes, jazz tunes which immerse us in this atmosphere of the Roaring Twenties. Posters, collections of vases, furniture made available by Jean Boghossian, mannequins loaned by the Fashion & Lace Museum… Everything is in place for a true immersion in this era.
An Art Deco stroll through the streets of Brussels
In his work Brussels Art DecoCécile Dubois, historian, president of the Brussels Art Deco Society and author of Brussels Art Deco (Racine, 2014) and Art Deco in Brussels. Timeless interiors (Racine, to be published in 2025), offers six walks to take in Brussels to discover buildings characteristic of the style. As part of this file, she agreed to share with us her “favorite” walk: the Coghen district, from Altitude Cent to the Haerens hotel. A circuit which connects the Saint-Augustin church to the surroundings of Avenue Brugmann using Avenue Coghen (see map). Selection of four key places on this route.
First stop at Saint-Augustin Church (1). In 1928, the architects Léon Guianotte and André Watteyne designed a church in concrete, an innovative and economical material for the time. Although the main construction was completed in the mid-1930s, the finishes, made with poor quality materials, were not completed until 1946. But these inadequate materials caused damage, notably the peeling of the coatings and the alteration of the concrete. Threatened with demolition, the church was ultimately saved thanks to its classification as a historic monument, followed by restoration in 1996-1997.
Then head to the Dotremont house (7)whose design we owe to Louis Herman De Koninck, considered one of the main protagonists of the modern movement in Belgium. The first modernist house to be listed, in 1977, it is characterized by rational and functional architecture. Its sober exposed concrete facade features asymmetrical openings and a glazed half-cylinder at the entrance, reflecting the refined aesthetic of the modernist movement.
In the same street, a few houses further, at number 16, another house (8) is worth the detour, which this time we owe to the architect Raphaël Delville. Here again, we can observe the forms so characteristic of Art Deco.
Finally, last stop at the Haerens Hotel (10), “one of the most beautiful witnesses of Art Deco in Brussels”, according to our author. This stylish mansion was designed in 1928 by the architect Antoine Courtens for Robert Haerens, an engineer within the Empain Group. The building includes two separate apartments, each with its own access. The main apartment, located on the first floor, is distinguished by a monumental entrance on Avenue Brugmann and a circular central reception room, topped by a glass dome which floods the space with natural light.
Art Deco, elsewhere than in the capital
If Brussels can boast of concealing architectural treasures of Art Deco, it is far from being the only Belgian city to house masterpieces of this artistic movement.
We will notably cite Antwerp, with its swimming pool on the Veldstraat in the Stuyvenberg district, or the Elsdonck residence; Namur and its Art Deco district mainly covering the streets of Carmes and des Crosiers; Charleroi and its town hall which combines classic architecture; Liège and its Lemonier passage entirely transformed in the Art Deco style by the architect Henri Snyers; or Nieuport and its Grand Hôtel…
If you decide to cross the Franco-Belgian border, don’t hesitate to go to the magnificent and emblematic Piscine de Roubaix, now transformed into a museum of art and industry. Good discovery(s)!
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