Following heavily scrutinised runs in Dublin, Seattle, and New York, the exhibition "The Mind of a Serial Killer: The Experience" will open at Tour & Taxis in Brussels on 18 July.
Corporate event giants Exhibition Hub and Fever have designed a 120-minute immersive walkthrough exhibition, described as "immersive". The companies are best known for staging massive digital art installations, including "Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience" and "The Art of the Brick."
The installation profiles 20 infamous murderers. Cases range from the ancient Roman poisoner Locusta to some of the 20th-century's most notorious serial killers, including Jeffrey Dahmer, Harold Shipman and Aileen Wuornos.
Visitors can use a unique feature – an Investigation Office – to map out criminal profiling techniques, alongside video archives and reconstructed crime scenes. This digital component places attendees directly in the role of a lead detective managing office logistics and interrogating suspects.
There is also authentic video and audio footage, including an interview segment from one the worst serial killers in the Soviet Union, Andrei Chikatilo, who murdered at least 52 women and children.
A dedicated pop culture gallery explores how true crime influences modern television, film, and literature.
'Has our true crime obsession gone too far?'
Organisers market the touring project as an informative and educational exhibition, with their spokespeople explicitly denying it functions as a "haunted house", but the audience reception and press reactions have been mixed.
Previous tour stops generated a backlash online for the exhibition's ethical framing. Attendees heavily criticised the organisers' use of artificial intelligence. Reviewers specifically noted "uncanny AI-generated video presenters" and digitally manipulated photographs of real victims.
The educational value of the physical materials were also challenged. Multiple online accounts described the informational placards as "soulless", comparing them to "unedited Wikipedia entries".
But perhaps the biggest point of contention targets the physical staging. Commenters condemned the life-sized replicas of active murder scenes as exploitative photo opportunities rather than respectful documentation. A reviewer writing in the Guardian newspaper said the exhibit made her "want to hurl", and questioned if our true crime obsession had gone too far.
The Brussels Times contacted exhibition organisers Fever for comment, but they did not respond to our request.
