Brussels is the new Berlin, exclaimed the New York Times back in December 2015. Maybe not. Never could be. But the article got one thing right. The city has a great art scene.
It offers affordable art studios, adventurous galleries and discerning collectors. Everything you need to be the next Berlin.
You might begin to explore the scene by heading to Wiels where edgy art is shown in a former brewery next to the railway tracks. Its rooftop space adds to the excitement of this industrial building.
Now head uptown to the Stéphanie quarter where the quiet back streets are dotted with adventurous galleries. Dive into Galerie Valerie Bach where contemporary art is exhibited in a former skating rink.
Check out Galerie Templon next door where Parisian Daniel Templon exhibits established artists such as Warhol, Kienholz and Boltanski.
End your art tour at Galerie Rivoli where several small galleries including Xavier Hufkens and Zwart Huis have taken over an abandoned 1970s shopping mall.
Derek Blyth’s hidden secret of the day: Derek Blyth is the author of the bestselling “The 500 Hidden Secrets of Belgium”. He picks out one of his favourite hidden secrets for The Brussels Times every day.
