BELGIAN IRREVERENCE

Angèle, Lous and The Yakuza, Claire Laffut, Charlotte Abramow… Belgian pop-culture reveals itself to the world, embodied by a creative, charismatic and committed youth. Between an assumed feminism, unusual universes and a natural casualness, the new generation of Belgian artists imposes its style without difficulty.

A strong character that can also be found in the design area. Minimal lines, colorblocks and combinations of singular and playful shapes… The Muller Van Severen design duo Muller Van Severen has been making Belgian design for a few years now with its sculptural collections that are both functional and contemplative, blurring the boundaries between art and design.

Another must know of the Belgian creative scene: the very singular Brussels gallery MANIERA founded by Amaryllis Jacobs and Kwinten Lavigne, which disrupts design by revealing emerging architectural well-known people and deliberately confronting the two fields.

COLLECTIBLE, the international design fair trade of the 21st century has also enabled Brussels to become one of the great design capitals. Experimental in its approach and unique of its kind, it has become in three years a must for creation, revealing at each edition the work of young remarkable designers.

In this wake, the creative hive Ateliers Zaventem is another proof of Belgium’s creative and artisanal effervescence. Arno Declercq, Pierre-Emmanuel Vandeputte, Stan Van Steendam, Brut Collective… Around thirty craftsmen, designers and artists have taken up residence on this site to awaken synergies.

The purity of raw materials, their sculptural and sensory character, but also the architecture are particularly present in Belgian creation. The five designers behind the Brut Collective studio – including Linde Freya Tangelder, founder of Destroyers/Builders – quickly conquered the world of design with their private collections straight out of an archaeological site.

The Belgian design also shows a lot of derision and lightness, always with finesse and subtlety. The cylindrical and colorful stools by Nortstudio, the mushroom-shaped lamp by Jos Devriendt or the ingenious armchair by Jean-Francois D’Or are some good examples.

Aesop, Courrèges, Icicle, Valextra… The biggest brands have recently called upon the Belgian architect Bernard Dubois and his pure, quilted elegance – which was revealed at the Architecture Biennial in 2014 – to create their flagships.

Another promising figure in Belgian creation is Nicolas Di Felice, the new artistic director of Courrèges. At the age of 37, this « protégé of Nicolas Ghesquière » promises a new lease of life for the French company with his resolutely optimistic style.

If there is one area in which Belgium expresses itself irreverently, it is fashion. Anthony Vaccarello, Raf Simons, Martin Margiela, Jean Paul Lespagnard, Dries Van Noten… Belgian designers are shaking up fashion with their vibrant and radical universes.