Stage 1

Functionalism, modernism & brutalism

When you arrive at Brussels Central Station, marvel at this building designed by Horta! The project, which dates back to the early 20^th century, was interrupted by the First World War, and then by the financial crisis following the crash of 1929. The work was also interrupted during the Second World War. In 1947, after the architect's death, Maxime Brunfaut, son of architect Fernand Brunfaut, was entrusted with the job of completing the edifice.

Make you way out to the esplanade in front of the station. If you have visited the Atomium, you will know that Sabena was Belgium’s legendary former airline (it was declared bankrupt in 2001). On Boulevard de l'Impératrice 13 & 15, you’ll find the former Air Terminus Sabena, a functionalist building from 1954 designed by the same Maxime Brunfaut. At that time, airline passengers could check in their luggage there before travelling to the airport by train. Just next door is the headquarters of public water company Vivaqua. Built in 1965 by architects Léon Stynen & Paul De Meyer, the modern architecture building was originally called Telex and was intended for use by the R.T.T. (Régie des Télégraphes et Téléphones). It was renovated by Crepain Binst architecture in 2010. 

Continue along the boulevard, which becomes Boulevard de Berlaimont. On your right, you’ll see the National Bank of Belgium. The building, designed by Marcel Van Goethem before the Second World War, was completed in 1948 and has a 200m-long modernist facade. Almost opposite it, at number 56, is the National Bank's printing house, another modernist construction, completed in 1950 and designed by the same Marcel Van Goethem.

The next stop is another station. At 34 Boulevard Pacheco lies the entrance to Congrès station, a striking facade in a modern, international style. Built between 1948 and 1952, Maxime Brunfaut was again the architect (at the time he was President of the Office de la Jonction Nord-Midi de Bruxelles). At number 44 stands the remarkable former Crédit Communal bank with its strange green windows. An (underrated) brutalist building built between 1967 and 1971, it was worked on by Marcel Lambrichs, Casimir Grochowski, Daniel de Laveleye, Alphonse Van Impe and Roger Delfosse. It now houses the Immigration Office.

Opposite is the Finance Tower, opened in 1983, designed and built by Hugo Van Kuyck, Marcel Lambrichs, Léon Stynen and Jaspers-Eyers. A brief chronological flashback: across from the tower is the Botanique, which houses the Cultural Centre of the Wallonia-Brussels Federation. The botanical garden is dominated by a neoclassical building dating from 1826 and designed by architect Tilman-François Suys; Pierre François Gineste and Jean-Baptiste Meeus-Wauter contributed to its plans. 

Go around the right side of the Tour des Finances (take the opportunity to admire the glass towers of the northern district in the distance; you’ll find out at the end of the day if you still have the strength for this). Behind the tower is the communal administration building. A long building with coloured windows built in a functionalist style and designed by Hugo Van Kuyck and Marcel Lambrichs (the same architects as the Finance Tower) along with Georges Riquier and the Alpha Group. The works lasted from 1958 to 1983. Cross the garden, pass the fountains, and behind the highly original wall that faces you are the stairs that lead to the Congrès esplanade. Once at the top, enjoy the panoramic view of the city!