20 unmissable contemporary art galleries in Brussels

With its specialised national and international art galleries, Brussels is attracting more and more art lovers and collectors.

Situated both uptown and downtown, these numerous galleries all present Belgian and international artists, both emerging and experienced. Whether you’re a curious visitor, an art lover or a discerning collector, a visit to these galleries is an aesthetic, conceptual and even philosophical experience.

To help you navigate your way, here is a list of the capital’s unmissable galleries.

After Los Angeles and New York, successful gallery owner Nino Mier decided to set up a gallery in Brussels' Sablon district. Since 2021, he has occupied the 4 floors of a town house at number 25 rue Ernest Allard. On his walls, he presents a fine blend of European and American artists, with a special preference for painting.  

Gladstone is a major gallery dedicated to contemporary art, founded by Barbara Gladstone in both New York and Brussels. It exhibits the work of more than 35 major international artists such as Kasper Bosmans and Shirin Neshat, alongside work by emerging artists.

Xavier Hufkens is one of the most influential contemporary art galleries in Europe. It is set in a bright, completely renovated house next to avenue Louise and has a second venue, a couple of streets away. The gallery exhibits the work of artists from different generations, with legendary names of contemporary art standing side-by-side with young, up-and-coming creators.

Born into a family of art collectors, Rodolphe Janssen founded his eponymous gallery over 30 years ago. Well established on the Belgian and international art scenes, the gallery comprises two spaces on either side of rue de Livourne. Showcasing a mix of established and emerging talents, including Wim Delvoye, Genesis Belanger and Gert & Uwe Tobias, the Brussels-based gallery owner is keen to bring contrasting media together, with a particular focus on photography and painting. He also regularly exhibits American artists

Located on the ground floor of a modernist building on avenue Louise, Maruani Mercier boasts a beautiful showcase of the city. With a particular penchant for American artists of the 1980s, the gallery has broadened its horizons in recent years, opening its repertoire to young artists and encouraging dialogue between different generations of artists.

Meessen is a gallery that exhibits work from a group of established international artists. The gallery stretches over three floors of a house built in 1911 and includes a video projection room and a contemporary ‘wonder room’. It's an invitation to take a fresh look at the art of today!

Parisian gallery Almine Rech offers an impressive White Cube in Ixelles's highly sought-after gallery district. Some of the biggest names in contemporary art are exhibited here, particularly minimalist and conceptual art and artists who revitalise the pictorial tradition.

After spending years collecting pieces for himself, in 1992, Michel Rein decided to open a gallery. Eight years after opening in the French town of Tours, he moved it to Paris, where his list of exhibited artists grew and became more intriguing. He gave his gallery brand a European dimension with the opening of a second location in Brussels in 2013.

Daniel Templon is one of the French pioneers of contemporary art. In 2013, he decided to open a new gallery next to avenue Louise. He aims to promote a dialogue between the contemporary art world’s various generations of artists.

The La Patinoire Royale Bach gallery passionately supports Belgium-based artists and brilliantly represents foreign, emerging and experienced artists, whether they be painters, sculptors, plastic artists or photographers. The gallery also has an illustrious neighbour: the former Patinoire Royale (Royal ice-skating rink), a jewel of Brussels heritage.

In an aesthetically raw space, siblings Guillaume and Pascaline Smets offer a creative laboratory for emerging talent. Driven by intuition and curiosity, Stems Gallery explores contemporary art and exhibits its discoveries over more than 100m². 

Established in Paris since 1993, gallery owner Nathalie Obadia opened a gallery in Brussels in. With a keen eye for the current scene, she is instrumental in the rediscovery of emblematic artists, without overlooking emerging talent.

After twenty years in downtown Brussels, Alice Gallery has moved to Ixelles and the former premises of Galerie Baronian. The programme of exhibitions is as curious as it is cross-disciplinary, reflecting the globalisation of the contemporary world. 

Parisian gallery La Forest Divonne moved into its new home in a chich townhouse on Avenue Louise, in 2025. In this new space, it presents a vast range of contemporary artists from all disciplines (photography, painting, sculpture, etc.).

After a wonderful decade of artistic discoveries, CLEARING has changed its name to Lodovico Corsini, after its founder and director. Housed in a magnificent space, the gallery is just a stone's throw from Galila's POC and WIELS, in a neighbourhood that is becoming increasingly art-friendly. It offers a fresh, dynamic programme featuring young artists with international reputations.

Since 2003, dépendance has offered its singular vision of art in Brussels' trendy and arty Dansaert district. Striking the perfect balance of emerging and established artists, the gallery shares the sometimes critical viewpoints of the artists it works with.

Housed in a magnificent Art Nouveau building, the Greta Meert gallery is a must in Brussels. In keeping with its penchant for innovative artists, it set itself apart in the 1980s by giving pride of place to minimal and conceptual art. Today, this pioneer supports young Belgian and international visual artists.

Harlan Levey Projects has moved into a 250m² cathedral of raw concrete in the heart of Molenbeek-Saint-Jean. This atypical gallery has made artistic research its core mission, working closely with artists who are not afraid to mix art, research, social phenomena, science and technology.

With a hypnotically curved staircase, a 400m² exhibition space spread over two floors and a neo-classical townhouse in the heart of the Sablon district Sorry We’re Closed is an architectural gem. Spearheaded by collector and gallery owner Sébastien Janssen, the gallery primarily exhibits and supports emerging and mid-career artists.

To browse the full list of all the exhibitions and opening nights in contemporary art galleries, please visit the NECA website (New Exhibitions of Contemporary Art).

You can also sign up for free to the newsletter or get your hands on the NECA pamphlet available from most galleries and numerous cultural venues in Brussels.

NECA is edited by the Fondation pour les Arts (Foundation for the Arts) in collaboration with visit.brussels.