‘Droomtuin’

18/09/2024

The fashion for spending time on a rooftop is spreading across Europe and Antwerp is no exception.

From 20 to 22 September, the city on the Schelde will host DAKkanfest. A play on the word ‘dak’ (roof) and the modal verb of open possibilities.

In addition to the usual rooftop bars, this weekend there will be the Hikihuone daksauna sauna, Makers Market at M HKA, a rooftop concert at PAKT or the Hoge Gronden route along the green roofs. The authorities of Antwerp are convinced that Roofs can soon become an eco and art space, a solution to the eternal problem of ‘where?’ in a densely populated city like ours.

Festival programme: www.dakkan.be

Today the art project on the Roof ‘Garden of Dreams’ opened at the MoMu Fashion Museum. Invited artists Nel Maertens and Harald Ligtvoetb (pictured) created Droomtuin from recycled materials based on children’s drawings. 150 children from nearby schools drew how they see their ‘dream garden’, the artists used flowers and insects from the children’s imaginations. Harald ran workshops with the children on how to make art installations out of recycled materials. Nel consulted the landscaping organisation Natuurpunt about which flowers to plant in September so that they will bloom in spring. The art project is to draw attention to the fact that our roof can become a flowering garden and mini vegetable garden.

I am a regular visitor to the Antwerp Fashion Museum, but thanks to ‘Droomtuin’, I visited its roof for the first time, with a marvellous view of the old town.

Animals ‘Between Us’ of photographer Vincent Lagrange

In “Portraits” of animals Vincent Lagrange (1988) the viewers recognize their friends and acquaintances, teachers and employees - such characters the Antwerp photographer reveals in the brothers of our lesser selves. Moreover, he insists that man has wrongly appointed...

Baroque flowers of Anna Volkova

These baroque flowers seem to have stepped out of a 17th-century Dutch still life. Exhibited at Antwerp's 'Arts and Antiques' Gallery (Stein and Cedric Moermans), they resemble to the paintings of Jan Bregel, nicknamed Velvet, for the extraordinary texture of the...

MoMu Talks – Walter Van Beirendonck

He is aggressively brutal in photos, and utterly charming in person, with an attentive look in his blue eyes and a soft smile. A good educator, according to students. Unfortunately, in this case, strict pension regulations sent him to a well-deserved, but not yet...

Ado Chale – some paper in furniture design

A table top made of black peppercorns, whoever has seen it will not forget the name of the Belgian designer Ado Chale. His furniture has decorated the finest interiors of castles and living rooms in Europe since the 1970s. Interest in the designer's work increased in...

Light festival «Mons en Lumiеres»

The city of Mons, represented by its handsome burgomaster Nicolas Martin (PC - Party of Socialists) with the hands of a pianist, - presented the programme of the second edition of the light festival ‘Le plus Grand Festival de Lumiéres’ of Wallonia. Indeed the number...

Natallia Hrusha, founder of ‘Equilibrium Flower Studio’, at Feerie Florale in Dendermonde

Natallia Hrusha, founder of 'Equilibrium Flower Studio', took part in the Féerie Florale at the Town Hall of the glorious city of Dendermonde with a Christmas composition “Palm tree spathes”. With her team - Katya Blumberg and Elena Gubarenko. The trio of florists...