Having had a laugh reading that the British entertainment media outlet Time Out named the Borgerhout district of Antwerp, quote, “2nd coolest neighbourhood in the world” (my friends and I would never think of partying there), I reflected on “why” and my own scepticism. I attend Jan Fabre’s Troyblen Theatre and the concert hall De Roma, and I do visit art galleries occasionally. At the start of the 20th century, as evidenced by the few surviving mansions still bearing traces of past grandeur, Borgerhout was a prestigious area of Antwerp, in intimate proximity to the central railway station. Like people, cities and their districts have fates that can be cruel; they experience both rises and falls. Today, we can consider Borgerhout to be on the upswing, and Time Out has sensed the trend, as the English say, “gave the credit.” And there are reasons for this: new cultural projects are continually opening in the district. For instance, in 2024, exactly 100 years after its construction at the height of cinema’s popularity, Cinema Majestic was renovated into DIVE — the Digital Immersive Venue & Experience, or simply dive in English, a metaphor for immersion into digital art and emotion. Antwerp’s digital arts centre now serves the entertainment industry, with an educational mission, yet very commercial.

While I and the city perhaps slightly ignored the immersive Gustav Klimt exhibition (artists are best seen in the originals), we eagerly visited “Titanic: The Immersive Experience” on its opening day, 29 October. The digital immersion into the greatest “non-military” tragedy of the 20th century appropriately fits its maritime character. The ship, belonging to the British company White Star Line — a competitor of the Belgian-American Red Star Line, active at the turn of the century transporting emigrants from Europe to the USA (from Antwerp) — even slightly rocks you on the exhibition floor, reminiscent of Titanic’s deck. Titanic had a sister ship, Olympic, and photographs and some interior details are taken from her. Ironically, the Titanic’s grand staircase was never photographed. At DIVE, it is magnificently reconstructed (a copy taken from Olympic), combining photographs with real wooden panels — a visual trick that children try to run up. The staircase, the jewel of Titanic, symbolising the luxury and craftsmanship characteristic of the ship, connected six decks and was the centre of first-class entertainment. The massive oak handrails, French-inspired motifs, wide proportions, and a glass and wrought-iron dome created a stunning effect both by day and by night, whether lit by natural light or dramatic illumination. At the centre of the dome hung a crystal chandelier above the delicate carving of two allegorical figures beside the central clock. This central element, called “Time, Honour and Glory,” reminded passengers of Titanic’s conquest of the seas.

The “à la carte” restaurant on Titanic was perhaps the most vivid symbol of status on board, where all attention was focused on elegance. The wealthiest passengers could dine whenever they wished, unlike the other dining rooms, which had fixed times and set menus. To create a truly exclusive experience, the restaurant featured handcrafted panels of fine French walnut, brass accents, fluted columns, mirrored seating areas, and the most comfortable chairs on the ship, all with ocean views — a paradise for the rich. Moreover, the restaurant was not managed by White Star Line staff, but by the renowned restaurateur Luigi Gatti. Meals were served on “Spode” porcelain in blue and gold bearing the logo of the “Oceanic Steam Navigation Company”, White Star Line’s parent company, owned by none other than J.Pierpont Morgan.

The technical side of the story is truly captivating — the construction of “the most luxurious ship on Earth.” The exhibition features photographs of the Belfast shipyard at Harland & Wolff, where Titanic was built, highlighting the sheer scale of the project and the thousands of engineers, draughtsmen, and workers involved in what was rightly called the “build of the century.” The ship’s hull consisted of two layers of steel plates joined with wrought rivets. The inner layer formed the main structural frame, while the outer layer provided extra protection against damage, punctures, and leaks. Yet the power of nature proved stronger.

The exhibition also devotes considerable attention to the ship’s fateful protagonist — the iceberg. Around the same time that Titanic’s keel was laid, the iceberg that would ultimately prove fatal was forming. In the spring of 1909, a massive ice floe broke off from western Greenland, initiating a drift of ice. A roughly three-kilometre chunk moved north past the Arctic Circle, where it shrank to less than half its original size under natural forces. The current then carried the floe south along the Canadian coast, continuing to diminish.

The exhibition tells the story of Titanic and its passengers from A to Z, creating a tangible link between fiction and reality through sets from the legendary film, over 150 artefacts, and coloured photographs, all enhanced with immersive projections and educational materials. Furthermore, the striking and innovative walking VR experience, a new generation of virtual reality, is presented as a true premiere: visitors can explore a virtual reconstruction of the ship and its wreck, experiencing the events up close. The story of the most ambitious, grandiose, and vain project of the 20th century is told using the technological achievements of the 21st century.