Here’s the second batch of photos of the centre of the unknown, a medical research centre. Take a look here for the first part!
My best friends’ visit happened to coincide with Open House Lisboa, an event where you can take a tour in several buildings in Lisbon. As we’re both architects, we couldn’t let this opportunity pass by. There was just one tiny problem: we expected it to be similar to ‘dag van de architectuur’ in Flanders (you can see some photos of last year’s edition here), where you’re free to visit any building at any time. So we didn’t subscribe in advance to see any buildings, with the result that we just explored a few buildings from the outside. So here’s the first batch of photos, from the champalimaud centre for the unknown, which is a research centre for neurosciences and oncology.
Every tuesday, the residents of an appartment building somewhere in Lisbon open their doors to everyone who’s interested. You go through the building and take the fire escape to the roof of the building. Here you’ll have an amazing view over the city, get a vegetarian meal for only 3 euros, meet wonderful people and watch an interesting movie. In short, you’ll have a great evening! I’m sorry for the bad quality of these photos by the way, they could’ve been so much better if I wouldn’t have slipped on one of Lisbon’s slippery sidewalks when it was raining (and thus even more slippery!), as I broke my 50 mm lens when I fell… Lisbon gives and takes I guess!
It took me two weeks before I finally had time to spend a day at the beach, but when I finally found an appartment and got settled, I enjoyed it even more. With a few friends, we spent an entire day at praia guincho, one of the more beautiful beaches near Lisboa. Despite the cold when it was getting later, we stayed there until sunset. So worth it!
Last Sunday, I made a trip to LX factory, an old industrial site which is now a creative island. Here you can find wonderful shops, nice restaurants and bars, architects, fashion designers, advertising agencies, artists, photographers and so on. And on top of that, each sunday the LX market takes place, where you can find both vintage and new treasures.
I’m having such wonderful times here. Enjoying outjazz on friday nights with amazing jazz bands, looking out over the river Tejo at the miradouro de Santa Catarina, close to the hostel where I stayed for almost two weeks and met so many lovely people, and close to my new home, that I’m so happy with. Dancing to the great music at outjazz on sunday’s, meeting even more lovely people. Life in Lisbon couldn’t be any better.
As I told you last week: it’s about time I start showing you where to go in my hometown (okay, in the city 12 km next to my hometown), instead of always rushing of to other cities or countries. In part one, I showed you Hasselt’s one and only vintage shop, this time we’re getting some culture and something to eat!
I’m always off to Brussels, Antwerp or cities in faraway countries and sometimes I forget where I come from. Close to home there’s some good stuff to be found as well!
Over 20 photos in one post isn’t too much, or is it? Sometimes I just can’t help it, sometimes I really can’t kill my darlings! (Oh wait, you should’ve seen the amount of photos I started with…) A few weeks ago, me and some friends paid a visit to our Belgian king, or much rather the gigantic greenhouses in his even more gigantic garden. The royal greenhouses of Laeken are wonderful and certainly a must-see, too bad they are only open for the public during the month of April and you’re not allowed to visit all of the domain, only a specific route is public.
Last week, I showed you the beautiful gardens of the Carthusian monastery, and today it’s time for the inside of this abandoned building and the artwork displayed at the festival. I don’t remember the artists, but if you’re interested, you can take a look at the ithaka website.
all photos by me
Last week, I visited Ithaka, a visual arts festival in an abandonned building in Leuven, organized by students. This year, Ithaka celebrated its 20th anniversary and occupied the old carthusian monastery. When I arrived at the monastery, I was mind blown by the fact that such a beautiful location existed in Leuven and I wasn’t aware of it at all. So today, I have a few photos of the gorgeous garden for you, and next week I’ll flood you with lots of photos of the inside and the displayed art. (More information about ithaka and the monastery here.)
all photos by me
A few weeks ago, I went to see the Cy Twombly exhibition in the Bozar in Brussels. Besides Cy Twombly, I also took a look at NICHE, Bozar’s micro exhibition of young Belgian architecture and the Image / Construction ‘3 cities’ series. These three exhibitions are still showing, so I suggest you pay a visit to the Bozar soon!
all photos by me
Yesterday I showed you how amazing the Existenz Maximum location looked this year, today I’ll give you an impression of what happened there at night… There was a lot of dancing, making new friends (preferably with tiger socks), dressing up to do the lindy hop, cosmic leggings and surprised people gazing out the window at the construction workers who started destroying the other part of the building while we hadn’t made it to our beds yet. What a week!
Remember this? Like every year, the Existenz Maximum week took place in an abandoned building in Leuven, this time the old management buildings of Stella were the place to be. Unlike last year, I’m no part of the Existenz team anymore, which meant I could fully enjoy all of it! Of course I never let an opportunity pass by to take photograph or two, so here’s a first small (hmm) selection!
Our last but one (that’s right, only one post about Morocoo left!) led us to Ait Ben Haddou, a fortified berber city, and Ouarzazate, also known as the ‘Moroccan Hollywood’, since it is the set for films like the gladiator. To get there, we had to take 5 hour drive by bus through the mountains (where it was freezing!), which made me so car sick (and I’m usually pretty immune), but luckily the amazing views made up for that.
all photos by me
On one of our trips outside Marrakech, we visited the Ourika valley and Imlil, a small village in the mountains. This trip totally convinced me of the Morocco’s beauty. How insane are those mountains? On our way over there, we stopped at a traditional berber home and got the chance to take a look inside. Imlil is a must-see by the way, we climbed all the way up to the mountains to see the water falls, and on our way up, we crossed all these small restaurants which looked so cosy and colorful. There were so many restaurants, I’m assuming this place must be packed with tourists during the summer, but when we were there it was luckily quite calm.
all photos by me
When we were in Morocco, we made a little trip to Essaouira, a town by the seaside. On our way over there, we stopped at a place where women made argan oil according to old traditions. (photo 1 and 2) They explained the process to us and we could try both the culinary oil (tastes so good with a piece of bread) and the cosmetic oil (of which I took a little bottle home, it’s supposed to work miracles for your hair and skin). When we were in Essaouira, we enjoyed the view over the sea, ate fresh fish (including sea urchin!) and enjoyed the only beer we found on our entire trip, in a café which was nothing more then a roof and a view over the sea, and where they only served beer and coke.
all photos by me
In my second post about my Moroccan trip, I’m showing you photos of our more touristic outings in Marrakesh. We saw several palaces (wish I remembered which one’s, but the names are so hard and there were so many… oops!) and the divine Jardin Majorelle (recognizable by the gorgeous blue building), once restored by Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé. That gorgeous blue color alone is enough reason for me to consider going back to Morocco!
all photos by me
Yay, my first post about my trip to Morocco! I’m starting with my photos that portray the atmosphere of the old part of Marrakesh (the medina), where our hotel or ‘riad’ was located. Below a few photos of Jemaa el-Fnaa, the (huge) main square of Marrakesh. By day the place is filled with snake charmers, men with monkeys on leaches and women putting henna tattoos. By night, the square turns into a giant restaurant with one stall after another, all offering ‘best price’.
On our walks through Marrakesh, we discovered the city, varying from wide roads with chaotic traffic and narrow little streets which are very crowded by day and almost empty at night.
On one of our walks through the old town, we came by an old cinema, which was unfortunately closed permanently but still open for curious passengers like us.
And finally, some photos from inside the souks, where you can find anything from leather bags, authentic pairs of kelim boots (which cost about a quarter of the price you pay for ‘real’ kiboots), colorful slippers and scarfs, kelim carpets, djellabas (the traditional costume in Morocco), beautiful lanterns and all kinds of jewelry.
all photos by me
I told you I would keep an eye out for more confetti smiles! I discovered three more confetti smiles in my city Leuven. If you want to see them for yourselves: the first one was in the Parijsstraat, on the side facade of the Metafoor, the other’s are in the Charles Deberiotstraat on the left side of the parc, in the parc on the backside of the stage and in the Leopold Vanderkelenstraat, next to Museum M. Such adorable street art, this surely turns a smile on my face every time I cross one of these!
all photos by me
photo by me
I’m done with interior design and photography deadlines, but the next 5 weeks will be spent behind my books, studying for my exams. I’ll try to update regularly though, once in a while I need a break after all! Luckily I have something to look forward too, as I’m going to Morocco for a week when I’m done with my exams. Should be good! (And warm… Yay.)
This photo was taken in my city Leuven, somebody is decorating the city with happy confetti smiles, which cheers me up every time I cross it. I’ll try to document as many smiles as possible!
We visited quite a lot of museums as we wanted to see as much Klimt paintings as possible, which are -of course- spread over several museums in Vienna. The first museum we visited was the museum of the history of art (see photo above), which wasn’t really my cup of tea as I’m more into modern art.
Art was also visible in the streets though, this was an installation next to a cross road, which included sound effects. Apparently the installation was a memorial for the end of the occupation of Austria by the U.S.
We visited the Technical Museum too, as a part of the course we were taking, and this museum was all about mining, old trains and engines, the history of household appliances and so on. Quite nerdy if you ask me! It was nice relaxing in the entrance hall afterwards though.
The Hundertwasser House, I think this can count as a piece of art aswel!
We also visited the Secession hall to see the famous Beethoven fresco by Klimt (no pictures allowed), where we could also enjoy some modern art. This was an other installation including sound effects, where mirrors would reflect the sounds to the walls. This sparked the interest of the engineering students that accompanied us, I was just very pleased with the photo opportunities this installation offered.
I think I’ve shown these pictures of the Belvedere before, but these were the museums where most Klimt paintings could be found. No photos allowed inside though, but you just have to see them in real life. I’ve been staring at the Kiss and other famous Klimt works for quite a long time, they are all so beautiful! I did manage to sneakily take a photo of my friend in the new, modern corridor of the museum though. Rebel!
The mumok was my favorite though, it included a lot of stunning modern art and the building was quite impressive too.
Herbert Brandl
Gerhard Richter
And finally, the entrance stairs of the Albertina museum. We weren’t planning on visiting this one, but then we came across these stairs on our city walk and learned that there was an exhibition on Monet (of course) and Picasso, and another one on Magritte, our Belgian pride. We just couldn’t resist!
all photos by me
One night, the other participants of the Athens program and me went to the opera. We got ourselves some cheap standing tickets and indulged in the opera experience. Too bad we didn’t know in advance this was planned, otherwise I would have brought my fanciest dress with me to fit right in with the regular visitors. I loved watching those people, all dressed up in gorgeous dresses and carrying chanel handbags, staring at the stage through binoculars. Such a fascinating evening.
all photos by me
My trip to Vienna was lovely, although very cold. I took a course about industrial archaeology at the TU Wien for one week, which luckily included very few lessons and lots of free time to go sightseeing in Vienna. In this first photo-loaded post, I want to give you an impression of this city. I didn’t come home as enchanted as I did after my visit to Lisbon, but it’s a very beautiful city. All the streets are very wide and clean, all the buildings are decadent and bombastic. Not really my kind of thing (I liked the little streets and charming houses in Lisbon a lot more), but gorgeous nonetheless.
So, a little tour through Vienna! In the upper photo, you can see Hofburg palace, which nowadays is the official residence of the President of Austria, but it also hosts the national library, the Sisi museum, the Spanish riding school and more.
The old Karlsplatz station by Otto Wagner, which currently is used as a café.
Karlskirche, the enormous church next to our university.
And our university building!
The Viennese city hall.
One of the many many christmas markets in Vienna (apparently you can’t start the holiday spirit early enough), this one was probably the biggest, and in front of the city hall.
The Belvedere, previously a summer palace of a french prince, nowadays a museum where you can find a lot of Klimt paintings (one of my favorites!), including The Kiss.
Inside St. Stephans cathedral: there were colorful lights projected everywhere. Kind of weird for a church but I did end up with a few cool photos so I’m not complaining. You should take a look here to see the outside of the church, the roof of this church is so weird.
Inside the museum of art history. Seriously almost every building in Vienna looked like this on the inside!
all photos by me
YARD is a lovely boutique / gallery in Leuven, offering gorgeous stuff from various young designers and artists, so if you’re looking for a unique addition to your wardrobe, an original gift or a one-of-a-kind piece of art, this is where you should be! For more info, you can take a look at their website or webshop.
My apologies for being so absent on the blog lately, I’ve been having some trouble with settling down now my lessons have started again and getting everything done that needs to be done. But I’m back now! Last Sunday, ‘Dag van de architectuur’ took place in Flanders, on this particular day several buildings (both public and private) open their doors for lovers of architecture, and I was given the opportunity to photograph for the organization. They wanted photos that would show how much of a success this day was, portraying lots of interested people, but of course I couldn’t resist taking some photos of these beautiful buildings as well! These photos are from the openbaar entrepot voor de kunsten, a building belonged to the customs and now is the new home for several cultural initiatives, with rehearsal rooms, a theatre and a café. The industrial vibe made it one of my favorites!
all pictures taken by me
No ‘things that make smile’ post today, since my ‘things that make me smile’ folder has disappeared… If you miss it, you can always take a look at my previous sunday posts here.
Instead, you get these photos from the lovely picnic me and my friends had during the summer. Good times.
I recently visited the MAS again, and this time I got to see the collection (last time the museum wasn’t officially open yet), but I must say I was a little bit disappointed! The museum rooms were too crowded and too dark to my liking, and all the items were placed very closed to each other, which made it even harder to enjoy the collection easily. Maybe I have to give it another chance on a calmer day? Anyway, I did get a nice photo out of it.
In my last post about my trip to Lisboa, I want to give you one last must-go! While strolling through the city, we found this adorable bar, LOSTin, with a spectacular view over Lisboa. If you ever visit this city, you defintely have to spend some time here! You can find it at Rua D.Pedro V, 56, or check out their website (as soon as it’s online) here.
Behind every corner in Lisbon, there’s a piece of art. Whether it be graffiti, beautiful paintings or photos of the old inhabitants of the little street you’re exploring.
One day of our stay in Lisbon, was spent at the Expo Park. In 1998, the world exposition was held in Lisbon, with the theme ‘The Oceans, a Heritage for the Future’. Nowadays you can walk through the park, take a look at the pavilion of Portugal by Alvaro Siza (pictured above, but if you take a look here, you might get abetter idea of how impressing this building is), the trainstation by Calatrava, enjoy the ‘vulcanic’ fountains and so on. We had a great time and there were lots of gorgeous things to see, so expect a picture-heavy post!
I’ve already showed you streetviews of Lisbon, and the colorful ‘azulejos’ you find on almost every house. This time I’m showing you clear views on Lisbon’s facades. I’ve expressed my love for this city before, but I will again today! All the houses are so bright and colorful, and there are beautiful and funny details to be found at every house: pretty lanterns, bird cages next to the window with fake or real birds, colorful laundry drying outside the windows or beautiful plants bringing nature to the city.
Despite always carrying my DSLR camera with me, I also brought a disposable camera with me to Lisbon. Here are my favourite shots of the trip!
Perhaps you noticed it already in one of my previous posts about our trip to Lisbon (1, 2, 3), but almost every house in this Portugese city is covered in colorful tiles. In Portugal, they are called ‘azulejos’ and they are very typical for this country, as production started in the 16th century and continues until today. I photographed all my favourite patterns, so I thought, why not combine them in one post and show these little details that make this city so beautiful.
I’ve finally gone through all my pictures of my trip to Lisbon, and I present you here the first batch! Today I’m showing you some photos of which I hope they’ll give you an impression of what a lovely city Lisbon is and how many beautiful and colorful streets you come across when taking a walk through the city.
This is one of my favourite photos of my trip to Lisbon: an old man, waiting for the fish to bite (his fishing rods are outside of the view), who found that one spot of shadow on the sunny quay.
PS. Now we’re talking about my photos of Lisbon: I’ve finally sorted all of them out and you can expect many posts about my trip soon!
(picture by my father)
One of the many places you must certainly visit when staying in Lisbon is the castelo de São Jorge. The ruins of this castle offer an amazing view over the city and taking a walk through the castle while running into the many peacocks that enjoy it’s garden is a great way to spend a sunny afternoon.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OiEJlRFyf1s]
Press play to get the right soundtrack with these pictures of our trip to Worldwide Festival, in the South of France. They’re all taken with a disposable camera, hence the poor quality, but I think they give a good impression of what an amazing trip this has been. Here you can find some videos by “Brussels’ bearded wonder” Lefto (who did an amazing set at WF), which give a pretty good impression of the festival aswell.
On our way to the South of France.
Scary little bridge.
Our camping spot.
Théatre de la mer, this is where we saw James Blake. (Here‘s a video of the show, I get goose bumps every time I rewatch this.)
Every night, we danced under that lighthouse.
We ate the best pizza ever on the edge of the water.
Dancing on the beach.
all pictures taken by me
And I’m back! I fell head over heels in love with Lisbon, it’s such a beautiful city, with it ‘s small streets, cute houses, adorable trams and graffiti overload. Expect a lot of photos (I’ve taken about 500 pictures) in the days to come! Here’s the first batch, taken on our first walk in the city.
Another museum! It seems like I spend all of my freetime in museums, buth I have to admit, all of these museums I have visited for the architecture rather than their collection, and most of these visits were for one of my courses! That aside, I really enjoy these visits. Anyway, this is Museum M, Leuven’s pride.
all pictures taken by me
Last weekend, the ‘Museum Aan de Stroom’ (or simply the MAS), was opened in Antwerp with the expected festivities. I didn’t make it to the opening, but a few weeks ago, we already payed a visit to the MAS for one of our courses. Here are a few pictures!
all pictures taken by me
Kapelle St. Bruder-Klaus by Peter Zumthor, located in the middle of nowhere, inbetween fields.
The breathtaking interior of Zumthor’s chapel. I didn’t know what to expect from the interior, but it certainly wasn’t this. A must-see.
Kunstmuseul Bonn by Shultes Frank architects.
Deutsches Architekturmuseum in Frankfurt.
Siedlung Westhausen and Siedlung Römerstadt from Das Neue Frankfurt. I enjoyed walking in between the small houses and big trees with their pretty shadows.
all pictures taken by me
Recently I took a little roadtrip along with 50 other architecture students to Frankfurt. I will show you all of the pictures soon, but this building diserves a post of it’s own. On our way to Frankfurt, we stopped by the most beautiful museum I’ve ever been to. Seriously,if you ever get the chance, please visit the Kolumba Art museum of the Archoiocese of Cologne. It’s designed by Peter Zumthor and the architecture is mindblowing, all of us walked around in awe and totally forgot about what time we had to be back at the bus and where we would find a meal before we got there.
all pictures taken by me