Go for a stroll in the Canal district

With the canal as its backbone, this district, which is as varied as it is creative, is undoubtedly one of the most vibrant in Brussels. Architectural curiosities, citizen projects and sustainable initiatives all contribute to the identity of the former industrial heart of the capital. A favourite with creative people and young hipsters, the Canal district is a promising and inspiring work in progress. Street art, industrial wastelands, urban farms and alternative music... Here is our 6-stop itinerary to immerse yourself in this lively, arty and slightly underground neighbourhood for a day.

10h00, Ruby Gallery

After the MIMA, the iMal and KANAL, Ruby Gallery is the newest member of the club of local institutions that are boosting contemporary art. Founded by the team behind The Crystal Ship festival, it showcases street art and lets a whole new generation of artists express themselves. After your visit, walk along Quai des Charbonnages and Quai des Péniches towards Tour & Taxis: their walls are full of tags and murals. Among them, you can't miss the one from the adventures of Hugo Pratt's Corto Maltese. It's the longest of its kind in the capital!

19 Boulevard de Dixmude, 1000 Brussels

11h30, Parckfarm

With its motto "from the pitchfork to the plate", ParckFarm is a green space composed of an urban vegetable garden, in the middle of which stands a greenhouse, the Farm house. Supported by the ParckFarm non-profit organisation, the park is a citizen's platform that promotes ecological, sustainable and solidarity-based practices. This long, green valley offers an astonishing view of the northern district and its skyline!

Boulevard du Jubilé - Jubelfeestaan, 1080 Molenbeek-Saint-Jean

12h35, Gare Maritime

A meeting point for hipsters and gourmets (among others), the Gare Maritime is the trendiest venue of the moment. A former cargo terminal in operation until the 1980s, it has been brilliantly renovated. The first thing you notice here is the architectural grandeur: The combination of iron pillars, the 19th century glass roof and Scandinavian-style light-coloured wood is a triumph. People come and spend time here for the atmosphere, the interior gardens and its tempting food court. Join one of the many guided tours that introduce you, in detail, to this neighbourhood within a neighbourhood.

11 rue Picard, 1000 Brussels

gare-matime-tour&taxis brussels architecture

MIMA the Millennium Iconoclast Museum of Art

The MIMA is situated on the remarkable site of the former brewery Belle-Vue beside the canal in the center of Brussels. The MIMA is a new museum with an international vocation that advances contemporary, accessible and viral creations such as Street Art. The MIMA presents temporary exhibitions, encounters, projections, concerts, performances as well as a permanent collection. It also houses an art shop, a restaurant and two magnificent panoramic viewing points over the canal and Brussels in a magnificent building covering four different floors.

MIMA the Millennium Iconoclast Museum of Art

Gare Maritime - Tour & Taxis

The Gare Maritime - From industrial freight station to energy neutral urban jungle! It is the perfect setting for innovative cultural events, film or photo shoots, trade shows, fairs, product launches or promotions. The historic station concourse that was part of the Gare Maritime has been transformed into an indoor city with its own food hall (coming September 2021), exclusive shops and offices. Countless unique and inspiring areas and warm, wooden structures alternate in this building complex. It is perfectly suited to accommodate both small and major events. The monumental nave is a true architectural eye-catcher, bathed in indirect sunlight and providing ample space for well-attended indoor activities. Any event in the Gare Maritime is a green event. Sustainability has been key during the renovation works. The building generates its own energy from renewable sources, using geothermics and solar panels. The green boulevards on either side of the nave are lined with themed gardens and tall trees, as if the adjacent park found its way inside. The Gare Maritime is a unique place - attractive, innovative and ambitious.

Gare Maritime - Tour & Taxis

LaVallée

LaVallée, a 6 000 m² former industrial laundry in Molenbeek, is a 'third place' that houses a community of artists and creative entrepreneurs, offering a multidisciplinary cultural programme, as well as spaces for rent. It is a dynamic and friendly space thanks to the synergies between its various occupants, and its high quality yet offbeat programming.

LaVallée

Magasin 4

Currently closed. The new Magasin 4 will open its doors in 2024. Magasin 4 is a club founded in 1994 dedicated to alternative music : Hardcore, Funk, Punk, Alternative Rock, Ska, Pop, Experimental Musics, Chanson Française, Jazz and a lot of original fusions... The entrance fee is kept low so that nothing can prevent you from discovering groups and styles.

Magasin 4

Kanal - Centre Pompidou

When it reopens in 2024, Kanal-Centre Pompidou will become the largest cultural institution in Brussels, with more than 35,000m² dedicated to current artistic creation in all its forms. After presenting KANAL BRUT - an exhibition in its own, raw space - and then a major two-part exhibition by Swiss artist John M Armleder, the huge garage closed its doors for renovation. However, Kanal remains active in the Brussels cultural sector and is multiplying its collaborations with local actors. Exhibitions and events are planned at K1, a space opposite the building site.

Kanal - Centre Pompidou

Kaaitheater

Kaaitheater is a Brussels arts centre, presenting local and international performing arts productions: from the 1980s to the present, from repertoire to experimental, from small theatre to large. In a world of one-off hits, Kaaitheater offers artists long-term commitment. Social and ecological topics are a prominent element in its programme. Kaaitheater presents about 75 productions each season on two locations in the Brussels' canal zone: Kaaitheater and Kaaistudio's. From summer 2022 on and for, in principle, two years, Kaaitheater (but not the Kaaistudio’s) will be undergoing renovation works and its activities will be partly hosted by other theatres in Brussels and the surrounding area: De Kriekelaar, KVS, CC de Factorij, CC Strombeek, Westrand, Bronks, Théâtre National Wallonie-Bruxelles, Atelier 210, Halles de Schaerbeek, Rosas Performance Space, Tour & Taxis, AB, Raffinerie Charleroi Danse, Théâtre Varia.

Kaaitheater

iMAL, Center for Digital Cultures and Technology

iMAL is an art center for digital cultures and technology, located in the center of Brussels. Our international position as pioneer in this field since 20+ years was reinforced in 2020 with the opening of our new venue, including a large exhibition space, an expanded state-of-the-art Fablab, a digital library and more. We support artistic and creative practices using (digital) technologies as their medium. Next to providing support for artists in their experimentation-, research- and production processes, iMAL is hosting art exhibitions, conferences, performances. Furthermore we also facilitates critical reflection, research and debates around the current and future challenges of our technological society, by stimulating cross-pollinations between art and technology. With our wide range of activities and elaborated mediation program, we aim to empower people and inspire the next generations to actively participate in today and future digital cultures. Our Fablab encourages social inclusion and innovation towards sustainable development within the local community of Molenbeek.

iMAL, Center for Digital Cultures and Technology

Parckfarm Tour & Taxis

Parckfarm is located at Tour & Taxis and the railway wasteland left by the abandonment of the site. Since 2014, this park has been an edible park where urban agriculture is practiced and sustainable food is promoted. Thanks to Parckfarm, inhabitants have reappropriated this green space. Covering nine hectares, the park is the largest in central Brussels. You'll see a shared orchard, a vegetable garden, a neighbourhood compost, a chicken coop, beehives and a bread oven. The bees enhance the biodiversity of the park; you might even leave with a jar of fresh honey! Stop at La Farmhouse, a greenhouse with a cafeteria where you can enjoy vegetarian dishes prepared with products from local craftsmen and traders. Take a seat in the reading corner and enjoy the entertainment and board games available, without any obligation to eat! Join guided tours, activities and workshops: gardening, herbalism, honey-potting, bread-making... Discover an obelisk dedicated to human rights and a playground built with materials salvaged from the old railway that used to run there. Make sure you visit the Gare Maritime, a street food market and venue for events, exhibitions and shops that's surrounded by greenery! If you're a video game fan, head for the nearby Pixel Museum and if you like beer, visit some of the area's numerous breweries.

Parckfarm Tour & Taxis

15h00, LaVallée

An old disused laundry transformed into a cultural hive, you say? Head to Molenbeek, just across the canal. Open to creation in all its forms, LaVallée infuses the social and solidarity economy and creativity by bringing together a multidisciplinary community in the shadow of its emblematic red brick chimney. Throughout the year, it offers a varied programme of exhibitions, concerts, DJ-sets, debates and conferences, all of which punctuate the famous evenings of this hybrid, friendly and welcoming place.

39 rue Adolphe Lavallée, 1080 Brussels

(c)smart coopérative - Alexis Haulot

17h30, Wim Delvoye, Cement Truck

A medieval-looking semi-trailer parked in the middle of the quai au Foin? No, you're not dreaming! "Cement Truck" is a three-dimensional work of art made entirely of carefully laser-cut steel. Conceived by Wim Delvoye, a leading figure in Belgian contemporary art, this astonishing piece of construction machinery provokes astonishment. By combining the finesse of the Gothic style with the massive silhouette of a truck, the work plays on the discrepancy between the centuries and aesthetics with a lot of humour and a touch of provocation.

Quai au Foin - Hooikaai, 1000 Brussels

Cement-truck-Wim-Delvoye brussels contemporary art

20h45, Magasin 4

Magasin4, or M4 to its fans, is an unusual place dedicated to alternative music. With its tagged walls lined with punk posters and its fanzine spirit, it acts as a link between the big venues and the small bars. It has kept something of the underground soul of its beginnings back in 1994, even if its programming likes to mix genres: Hardcore, Funk, Metal, Alternative Rock, Pop and lots of original fusions! Fans of indie music and parties that go on late into the night, this mythical place is the place for you!

51B avenue du Port, 1000 Brussels