When the university town of Louvain-la-Neuve was established in 1968, the founders decided to create a utopia. Located in the middle of Brabant fields, Belgium’s first new town in centuries would ban cars from the streets and create a city where everything was within walking distance.
One of the architectural highlights is a striking brutalist building on the main square. Designed by the architect André Jacqmain in 1970, the building was planned as a science library at the heart of the utopian town.
The interior spaces are crafted out of raw concrete moulded into mysterious, sensual curves. Recently restored to its original state, it opened in late 2017 as a museum dedicated to art and science.
Derek Blyth’s hidden secret of the day: Derek Blyth is the author of the bestselling “The 500 Hidden Secrets of Belgium”. He picks out one of his favourite hidden secrets for The Brussels Times every day.
