It used to be a coal mine. Then it became a zoo. And now it is an experimental art project called Labiomista.
The Belgian artist Koen Vanmechelen has taken over an abandoned site on the edge of Genk as a breeding ground for animals including chickens, llamas and dromedaries.
Vanmechelen has also set up an alternative organic food and drink project called Nomadland. It occupies a cluster of brightly-painted fairground caravans and tents in a field opposite Labiomista. Check the website for summer opening times.
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.
