Belgian Comic Strip Center

The Belgian Comic Strip Centre ( BCZ ) (English: The Belgian Comic Strip Center, French: Centre Belge de la bande dessinée ( BCSC ), Dutch: Belgisch Centrum voor het Beeldverhaal ), is the national museum of Belgian comics. It is located in the rue des Sables 20 Rue des Sables in Brussels.

The original building

The building was built in 1906 by the famous architect Victor Horta in the Art Nouveau style and was originally a department store for the cloth merchant Charles Waucquez. After Waucquez died in 1920, the building fell into ruin, after 1970 the textile wholesale closed its doors. Jean Delhaye, a former employee of Horta, trying to save from ruin the building. On October 16, 1975, it was recognized by the Royal Commission for Monuments and landscapes as a protected heritage site. But the building remained degenerated and was a selected target for vandalism.

Restoration and new function

In 1980, the architect Jean Breydel the house and was considering the whole building to be restored. The fact that Belgium is regarded as a center of European comic art, justified the establishment of a museum in honor of the great men of the Belgian comics. Breydel and the comic artist Bob de Moor and Alain Baran, who had also visited the building, were obtained directly for the idea and also Hergé supported the plan. In 1983 there was also financial support, as the Minister of Public Works, Louis Olivier decided that the building should be purchased by the public administration buildings. Horta last still existing department store was from then on state property. 1986 was initiated by Government decision to restore it.

The main responsible Pierre van Assche ensured that the building was revised so that the original architecture has been restored and still in keeping with today's elements. The mosaic was laid by Italian specialists, because it no longer existed in Belgium, who dominated this style. On October 6, 1989, the Belgian Comic Strip Museum was opened in the presence of King Baudouin and Queen Fabiola.

The Belgian Comic Strip Museum

The museum has a restaurant, a room for Victor Horta, a library with a reading room and study room, an exhibition on the production of comic strips, an auditorium, a room in the original comic sketches are exhibited and a space above cartoon with original animation designs by now forgotten Belgian cartoons.

The ground floor of the book store, the bistro Horta. On the first floor you will find a chronological overview of the pioneers of Belgian comic strips, which is dedicated to all its own exhibition space. The comic artists that are exhibited here, all date from the period of 1929-1960. The legendary magazine Tintin and Spirou are presented here.

The museum regularly hosts special exhibitions (more than 60 since its inception ) and organized meetings between authors and the public.