Queen Mathilde, King Filip’s wife, visited the brand-new BRUSK art hall in Bruges (West Flanders) on Monday. The hall opens to the general public on 8 May, but the queen of Belgians was able to take a sneak peek. “She was truly impressed. Astonished, even,” says Lieven De Visch of Musea Brugge, the umbrella of museums in Bruges.
BRUSK will have its festive grand opening with the public at large attending next weekend. Numerous exciting activities are planned. But Queen Mathilde was able to take a look at some of the museum’s galleries before the opening proper. She was able to discover both Bruges’s artistic past and become acquainted with contemporary art.
It was Bruges Mayor Dirk De fauw, West Flanders Governor Carl Decaluwé, and the director of Musea Brugge, Kristl Strubbe, who welcomed the queen. In the art hall’s stairwell, French artist Laure Prouvost told the queen all about her gigantic new fresco. 'Imagination in Power' measures no less than 350 square meters and references strong women and the history of Bruges.
Visit to Two Exhibitions
The queen visited the two exhibitions BRUSK is putting on: “Latent City,” an exhibition by digital artist Refik Anadol, and “Wide Screen: Interwoven Worlds of Bruges 900–1550,” an exhibition that shows how Bruges developed into a global crossroads during the Middle Ages.
“The queen knows her history,” says Lieven De Visch of Musea Brugge. He had the privilege of guiding the queen round. “She was extremely interested and asked a lot of questions. For example, about Memling’s Passion of Christ, a masterpiece on loan from the Sabauda Gallery in Turin (Italy). And about the section on pilgrimage.”
Contemporary art is also highlighted. After visiting BRUSK, the queen proceeded to BRON, Musea Brugge’s research centre of. There, she toured the restoration workshop and the print room.