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jULY 15, 2015 \ newsweekly - € 0,75 \ read more at www.flanderstoday.eu current affairs \ p2

30,000th time’s the charm

politics \ p4

BUSiNESS \ p6

innovation \ p7

The cellular level

education \ p9

art & living \ p10

Team spirit

Ypres’ Last Post ceremony took place for the 30,000th time last week, with the whole world watching

Is radiation from our mobile phones giving us cancer? We pose the question to a member of a new expert panel

Veerle Baetens and several other Flemish actors join Denmark for a Scandinavian-style TV thriller

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What you see is what you hear Composer Wim Mertens on 35 years – and 50 albums – as an outsider Christophe Verbiest More articles by Christophe \ flanderstoday.eu

As he releases his latest album – part one of an ambitious trilogy – Wim Mertens, one of Flanders’ most famous composers, talks about a life spent in music, the importance of politics in art and understanding through listening.

or 35 years, Wim Mertens has been one of Flanders’ most famous composers. Yet after all that time, he still seems to be an outsider: not classical enough for the classical music world; too classical for the world of pop. He did have some crossover successes in the 1980s, in particular with Struggle for Pleasure, the album by his ensemble Soft Verdict. Years later, the title track was used as a jingle by mobile phone operator Proximus, becoming one of the most widely known tunes in the country. Mertens (pictured) kept on working solo as well and now has some 50 albums to his name, some made up of several CDs. He’s just released Charaktersketch – the title is German – which is the first part of a trilogy. “For the first time in my life, I wanted to produce something that referred to both politics and the arts,” explains Mertens, who, in the first half of the 1970s, studied political and social sciences at the University of Leuven. “What’s the position of the arts – music, literature, paintings – versus the powers that be? That’s what I want to discuss in this trilogy, with only music.” The second part, What Are We, Locks to Do?, is a solo album inspired by the work of the Greek poet Callimachus who, in the third century BC, developed in Alexandria’s famous library the first system to classify 300,000 scrolls. The album is already recorded and will be released next year, as will the third part, Dust of Truth, on which Mertens is still working. That final album is based on the Battle of Actium in 31 BC, where Octavianus’ fleet made mincemeat of Cleopatra’s, bringing Europe under Roman rule. Mertens: “If it had gone the other way, Europe would have come under Egyptian influence.” Charaktersketch, meanwhile, deals with the problems with which Europe is confronted today. At least, that’s what it says in the promotional text that came with my copy of the album. Since the record contains nine instrumental compositions and no reference to this subject matter in the booklet, I doubt if the listener would get this by just playing the CD. Mertens, though, is convinced it works perfectly. “I come from an intellectual background, but in 1980 I made the decision: What you see is what you hear,” the 62-yearold says. “Everything I want to say should be deduced from the music; you have to hear it. You have to understand me by listening.” Even so, can he elaborate on what’s he’s trying to say with Charaktersketch? “What I try to do is explained in the title: making a sketch of the character of Europe. Not an essay, since that would take a much more definitive form. A sketch is more suitable.” Europe, he continues, “isn’t the bulwark it used to be. On continued on page 5

\ CURRENT AFFAIRS

30,000th Last Post ceremony in Ypres heard around the world Special anniversary edition falls during centenary of First World War Alan Hope Follow Alan on Twitter \ @AlanHopeFT

ire stations around the world held a minute’s silence last Thursday at 20.00 Belgian time, to mark the 30,000th Last Post ceremony taking place at that moment under the Menin Gate in Ypres. The worldwide commemoration of the fallen in the First World War was followed by a special edition of the ceremony in Ypres. The special occasion, titled A Tribute to the Tribute, was organised by Flemish stage and screen actor Wim Opbrouck. “We wanted to organise a moment of worldwide unity for the fallen soldiers,” he said, “and eventually thought of watching the Last Post together, with live connections across the entire world.” Screens were set up in about 220 participating fire stations and other venues around the world – “in Belgium, the UK, Canada, New Zealand, the Philippines” and other locations, Opbrouck told the magazine Goesting. “In Australia, even young people found it no problem to get up in the middle of the night to take part.”

The Last Post ceremony started in 1928 and has taken place every day since then, apart from a period between 1940 and 1944 when Belgium was under German occupation. The ceremony continued during that period, however, at Brookwood Cemetery in England. When Polish forces liberated Ypres in 1944, the ceremony resumed, even though fighting was still going on nearby. The event in Ypres was attended by many national and international dignitaries, including Queen Mathilde, Flemish minister-president Geert Bourgeois, federal defence minister Steven Vandeput and speaker of the national parliament Siegfried Bracke. It was followed later by the laying of a wreath in the city cemetery on the grave of Pierre Henri Van den Braembussche, founder of the Last Post Association, which organises the nightly ceremony. Earlier in the evening, Jan Peumans, speaker of the Flemish parliament, took part in a special Last Post ceremony in Berlin, attended by the German president Joachim Gauck.

Too much radiation from power lines in Flemish homes Some 16,000 households in Flanders are being exposed to more than the internationally recognised radiation limit of 0.4 microtesla because of their proximity to high-tension power lines, according to the government of Flanders. A new detailed model developed by the environment, nature and energy department (LNE) is meant to be used for the planning of future residential areas, to minimise the exposure of residents to the electromagnetic radiation given off by power lines. “The method can be used to decide which development scenario leads to the least amount of exposure,” explained LNE spokes-

person Brigitte Borgmans. As far as those who are already exposed are concerned, the government points out that the effects are unproven. “After more than 30 years of research, scientists still have no decisive evidence that magnetic fields can cause

leukaemia in children,” said Borgmans. According to radiation specialist Guy Vandenbosch of the University of Leuven, however, there is a statistical link between the levels of radiation and cases of leukaemia in small children. “But that does not necessarily mean there’s a causal link,” he said. The 0.4 microtesla limit was declared years ago by the International Agency for Research on Cancer in Lyon, part of the World Health Organisation. According to VTM News, the areas found to be over the limit in Flanders cover not only 16,000 homes but also 66 schools and 103 day-care facilities. \ AH

Mechelen court acquits Pirate Bay founders Two co-founders of the file sharing website The Pirate Bay and two of their colleagues have been found not guilty by a court in Mechelen of copyright infringement and abuse of electronic communications. The Pirate Bay allows users to download copyrighted material such as music, movies and games. It has been pursued by legal authorities across the world and is currently blocked in many jurisdictions, including Belgium.

The four acquitted are co-founders Gottfrid Svartholm Warg and Fredrik Neij, former representative Peter Sunde and investor Carl Lundström, all from Sweden. They were accused of aiding and abetting copyright infringement between September 2011 and November 2013. However, the defence argued that the four men have had nothing to do with the site since its sale to an African company called Reservella in 2006. Warg was in prison for

Nine people involved in the 2010 cell death of Jonathan Jacob will have to be retried, following the announcement that the group – seven police officers, a psychiatrist and the director of a psychiatric hospital – are objecting to their conviction and sentencing in absentia. Another police officer, as well as the commissioner for the Mortsel zone, were acquitted. Jacob was arrested under the influence of drugs that made him extremely agitated and incoherent. He was refused admission to the hospital in Boechout. Returned to a police cell in Mortsel, he was violently subdued by several members of the police special intervention squad. He died in his cell shortly after as a result of internal injuries. Last month the court returned guilty verdicts of involuntary manslaughter for the police and verdicts of criminal negligence for the medical staff. The doctors received six months, and the police four months, all suspended sentences. None of the accused was present for the trial or the sentencing, and their refusal now to accept the sentence means a new trial will have to take place. A date has not yet been set. \ AH

4,916

1,600

stolen bicycles returned to their owners since the launch of gevondenfietsen.be. Flemish and Brussels police zones provide information on the site about recovered bicycles

most of the period. The judge in Mechelen agreed that the prosecution had produced no evidence linking the site to the four accused during the time in question. “Technically speaking, we agree with the court,” said Olivier Maeterlinck, director of the Belgian Entertainment Association, which represents the producers of copyright material and was joined to the criminal case as a civil party. \ AH

Appeal forces retrial of Jonathan Jacob case in Antwerp

approved by mobility minister Ben Weyts for the Commuter Fund, intended to encourage workers to travel to work by public transport. The fund also encourages teleworking

would-be students of medicine and dentistry sat the exam to allow entry to the Flemish universities last week, among them 500 Dutch and 62 German students

newspapers thrown away unsold every year in Flanders, according to calculations by Apache.be. The number is about half of all papers on sale on any given day

hectares of poppies planted across Flanders by the Nature and Woodland Agency to mark the centenary of the First World War. The agency also announced four new cycle routes linking the poppy fields

jULy 15, 2015

WEEK in brief Cinema group Kinepolis has acquired rival chain Utopolis, including 13 cinemas, four of them in Flanders (Mechelen, Turnhout, Aarschot and Lommel). The takeover will require the go-ahead from the national competition authorities. Utopolis had 3.4 million visitors last year, with a turnover of €41 million. The other cinemas are in Luxembourg, the Netherlands and France. The city of Brussels will not be providing night-time cleaning crews for the new pedestrian zone, according to alderwoman Karine Lalieux. The zone has rapidly become a scene of vandalism, drunkenness and litter, with rubbish bins overflowing, petanque courts used as toilets and the new picnic benches covered in spilled beer. But cleaning workers already have to face insults and aggression during the day and would not feel safe at night, said Lalieux, who plans to install an additional 70 rubbish bins. The highest court in Switzerland has rejected a claim by the Belgian state to be recognised as a creditor of the administrators of the bankrupt Swissair. The court also turned down a claim by the administrators of Sabena, the Belgian national airline that went broke in 2001 after being assetstripped, Belgium claims, by Swissair. The state’s claim amounted to 746.6 million Swiss francs (€712.6 million). The administrators of Sabena were claiming €219.5 million. Suspects accused of rape will in future have to undergo testing for HIV and hepatitis, after a vote by the federal parliament. At present victims are given preventive treatment, which is not only costly but can have side effects. Under the new law, the suspect will be tested instead, sparing the victim a long period of uncertainty. If the suspect refuses to co-operate, a saliva sample can be taken by force, but

face of flanders that can only be used to test for HIV. The hundreds of dead bass seen floating in the Brussels canal between Biestebroek dock in Anderlecht and the Molenbeek lock probably died as a result of low oxygen in the water due to last week’s heat wave, environmental agency Leefmilieu Brussel said. The agency gathered some of the fish for testing. Last year’s “Pentecost storm” has been officially recognised as a natural disaster by the Brussels-Capital Region, which allows communes to award damages to property owners who were not insured against the severe hailstorms that took place. Owners have until 30 September to file a request for damages with the Disaster Fund. \ ibz.be

A courier for a South American money-laundering ring was arrested at Brussels South station last week in possession of €300,000 in cash. The gang is active in Europe and Asia, the prosecutor’s office said, but the co-ordinator of the couriers – also known as money mules – is based in Brussels. Police in two other European cities carried out searches that turned up €1.25 million in laundered cash belonging to the same gang. Ghent-based architects Robbrecht and Daem, whose projects include the controversial Stadshal in Ghent, have been selected to convert the Brussels Beurs building into a new Beer Museum. The group’s plans for the building include a new entrance at the back, a roof terrace with panoramic views and free access to the ground floor, turning it into what the architects describe as “a covered square”. Activist group Hart Boven Hard, which protests against government

austerity measures, has been given this year’s Democracy Prize by the non-profits Democratie 2000 and Trefpunt. The organisation, the jury said, had “succeeded in creating a broad coalition of social actors in a platform that works against spending cuts” and represented “an enrichment for democracy”. Lifeguards in the coastal town of Blankenberge now have a water scooter to help reach swimmers and surfers in difficulty. The scooter also handles well in shallow water and is safer than a boat in stormy weather. If the pilot period shows positive results, lifeguards at other Flemish beach resorts will also get scooters. Medical insurers have been warning clients to visit the dentist at least once this year in order to avoid higher costs that will be introduced next year for anyone who has not had a check-up at least once the previous year. The increased amount to be paid by the patient in such cases – sometimes as much as double – is meant as an incentive to improve preventative dental care. Antwerp Airport saw 55.8% more passengers in the first half of this year, compared to the same period in 2014. The main reason for the increase was new routes which started in the second quarter: in June this year 17,520 people travelled by scheduled flights, compared to 4,835 in June last year. Ostend-Bruges airport, meanwhile, handled 118,364 passengers in the first half, an increase of 11.4% on last year. Train passengers travelling from Roosendaal in the Netherlands to Antwerp can now buy a ticket from the Belgian rail authority NMBS for nearly one-third less. The NMBS has placed a ticket machine in the station, selling one-way tickets for €6.20 instead of the €9 charged by the Dutch NS.

OFFSIDE Bust a move It used to be that Flemish Community Day was celebrated with a good deal of solemnity, a bit of flag-waving and some sombre speechifying. Not any more. In the capital, the event this year was marked by Brussels Dances, dancing in the streets all day coupled with dance battles that didn’t end until the block party closed down at 2.00. That was the scene on Muntplein, organised by Muntpunt, the Flemish library and community centre. Elsewhere in town, Radio 2 was playing the Flemish Top 100 all day long, there was a variety show on Grote Markt (pictured), travelling performers wandered through town, and at the Brussels parliament – in the day’s

Nathalie Meskens She’s best known for assuming the faces of other celebrities on the hit TV sketch show Tegen de sterren op and – most recently – as part of the variety show on Brussels’ Grote Markt last Saturday in celebration of Flemish Community Day. But when the world-famous dance festival Tomorrowland kicks off in Boom 10 days from now, Nathalie Meskens will be playing herself. As well as being a gifted impressionist, comedic actor and singer, Meskens is also the proprietor of Yam Thai, a Thai street food restaurant in Antwerp. Opened two years ago, Yam Thai has been successful in the “cheap and cheerful category”. Last May she opened a second restaurant in the city with her husband, actor Jeroen Van Dyck, called Nimman after an area of the Thai city Chiang Mai. Street food is, of course, as hip as it comes these days, and the only way it could possibly be hipper would be to serve it from a food truck. That’s what she’ll be doing at Tomorrowland, which, as well as being constantly hailed as the world’s best electronic and DJ music fest, is also perhaps the most

well-heeled: Visitors travel from all over the world to be there, and large numbers book hotel rooms in Antwerp and Brussels rather than slumming it in tents. Meskens will be in good company. As well as Yam Thai, Tomorrowlanders will be able to choose dishes by names like Sergio Herman, Peter Goossens, Viki Geunes and Kobe Desramaults. Don’t expect her to be intimidated. She’s posed with another 11 Flemish celebrities for a naked calendar. She’s imitated Queen Mathilde, as well as Astrid Bryan. She had a magazine made for her alone. She’s played Ibsen on the stage for ’t Arsenaal in Mechelen and covered singers like Amy Winehouse, Randy Newman and Gnarls Barkly on stage. She’s won awards by the fistful, as best actress in the best series, beating off the challenge of Els Dottermans, Marie Vinck and Barbara Sarafian. She’s frequently also been voted the most popular TV personality (ahead of Jeroen Meus and Erik Van Looy) – and any award she doesn’t win is often picked up instead by one of the celebrities she impersonates. \ Alan Hope

Flanders Today, a weekly English-language newspaper, is an initiative of the Flemish Region and is financially supported by the Flemish authorities.

only remaining nod to solemnity – there was a lecture on the formation of Belgium and Flanders. In all, 14,000 people took part took part in activities related to the day on Saturday. “We got Brussels dancing on 11 July with a busy programme,” said Sven Gatz, wearing two hats as minister of culture and Flemish interests in Brussels. “The various activities on offer won over the visitors. Flanders Day in the capital was colourful and diverse, cheerful and infectious. In a nutshell: a great success.” Roel Leemans, acting director of Muntpunt, welcomed the “masses of Flemings who came to visit their capital and thousands of Brussels

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residents partying in their hometown. Add a bit of sunshine and some good cheer, and Brussels Dances 2015 was a great edition!” \ AH

Editor Lisa Bradshaw DEPUTY Editor Sally Tipper CONTRIBUTING Editor Alan Hope sub Editor Linda A Thompson Agenda Robyn Boyle, Georgio Valentino Art director Paul Van Dooren Prepress Mediahuis AdPro Contributors Rebecca Benoot, Bartosz Brzezi´nski, Derek Blyth, Leo Cendrowicz, Katy Desmond, Andy Furniere, Diana Goodwin, Julie Kavanagh, Catherine Kosters, Toon Lambrechts, Katrien Lindemans, Ian Mundell, Anja Otte, Tom Peeters, Daniel Shamaun, Senne Starckx, Christophe Verbiest, Débora Votquenne, Denzil Walton General manager Hans De Loore Publisher Mediahuis NV

Editorial address Gossetlaan 30 - 1702 Groot-Bijgaarden tel 02 373 99 09 editorial@flanderstoday.eu subscriptions tel 03 560 17 49 subscriptions@flanderstoday.eu or order online at www.flanderstoday.eu Advertising 02 373 83 57 advertising@flanderstoday.eu Verantwoordelijke uitgever Hans De Loore

\ POLITICS

5TH COLUMN Spoilsports

Celebrating Flemish Community Day on 11 July as ministerpresident is something Geert Bourgeois of Flemish nationalists N-VA has looked forward to for decades. The antics of his divided majority, however, made for a bittersweet celebration last Saturday. Events took an odd twist after last week’s announcement that Flanders was to receive an unexpected €400 million in funding. Some months ago, the region faced the painful news that it would receive much less than expected from the division of means between the country’s multiple levels of government. The government of Flanders was forced to choose between cuts or a deficit. That came on top of other bad news – based on EU regulations – on how to budget for the huge investment in the Oosterweel road link. Recalculation of the tax revenue brought some relief. The extra funds did not result in good spirits, though, but in more antagonism between the coalition partners in the Flemish government. Last month saw nasty verbal attacks on both environment minister Joke Schauvliege (CD&V) and housing minister Liesbeth Homans (N-VA). These seemed to be part of a larger fight for the centre-right electorate between N-VA and CD&V. Liberals Open VLD kept out of the arguments – until now. After budget minister Annemie Turtelboom complained that she had to learn of the extra funds from a press statement, rather than be informed by her federal colleague Johan Van Overtveldt (N-VA), the liberal Bart Somers rushed to her defence in parliament. Only to be embarrassed, when it was revealed that communication to both the press and the minister happened simultaneously. The reasons behind this sudden lack of confidence between government partners are not clear. Some believe that Somers was merely trying to regain the national attention he once had. Others suspect a liberal frustration about a lack of fiscal reform – if not a tax shift – on the Flemish level. After all, the liberals did not negotiate the government agreement; they were taken on board at the last minute. But with the minister for finance and budget in their ranks, they did hope to produce some achievements in the area. Either way, the incident was bad news for Bourgeois, who ironically had to call off a teambuilding dinner because of the shouting match in parliament. Seems like someone is always raining on his parade. \ Anja Otte

Flemish ombudsman to handle gender discrimination reports Flanders responds to new EU requirements with designated office Alan Hope More articles by Alan \ flanderstoday.eu

vlaamseombudsdienst.be

he Flemish parliament has approved a new role for the Flemish ombudsman, Bart Weekers: He is head of the team tasked with handling complaints of genderrelated discrimination. The European Union introduced a rule that obliges all member states to set up committees to monitor and promote equal treatment. The federal government body is the Institute for the Equality of Women and Men; Flanders had no corresponding body. “By increasing the scope of the Flemish ombudsman, we are meeting the demands of Europe,” said Matthias Diependaele (N-VA), who proposed the resolution. “As of now, anyone with a gender-related complaint can report directly to the ombudsman as an independent party.” In practice, the office will handle any complaint relating to gender, gender iden-

tity or gender expression: a woman who is dismissed for being pregnant, for instance, or

Muyters convinces antidoping agency to change approach

gay or transgendered people who are discriminated against on the housing market. Weekers (pictured) has handled gender matters in the past, he told De Standaard, as part of his responsibilities. In addition to handling complaints, his office will also carry out research into gender discrimination. “We will work on a better way to register these complaints,” he said. “It’s not enough to note that a bus drove past a stop where two gay men were waiting [referring to a recent case]. You have to know why that happened and try to do something, like training of bus drivers, to prevent it happening again.” In related news, the Flemish government said it intended to install gender-neutral toilets in its office buildings to allow transgendered people to use toilets without embarrassment. The doors of the toilets will sport a special logo to show they can be used by anyone.

Government simplifies policy on labour target group priorities

After discussions with Flemish sports minister Philippe Muyters, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has changed its guidelines for the testing of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), the minister has announced. Muyters approached WADA after Flemish decathlete Thomas Van der Plaetsen was suspended in September last year as a result of a high level of hCG found in his blood. The hCG hormone is produced by the placenta and usually only found in pregnant women. The hormone, thought to have performance-enhancing properties, is banned by WADA. The hormone, however, can be present in certain forms of testicle cancer. “Thomas Van der Plaetsen was unfortunately in that situation and was, therefore, wrongly accused of doping,” Muyters said. WADA has now changed its rules so the situation cannot happen again. Not only have the techniques of analysis been refined, Muyters said, but there will no longer be a preventive suspension in hCG cases, until the athlete in question has been examined by a physician. \ AH

The government of Flanders has given its approval in principle to the decree on target-group policy in the labour market proposed by minister Philippe Muyters. The new policy is simplified and concentrates on young people, people over 55 and those with a disability that prevents them from working. The range and variety of groups covered by 36 labour policy measures in the past was identified as a priority for simplification in the government’s first policy document. “Young people should be found a job as quickly as possible on leaving education; the longer they wait, the more distant they become from the job market and the more difficult it becomes to find a job,” Muyters said at the time. “We are opting for the over-55s because we will all have to work longer if we want to keep our social security system func-

tioning. Finally, for people with a work handicap, we will provide compensation for their loss of productivity.” The new decree defines young people as those under the age of 25 and limits itself to those with no higher education qualification. The premium paid to companies hiring people over 55 should also be paid to companies who keep those people in service, Muyters said. People with a disability will continue to be covered by the Flemish Support Premium, which likewise pays a premium to employers who hire members of this group. One category is added: people with psycho-social problems. The proposed decree now goes to the various advisory groups for their observations. Deadlines and financial figures will be worked out later by the government. \ AH

Peumans and Bourgeois call for more autonomy in 11 July speeches Flanders has not only the right but also the duty to demand more autonomy, according to Jan Peumans, speaker of the Flemish parliament, giving the keynote speech in Brussels’ City Hall during the 11 July celebrations. The ceremony, which marked Flemish Community Day, was attended by representatives of all the Flemish parties, as well as prime minister Charles Michel and Walloon minister-president Paul Magnette. “Flanders is now in the process of becoming a nation,” Peumans (pictured) said in his speech. “As the strongest partner in the construction that is Belgium, we have the right and the duty to demand more autonomy, not only for ourselves but for all the regions.” The sixth state reforms most recently passed must not be considered an end to the matter, he said. Minister-president Geert Bourgeois, like Peumans a member of the nationalist party N-VA, gave his speech in Kortrijk on the eve of Flemish Community Day. “This Flemish government has great ambitions for Flanders,” he said.

“Flanders is a self-aware nation; a nation with a strong democracy, economy, language and culture. We Flemish are sometimes too reserved. We look at the ground when we should be holding our heads high. This government is working resolutely for a strong Flemish nation.” Bourgeois also returned to the issue of foreign trade, which has become a regional responsibility since the latest reforms were passed but continues to occupy the federal government, leading to a clash earlier in the year when Michel and former minister-president Kris Peeters visited the US. “We will soon have a ministry of foreign affairs, so the status of our diplomats has to be improved,” Bourgeois said. “Their place in the diplomatic lists should reflect the weight of their region when it comes to protocol. My government will not tolerate that the clock be turned back and that the federal level usurp Flemish responsibilities.” Flemish Community Day is celebrated every 11

July to mark the day in 1302 when a force of civil militias from the County of Flanders defeated an army of French knights on a field outside Kortrijk. Later named the Battle of the Golden Spurs, it was a notable event in military history as one of the few times that infantry prevailed over an opponent mounted on horseback. \ AH

\ COVER STORY

jULy 15, 2015

What you see is what you hear Wim Mertens’ new album is a sketch of contemporary Europe

WIMMERTENS.BE

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the contrary, it’s in danger. It will have to function differently from how it has done until now, or it will collapse. Nothing that’s based on unfunded authority will survive. It will need to be legitimated.” Mertens, born in 1953 in the north Limburg border town of Neerpelt, embraced music when he was eight. “Literally, even, since I started with the guitar, an instrument you can take into your arms,” he says. “It’s an ideal instrument to start with: not too dominant, adapting to the body of an eight-year old, very different from the piano.” Uncertainty paralysed him at 18, when he had to choose the direction in which he would steer his life. “It was a huge crisis,” he recalls. “Between eight and 18, I’d been involved with music very intensively. Literally on a daily basis: guitar, piano, music theory and history, you name it. Logically, after high school I would have gone straight to the Brussels or Antwerp Conservatory.” But his piano teacher Didine Geens felt there was more to the boy than music. “She lent me books about art, history and so on. I started to realise that music – and other art forms, too – change throughout history, and suddenly I was really interested in what elements caused those changes.” Music training, he says, didn’t at that point provide answers to those questions. “And I think it still doesn’t. That’s probably why music is so conservative – because you can only pass on what you know.” So, he says, he was looking for other answers. For two years he even stopped playing music, but then the urge became too strong.

Wim Mertens plays with his ensemble in Antwerp and Ostend this summer

to explore, that we didn’t have to run aground in musical sterility.” A rhetorical question follows.

Europe isn’t the bulwark it used to be. On the contrary, it’s in danger “While I was still studying in Leuven, two mornings a week I travelled to Brussels to follow some theoretical courses. After receiving my degree in political and social sciences, I went on to study musicology. First in Leuven, where at the time they focused heavily on early music, and afterwards at Ghent University, at the Institute for Psychoacoustics and Electronic Music.” There he wrote a Master’s thesis about American minimal music, a style that has clearly influenced him. “This music told me there were still new territories

“You know what the problem was? The Second World War had led to such a disastrous situation that no composer dared to work intuitively any more. They fell back on serial work and rational compositions.” Intuition, on the other hand, is highly important to Mertens’ work. “That’s how my music germinates: par chance sans effort.” French for “fortunately, effortlessly”, it’s also the title of one of his older compositions. “Coincidence implies risks,” he continues. “After this fortunate, effortless start, the real working

process begins: the practicalities for a new production, recording with the musicians, orchestrating the music. But the moment of the discovery is ‘given without givenness’. It’s free, and you have to leave it free. This has always been very important to me. It’s a way of escaping the purely rational.” At one point, Mertens calls Charaktersketch a symphonic work without a symphonic orchestra. “I don’t make music with epic dimensions,” he says. “I’ve never written an opera or a symphony. I’m looking for the power of smaller compositions.” From the start, he says, “I worked outside the existing musical organisations, to assume an independent position towards a dominant recording industry. Now this kind of attitude is commonly accepted, but back then, it was unusual.” Charaktersketch is played by an ensemble of 16 musicians, composer included. The four instrument groups all have their

place in the nine compositions. There are four ways of a producing sound, Mertens explains: bowed (string instruments), blown (wind instruments), strung (guitar and harp) and beaten (percussive instruments). “I linked these four groups with one of the basic elements: water with the strings, air with the winds, earth with the strung instruments and fire with percussion.” Mertens has compositions in which he sings (though not on this album) with his characteristic high-pitched counter-tenor – in a self-created language. “It has been called an artificial language, which is both true and false, since I sometimes incorporate existing words,” he explains. “During a performance, the language stays the same, but it can change from evening to evening. I can never identically repeat what I’ve sung before. Unless, as I have also done, I transcribe the words phonetically and let professional voices sing them.”

A song on an album is a recording – it doesn’t change. But, he says, “each concert is different, even if you play the same composition as on a recording. A CD, in the end, is just a primitive recording of a first possibility. Afterwards a composition needs to grow.” Not long after our interview, Mertens left for Spain. He’s popular in Mediterranean countries: Portugal, Italy, Spain and Greece. Is this is a case of “no man is a prophet in his own country”? “Until the end of the 1980s, that might have been so,” he says, “but afterwards it changed. Now it’s more or less 50-50. In those Mediterranean countries the music world was less dominated by the Central European musical traditions. That certainly helped me over there. All in all, I have no reason to complain.” The Wim Mertens Ensemble play on 22 July at Rivierenhof, Antwerp, 23 August at Openluchttheater, Ostend, and 25 September at Ancienne Belgique, Brussels

\ BUSINESS

week in business Air Jetair Tour operators Jetair, Sunjets and VIP Selection have announced the cancellation of all trips to Tunisia until the end of August, following the terrorist attack in Sousse on 26 June in which 38 people were killed. Passengers can transfer their bookings to another destination free of charge.

Brewing Van Honsebrouck Brewery Van Honsebrouck from Ingelmunster, West Flanders, has opened its new brewing facility in next-door Izegem, the first phase in a move to the new location. The plant, an investment of €40 million, will allow Van Honsebrouck, brewer of Kasteelbier and St Louis, among others, to double production to 200,000 hectolitres a year.

Petrochemicals BP The possible closure of the BP site in Hoboken in the port of Antwerp threatens over 60 jobs. Closure is one of the options in restructuring the site, which provides fuel for shipping. Others include downsizing, sale to a third party or continuing with an outside partner.

Railways NMBS Rail authority NMBS and infrastructure company Infrabel will need to be 20% more efficient by 2019, under a new modernisation plan announced by federal mobility minister Jacqueline Galant. The target will require savings of €663 million over the five years, to be determined by the companies.

Retail Docks Bruxsel The Brussels-Capital Region has issued an amended environmental permit to shopping centre Docks Bruxsel, planned for the canal district. A previous permit was declared void by the auditor of the Council of State because of mobility problems. The contents of the new document have not been revealed.

Taxis Uber The taxi firm plans to start operating in Antwerp later this year and also has its eye on Ghent, the company’s Belgian director said. Talks with Antwerp city council started last year and should be concluded soon, he said.

Technology Microsoft The Belgian-Luxembourg subsidiary of Microsoft, located in Zaventem, is closing its Advertising and Online office with the loss of 11 jobs. Microsoft recently sold its ad business to AOL and AppNexus.

FIT expands into US, Asia

New global offices for trade agency will help “attract new investments” Alan Hope More articles by Alan \ flanderstoday.eu

landers Investment & Trade (FIT), the Flemish government’s agency promoting international enterprise, is extending its network of offices starting next year, minister-president Geert Bourgeois has announced. The agency will open new offices in Vilnius, Lima, Houston, Vancouver and in Abuja (Nigeria) or Accra (Ghana). FIT will also have representatives present in Panama or in San José (Costa Rica), Rangoon and either Chongquing or Shen-

zhen in China, as well as somewhere in Kuwait. The main function of the new offices is to build local networks and monitor new growth markets, in order to better promote inward investment to Flanders and trade between different countries and regions. “With a strong office network in more than 90 locations worldwide, FIT is able to help Flemish companies find international success and to help foreign companies find their way to Flan-

ders,” explained CEO Claire Tillekaerts. “As the economic world is continually changing, the FIT network has to stay flexible.” The Flemish economy “survives through exports and investments,” commented Bourgeois. “We are one of the most globalised regions in the world. That’s why we have to make efforts to support our exports and to attract new investments. Flanders Investment & Trade has a crucial role to play in that effort.”

Claire Tillekaerts, CEO of FIT, speaking in Peru last year during an economic mission

Antwerp declares Sunday shopping a success

Coastal mayors plead for end to train union Saturday strikes

Almost one year after introducing Sunday shopping once a month, Antwerp city council has concluded that the city has become a top destination for shoppers from Flanders and the Netherlands who deliver an important economic contribution to the city. Visitors usually combine their shopping trip with a visit to a bar or restaurant, while shop owners are enthusiastic about the monthly event and take part in large numbers, alderman for business Koen Kennis said. Allowing shops to be open on the first Sunday of every month started last September in the officially recognised tourist centre, roughly bounded by the river and the avenues known as the Leien. The city recently carried out a survey of 8,000 visitors online and 650 on the street. Almost three-

The mayors of the municipalities along the Flemish coast have asked the train drivers’ union ASTB to lift its threat to strike every Saturday during the summer holiday period. The union ignored the plea, and, when talks with the NMBS fell apart at the weekend, confirmed the strikes will now go ahead. ASTB drivers are planning the day-long strikes – on 18 and 25 July and every Saturday in August – because their ongoing demand for better pay and conditions have not been addressed, the union said. “This is the seventh time in seven months that we’ve been confronted with train strikes, and now that the summer Saturdays are also being targeted it looks like our bank accounts are all going to be turning red,” commented Patrick De Klerck, mayor of Blankenberge and chair of the committee of coastal mayors. The coastal towns attract some six million day-trippers every year, with about one in 10 arriving by public transport. “The train ought to be the ideal means of transport, but the union’s actions will have the opposite effect,” De Klerck said. “This year we’ve managed to schedule a lot of extra trains, but that effort will have been wasted. This is a slap in the face.” \ AH

quarters of those polled said they had made purchases on an open Sunday, for an average price of €137 per day. Shoppers come mainly from Antwerp province, followed by East Flanders and Zeeland in the Netherlands. The numbers measured by a counting device installed on the main shopping street, Meir, have gone up steadily from 22,774 on the first Sunday last September to a peak of 71,031 during the winter sales, to settle at 56,241 earlier this month during the summer sales. “I am of course delighted with the success of Sunday shopping,” Kennis said. “I’d like to thank the sector and the shopkeepers for an excellent collaboration, and for the extra effort they deliver time after time.” The next Sunday opening is on 2 August. \ AH

More plaice in the North Sea than ever before The numbers of pladijs, or plaice, in the North Sea have never been as high as they are now, according to figures from the International Council of the Exploration of the Seas (ICES). Based in Copenhagen, ICES credited EU fishing quotas with the recovery of plaice stocks. Plaice stocks are estimated at 901,700 tonnes, the highest figure since records started in 1957. The growth in stock is a direct result of less pressure from the fishing industry, some of it imposed by fishing quotas and some of it voluntary, such as the adoption of better nets which allow smaller fish to escape to breed later. Sole (tong) is also on the increase, said ICES, with an available stock of 11,900 tonnes. Stocks of turbot (tarbot) and brill (griet) are stable, and the numbers of cod (kabeljauw) are up slightly. \ AH

Sinksenfoor ride operators see 40% drop in income The operators of attractions at the annual Sinksenfoor fair in Antwerp are reporting as much as 40% less income this year compared to last year. The fair was previously staged in the giant Zuiderdokken parking area near the waterfront before moving to its new location at the former railyard Park Spoor Oost in the Borgerhout district. “Sadly our predictions have come true,” said Denis Delforge, spokesperson for the association of fair attraction operators in Belgium. The move east to Park Spoor Oost followed several years of bitter dispute after a handful of residents of the Zuiderdokken area took legal action against Sinksenfoor for noise nuisance. They won their case amid vandalism and even death threats, and the fair was forced to move to the quays along the river Scheldt for one year

while a permanent solution was found. Last year, it was back at the original location, when it was proposed that it take place on the land owned by the rail infrastructure company Infrabel. A neighbourhood association is trying

to convince Infrabel and the city to turn the empty property into a park and community space. “Of the 143 attractions, only a handful are doing better now compared to the last edition in ’t Zuid,” said one operator. “The others are suffering severe losses. And the fact that the fair is being allowed to stay longer this year than usual will not make up for the losses.” “The city of Antwerp has done everything it could to give us what we need,” said Delforge. “But this location is quite simply not suitable for a fair. The first weeks were all right because people were curious to see the new location. Then everything went quiet. In any future edition, the curiosity factor will be gone, and the whole fair risks being a flop.” \ AH

\ INNOVATION

jULy 15, 2015

Fuelling the future

week in innovation Rare corpse flower attracts 1,300 visitors

Flemish researchers join European search for renewable fuels Alan Hope More articles by Alan \ flanderstoday.eu

VITO.BE

he Flemish Institute for Technological Research (Vito) is taking part in a fournation, €4.6 million research project on renewable fuels for transport. The EU-funded project ButaNexT will look at ways to produce biobutanol from renewable plant sources. This would allow a cheaper, more efficient production of butanol from what are essentially waste products. Butanol, an alcohol used as a solvent and as fuel, could turn out to be more efficient than ethanol and methanol, but first the production methods have to be improved. This is what the ButaNexT project aims to do, according to Heleen De Wever, project manager at Vito. Butanol is less easily obtained by fermentation of biomass than ethanol, and improvements would require metabolic or genetic engineering of the bacteria used, she explains. Unlike ethanol, butanol can be used in cars without any adaptation of the engine, and it offers lower fuel consumption. The research concerns converting lignocellulosic biomass – dry plant matter – into biofuel. Of particular

The copious amounts of fibre left over from sugar cane production can be used to make biobutanol

interest is waste biomass – those parts of a plant left over when the food has been extracted, such as fibrous matter from the processing of wheat or sugar cane. The major advantage of waste biomass, De Wever says, is that it doesn’t interfere with food production as do other methods – such as diverting food crops to biofuel production or farmers growing biomass crops instead of food crops. The project is being co-ordinated by Green Biologics, a UK company. “Our project is designed to test,

validate and optimise the stages of the supply chain to produce cost-competitive biobutanol from three types of biomass and waste,” said Tim Davies, representing the company at a meeting of the partners in Brussels. “The final result will contribute to the European 10% target for renewable transportation fuels by 2020.” The research involves five smalland medium-sized companies, one large enterprise and three research centres, including Vito, one of Flanders’ leading independent research

and technology organisations in the areas of cleantech and sustainable development. “Of course we are not all working on the same aspects, and we’re not at the same stage of progress,” De Wever explains. “Working together like this means we get to pool our data and our knowhow, and everybody benefits. Another team might, for example, have come across some results that are not directly of interest to them, but which might help another team to make more rapid progress.” The end result, the teams hope, will be a reduction in the cost of producing butanol by cutting the energy and water required for the process, as well as by diversifying raw material stocks and improving the yields of butanol produced. At the same time, the teams will have been able to determine the ideal blends of butanol with either fossil fuels or other biofuels like ethanol and biodiesel. Based in Mol, Antwerp province, Vito employs 750 people and had a turnover of €140 million last year. It often takes part in projects involving multiple partners.

UGent staff spend a week working in the open air At Ghent University’s De Sterre campus last week, about 100 members of staff worked in an open-air office. The Working in the Sun initiative is part of the university’s pilot project Anders Werken, or Working Differently. The De Sterre science campus is located in the north of the city, near the University Hospital. Tables, chairs, tarps and tents were set up in the campus’ garden, where staff had access to wi-fi connections and charging points for laptops and other devices. The idea was to introduce staff to the idea of flexible spaces and locations, including desks that can be used by anyone.

Staff were also asked to explore the added value of certain ICT tools in working more independently. The university also hopes that the experiment will encourage employees to make more contact with colleagues from other faculties and departments. Working in the Sun also included training sessions on flexible work systems such as an ergonomics workshop and a session on how to organise more efficient meetings. The Working Differently pilot project started in January and will last until the end of the year.

Flemish cleantech projects reach final Three Flemish teams at the national final of the ClimateLaunchpad competition at Deloitte in Antwerp were chosen to represent Belgium at the European final in Amsterdam on 4 September. ClimateLaunchpad is Europe’s largest cleantech business idea competition for projects that fight climate change. First place went to the C02 Electro Refinery team and its method of converting CO2 into building-block chemicals as well as higher organic compounds. The runner-up, SolFoGel, proposes a system to produce drinkable water without connection to an electrical grid. In third place was the GreenTech Recovery project, which develops techniques to deal with harmful volatile organic compounds created at oil and gas production sites.

\ Andy Furniere

“Implants must be better inspected”

Q&A Antwerp biomedical science professor Luc Verschaeve is part of an expert group that is assessing the health dangers to Brussels residents of radiation from mobile phones and masts

showed a link between mobile phone radiation and brain cancer focused on systems that we don’t use today.

So, is mobile phone radiation dangerous? Science does not have a clear answer for that. The majority of the scientific community is convinced that there are no negative effects because the exposure is so low. High exposure can cause many health problems, including cancer. But radiation from mobile phones, masts and wi-fi routers is very low exposure.

Brussels is turning itself into a 4G hotspot. If there are indeed effects, would 4G be more dangerous than 2G or 3G? No, on the contrary, 4G would be less dangerous because the intensity of the radiation is lower. If there were to be a problem at all, it would lie in the addition of 4G radiation to the existing 2G and 3G exposure. Additional masts mean a higher general “radiation stress”. So in principle we need to repeat all these studies when a system changes or new systems arrive. However, many scientists don’t think it’s worth investigating this issue again and again, as they’re convinced there’s nothing to be found. \ Interview by Senne Starckx

So why hasn’t the issue been settled? Because there are some scientific studies that do report effects on health. And though these studies are often of poor quality, they’re

More than 1,000 people have visited Ghent University’s botanical garden to admire a rare plant that has bloomed for the first time in 10 years. During its bloom, which lasts 48 hours, the flowers of the large titan arum open and it releases a strong, unpleasant smell, which is why it is known as the “corpse flower”. Described as a rotting fish smell, it attracts flies that pollinate the flower. Last Thursday, the female flowers bloomed, followed by the male on Friday. The 1,300 visitors were able to admire the bloom until Friday evening. The flower could also be followed via webcam.

used by activists to show that mobile phones are dangerous things. The problem is that when a scientist tries to make the distinction between good and poor studies, he’s often accused of partisanship – he’s “paid by the industry”. Trust me, that’s very rarely the case. The other reason is that we lack information about long-term effects. We’ve only been using mobile phones for 20 years, so the scientific community is cautious about making statements. In terms of the formation of brain tumours, for example, we can’t say anything with complete certainty because these occur only after 20 years or so.

Do you think it will be settled one day? If there are indeed effects on health, then yes. But to prove with 100% certainty that there are no problems… that’s almost impossible. And the fact that technology keeps on evolving makes it even more difficult. For example, earlier studies that

The Belgian Health Care Knowledge Centre (KCE) has said citizens have to be better protected against unsafe or dysfunctional implants and medical devices. The European regulations for hip prostheses, pacemakers and stents are more relaxed than for other medical products. The agency said manufacturers should be required to prove that the product has a positive effect on health and provides added value compared to existing treatments. Manufacturers of medication, for instance, do have to prove this. KCE also denounces the lack of testing of medical devices, which are often not tested on humans before hitting the market. \ AF

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\ EDUCATION

jULy 15, 2015

All for one

week in education

Brussels universities strengthen ties with new joint science park Senne Starckx More articles by Senne \ flanderstoday.eu

oth branches of the Free University of Brussels – the Dutch-speaking VUB and the French-speaking ULB – have announced plans to bring both their science campuses together in a new, modern science park. The Science & Technology Park will be built on what both universities’ students like to call their own mini-language border – Pleinlaan, the street that divides the campus of the Flemish institution from that of the Frenchspeaking one. (VUB was established as a spin-off of ULB in the 1960s.) So will the merger unite both student populations and introduce English – already the lingua franca in science – as the main language? A resounding “no” is the response from VUB rector Paul De Knop. “Society needs scientists and engineers who can cope with the challenges of today,” he says. “An engineer these days has to be able to speak multiple languages, not just English.” The Science & Technology Park, which should be ready by 2018, is

Students in medical sciences at work in one of VUB’s labs

part of a larger plan for the pure and applied science campuses of both universities to co-operate more closely. “Our current buildings for the sciences, which date from the 1970s, are located within a stone’s throw of the ULB’s science quarter,” explains De Knop. “So it’s not hard to imagine that we will merge at the level of both education and research. Universities constantly have to do more with

less these days, so it’s also a logical choice from that perspective.” The new infrastructure will be equipped with the latest technologies. It will not have a traditional library, for instance, but a learning centre with the most modern multimedia resources available. “Libraries today have to offer both physical and digital media,” De Knop says. “But we also see them as forums to stimulate exchange

of thoughts and research, enhance meeting opportunities and support services for students and professors.” The project for the library and learning centre is being backed by Proximus, Belgium’s state-owned telecommunication company. “Proximus has just decided to move its innovation department to our future S&T Park,” De Knop says. “This way, we can ensure that the newest ICT technologies available will be implemented immediately.” By merging the science and engineering departments of the sister universities, De Knop hopes that researchers will share more expertise. “In fields like robotics, electronics and energy, our researchers are already in the world’s leading group,” he says. The merge could also offer more opportunities to VUB for research excellence beyond Pleinlaan. Two years ago, ULB physicist François Englert won the Nobel Prize in physics for his discovery of the Higgs particle.

Free University of Brussels to open Confucius Institute The Free University of Brussels (VUB) has signed an agreement with Chinese prime minister Li Keqiang to open a branch of the Confucius Institute. The two parties met when Li was in Brussels on a state visit earlier this month. The institute will provide lessons in Mandarin at academic and professional levels, as well as providing an interface for Chinese and European culture and academic research on ChinaEU affairs. There is already a VUB-China network, and its director, Tong Xiaohong, explained that the establishment of the institute should be completed by the beginning of the new academic

year. “The plan is to start in the autumn,” she says. “The institute will open sometime in September.” The institute is named after the foremost Chinese philosopher who greatly influenced Western Enlightenment figures such as Voltaire and Leibniz, as well as 19th-century philosopher Henri Poincaré, whose maxim on free enquiry is a guiding principle of the VUB. A few students at the university are already studying Mandarin, also known as Standard Chinese. “There is currently just one group of students, about 12, studying Chinese in the first semester in one specific programme,” says Tong. “But the Confucius Institute will be open to everyone; it’s

a slightly different target audience.” The number of students the new institute will attract isn’t being estimated, but VUB could be looking at an entirely new group of students not only from Flanders but also the Netherlands and further afield. Confucius Institutes are widespread in the US, Korea and Japan, but less so in Europe. The first European university to host one, Stockholm, terminated the programme last year. Courses will be given at least partly in English. “The language of instruction depends on the lecturer,” Tong explains. “We simply have to see what the demand is, but many VUB courses are taught in English.” \ Alan Hope

Q&A

thelearnscape.com/scool

Katja Schipperheijn is the co-founder of educational technology company The LearnScape, which has developed sCool, a digital platform that teaches young children how to use social media Where did you get the idea for such a platform? My daughters asked me if they could sign up for Facebook, but I had to say ‘no’ because they were younger than 13, so registering would have been illegal. I also felt they were not ready to deal with the dangers associated with Facebook, like privacy issue, for example. Since I work on social platforms in a professional capacity, my children challenged me to come up with a platform adapted to their needs. What do children learn on the sCool website? It develops children’s media

glad that Flemish MP Katia Segers has already called for this and that education minister Hilde Crevits has reacted to the proposal positively.

literacy. They learn how to post messages, embed videos, make a Skype call and adjust their security and privacy settings. The platform also includes a “digital schoolbag” where they can store homework. I also integrated the BoekenWiki tool to make it easier to write book reviews, as well as several educational games. Are children in the first year of primary school not too young for this? Young children can do more than you would think; they learn how to work with digital media very quickly. What they lack, however, is the critical judgment to safely use

media. In my opinion, media literacy should be part of the obligatory competences that primary school pupils need to have acquired to graduate – as is already the case for secondary school students. I’m

Are teachers capable of guiding pupils on social media? Teachers should receive better training in social media during their education. Some teachers are not even on Facebook and so are largely unable to help pupils in acquiring the necessary skills to stay safe online, even though teaching children social skills is part of their job. The sCool platform includes a forum for teachers to exchange knowledge. I am also co-operating with teachers’ organisations, and I will organise info sessions on sCool.

7,300 more primary school places The extra funding announced last April by Flemish education minister Hilde Crevits to expand school capacity should result in 7,300 more places at 75 primary schools in Brussels and Flanders, Crevits has said. Forty-nine schools have been selected to receive a total of €35 million in building subsidies. This should lead to the creation of 5,829 new permanent places in primary schools. Apart from that, 26 schools will get rental subsidies worth €435,000 to create 1,500 spaces in the short term. The subsidies largely go to cities and towns with the most shortages of space, like Antwerp and Ghent.

Dual learning in secondary schools Students in professional and technical secondary education will be able to follow a dual-learning system from the 2017-18 academic year, in which lessons are combined with practical experience in a business. The measure is part of a plan by Flemish education minister Hilde Crevits and labour minister Philippe Muyters to improve current combined programmes. At the age of 15, students will choose between staying fulltime at school or spending 60% of their studies at a company. All students will ultimately receive the same diploma. Even if students don’t pass enough courses to earn a diploma, they will be rewarded with partial certificates for the skills they acquired on the workfloor.

Less popular streams to be cut There are too few students following most of the 20 study streams in the second year of secondary education, according to the Flemish Agency for Quality Assurance in Education and Training (Akov). “It would be best to cut down on the number of options,” education minister Hilde Crevits told De Standaard. Akov screened secondary education streams in Flanders from 2007 to 2014 and found that about 90% of students in the second year were spread over six specialisations. Modern sciences attracts nearly half of those students. Crevits has previously said the number of specialisations should be reduced. “But that doesn’t mean all niche streams have to disappear,” she said. \ AF

\ Interview by Andy Furniere

\ LIVING

week in activities Middelkerke Comics Festival The place to be for all lovers of comic strips. Special commemorative editions of well-known comics are issued for this festival, which also includes signings, storytelling for kids and more. 18 July to 9 August; Zeedijk Middelkerke; €1.50 \ stripfestivalmiddelkerke.be

Francis Speaks Saints Dominic and Francis were two of the great Christian reformers and thinkers of the 13th century, and now you can “meet” them. A guide introduces Dominic in the context of religious artwork, and then Francis himself offers five historical “evocations”. 17-20 July 20.00-23.00; Sint-Pauluskerk, Veemarkt, Antwerp; free \ franciscusspreekt.be

Wild West Days Country & Western festival hosted by Belgian Terry’s Texas Rangers Confederation, an old west re-enactment group. Parade, bull riding, Old Time Camp, line dancing, music and more. 19 July 9.30-23.00; Paalsteenveld, Kapelstraat 76, Bredene (West Flanders); free \ fotobttrc.be

Gentopia Week-long, outdoor children’s village with activities, entertainment and attractions. Bouncy castle, nursery tent, toddler play area, performances and more. 18-26 July 13.00-19.00; Zuidpark, Ghent; free \ gentopia.be

Sundays in the Mine Every first and third Sunday, take a walk in the footsteps of a mineworker at the Mine Museum in Beringen. A guide leads you through a typical workday, passing through the showers, the machine room, etc. Finish with a ride in an authentic mine train. 19 July 11.00 & 14.00; Koolmijnlaan 201, Beringen (Limburg); €6 \ mijnmuseum.be

Flanders Sings! This outdoor group singalong is organised in cities across Flanders. The songs have both Dutch and English lyrics. This weekend, it’s Ghent and Westende’s turn; Bruges, Brussels, Koksijde and Leuven are up next week. Until October; across Flanders; free \ vlaanderenzingt.be

\ 10

Embrace the chaos

gentsefeesten.gent klankfest.be

The festival that never sleeps starts in Ghent next week

heck out the young woman in the photo to the right. What is she doing? She is at the Gentse Feesten, so the possibilities are many. Is she drunk? Is she engaged in performance art? Has she not slept in 27 hours? Or is she just a typical tree-hugging hippie Gentenaar? During the Gentse Feesten – the largest combo music and street theatre festival in the world – all of Ghent comes together. While you normally might not strike up a conversation with strangers on the streets, during the Gentse Feesten, you will. Whether you like it or not. The Gentse Feesten is full, full, full of things to do and see. But one of the nicest experiences is just wandering around, happening upon things. Spread throughout the entire city centre, the bulk of “the Feesten” is free and accessible – day and night. It’s a 10-day, open-air, 24-hour party. It is – with apologies to New York – the festival that never sleeps. You’ll find that different types of people have vastly different stories about the Gentse Feesten. Conversations can lead you to believe that it’s a gentle puppet buskers festival, a big folky picnic of African dance and mint tea, or a beer guzzling all-night brawl of bawdy behaviour. Yes, it is. Should you need a goal to get you started, there are some highlights in a programme that includes about 1,000 entries. You can’t go wrong with the toe-tapping pop songs of Flemish musician Marco Z in the beautiful spiegeltent in Baudelopark on 17 June. As for the organised street theatre (as opposed to those who just show up and grab a piece of street), the boys of Bevis are a hoot with their manipulations of everyday objects. They perform from 18 to 21 July. And see if you can’t locate the

little car driving about the Feesten full of swimming goldfish and a driver you should avoid eye contact with if you don’t want to become part of his show. \ Lisa Bradshaw

Goodbye Ten Days Off, hello Klankfest The king is dead, long live the king! Ten Days Off, the trailblazing festival that showcased electronic music in all its varieties during the Gentse Feesten, is no more. Klankfest, a collaboration of local party organisers, will fill the gap at Vooruit. We asked organiser Myrthe Holvoet for Klankfest’s story. How does Klankfest differ from its illustrious predecessor? Just like Ten Days Off, we empha-

sise variety. There’s a tech-house night set up by Decadance, a disco night organised by Democrazy, a true techno night by Kozzmozz and even a rock night by Hindu Nights. The rock night is new, by the way. The difference is that these nights are all organised by different promoters, while Ten Days Off had a more centralised approach. But these collaborations are a true testament to the free-thinking Ghent spirit and suit the Feesten just perfectly. Was it really necessary to separate the music genres like that? We have to remember it’s only the first edition of this event, and it might not be such a bad thing to accustom people to it by actually

17-26 July

naming what every night stands for. One thing Ten Days Off was well known for was its large number of electronic live acts. Not many of those here. That’s true. We do have a few live acts on the rock night though, but the programming of electronic music is more focused on DJ sets. Those DJs are still the crème de la crème of the scene, though. I mean: Luke Slater, Deetron, Locked Groove, Cassy Britton, Prins Thomas, Optimo, Sven Van Hees… These aren’t exactly rookies. Better to err on the side of caution at first and maybe look for evolution next year. \ Interview by Laurens Bouckaert

Across Ghent

BITE “Rescued food” on the menu at Rekub pop-up restaurant Did you know that more than one-third of all the food produced in the world each year ends up in the rubbish? Friends Ellien Stinissen and Marijke De Jongh knew, so they have opened Rekub – Flanders’ first pop-up restaurant dedicated to serving food that would otherwise go to waste. Or, as they prefer to call it: rescued food. The pair – one a teacher and one part of a family flooring business – had no experience in food service, but they knew they had a good idea. A friend suggested they approach Felix Pakhuis, a former food warehouse converted into a restaurant, shop for local specialities and salon space to rent, which has arguably become the culinary heart of Antwerp. They met with the venue’s owners who immediately came on board. “They provided us with space in the building, kitchen facilities and even the tables and chairs,” says Stinissen. Plates, cutlery and glassware were sourced from second-hand

Marijke De Jongh (left) and Ellien Stinissen of Rekub

shops around Antwerp. “We are giving everything a second life,” says De Jongh. Food is collected from local organic farmers and Albert Heijn supermarkets using an electric vehicle to limit emissions, while meat is sourced from organic supermarket Bio-Planet. Albert Heijn was quick to partner with Rekub as they are test-

rekub.be

ing out a similar project in Amsterdam. “We had the same enthusiastic response from the organic farmers,” says Stinissen. Rekub offers a simple menu consisting of a starter, a choice of main dishes and a dessert. One main option is always vegetarian, as is the starter. The dishes served depend on what Stinissen and De Jongh have received from their suppliers. A twocourse meal costs €22, and the three-course option is €27. Drinks are supplied by Felix Pakhuis and charged separately. Rekub is proving to be a summer hit, with places filling up quickly. “People come for the concept, but they leave loving the food,” De Jongh smiles. At the end of August, the restaurant will disappear, and De Jongh and Stinissen will return to their day jobs. “We’re going to rework things a little and see where that takes us. Who knows, we might pop-up again soon.” \ Dan Smith

jULy 15, 2015

Frozen in time

Baasrode’s unique Maritime Museum tells the history of a once-thriving shipyard Toon Lambrechts More articles by Toon \ flanderstoday.eu

scheepvaartmuseumbaasrode.be

he East Flemish town of Baasrode was once the main shipyard on the river Scheldt. But over time, demand for small river boats collapsed, and many local shipyards started closing their doors. Some local residents, however, fought to preserve their piece of industrial heritage. The fruit of their labour is today on view at the Scheepvaart Museum (Maritime Museum), together with the workshops where labourers toiled long days to turn wood and steel into ships. Today, it’s quiet in the former workshops of the Baasrode yard. But at one time, the machines that cut, bent, pierced and welded steel must have made a deafening noise. Steel plates lie scattered over the floor; some of them are shaped to serve as a ship’s hull. Workers’ overalls and caps still hang in the lockers, and the tools on the tables give the impression that ships were made here just yesterday. The only evidence that the Van Praet-Van Damme shipyard has been closed for almost 30 years is a thick layer of dust. These workshops were built at the end of the 19th century, and they were never really modernised. This means that Baasrode is likely one of the oldest preserved shipyards in Europe. Today, it admittedly looks like a relic from a time when automation was still to be invented, but this was once a modern company. Take the conveyor belt that hangs from the ceiling. It dates from 1895, an unprecedented novelty for the time. The Scheldt river had always been central to life in Baasrode. Antwerp

The Scheepvaart Museum boasts one of the oldest preserved shipyards in Europe

is not far away, and a good tide was all it took to reach the city. The village has a long tradition of shipbuilding and grew into one of the largest shipbuilding centres in the low countries in the 18th century precisely because of its location next to the Scheldt and its proximity to Antwerp. In the second half of the 19th century, two shipyards were all that was left of the once-blossoming industry. The Van Praet and the Van Damme yards were both family companies that had been passed down from generation to generation. Van Praet eventually

bought up the neighbouring Van Damme yard in 1955. But just a few decades later, the curtain closed on the industry in Baasrode as demand for small barges slowed and then completely dried up. Seemingly from one day to the next, all the workers left their jobs. The workshops remained abandoned, like a piece of history frozen in time. Transforming the Baasrode site into a museum was no easy feat, but a small group of dedicated volunteers succeeded in saving the shipyards for future generations. “The museum was founded in 1980

to celebrate 150 years of Belgium,” explains Jan Annemans, the driving force behind the project. “In the beginning, the collection was on display in the former town hall of Baasrode since the yard was still active. Later we moved to the current location, the master’s house in the yard.” In 1991, five years after the yard closed, the province purchased the site – not to make a museum out of it, but to tear it down. After a long legal battle, the whole yard was eventually listed as a monument. Annemans was driven by more than just a passion for marine and

industrial archaeology in helping found the Scheepvaart Museum: his family history is linked to the Baasrode shipyard. His grandfather was a master shipbuilder at the Van Damme yard, while his mother’s family were ship owners with their own fleet. “So ships are in my genes,” he says. The wooden ship in the Baasrode courtyard also tells a family story. It’s a replica of a palingbotter, one of the types of ships built at the yard. Palingbotters were used to import eels from the Netherlands to Baasrode. From there, local merchants brought the eels to the fish market in Brussels – every day, on foot. “One of these ships was the Rosalie, named after my grandmother,” Annemans explains. “We are building a replica with the help of a Dutch company. Within three years, the Rosalie will be sailing once again.” A range of items that tell the story of Baasrode’s marine industry are exhibited inside the master’s house. An extensive collection of miniature ships, for example, shows the different kinds of vessels that were built at Baasrode. On the walls, visitors can find two paintings and a wedding picture with yet another special backstory. The Van Praet and Van Damme families were neighbours, sure, but also bitter rivals. Anyone who had worked at Van Praet would never be hired at Van Damme, and vice versa. At one point, love got in the way, and a certain Maria Van Praet married one Cesar Van Damme. Yet you won’t find many smiling faces in the wedding photo. Romeo and Juliet, but on the Scheldt.

50 weekends in Flanders: The Hoge Kempen Flanders Today has launched an e-book with ideas for how to spend a year’s worth of weekends. Visit our website ( flanderstoday.eu ) and click the pop-up to get your free copy of 50 Weekends in Flanders. We’ll also print one of our suggestions every week here, too. It’s not difficult to find ways to keep active in Flanders. You can go on an urban walk through a historic town, plan a bike ride using the network of knooppunten or put on a pair of boots to hike through a nature reserve. Get fit in THE HOGE KEMPEN NATIONAL PARK The first (and only) national park in Belgium was created just a decade ago in an area of abandoned mines in the far east of Flanders. It’s an inspiring project that has become a model of conservation copied by other countries. The park has six different entry points leading to vast areas of woodland and heath with the odd mining relic poking out of the ground. \ toerismelimburg.be

Hike in the wild at MECHELSE HEIDE The Mechelse Heide is a remarkable area of wild heath, abandoned quarries and thick woodland. The marked trails

Wander among old mines at CONNECTERRA The park’s newest visitor centre stands close to a coal mine abandoned in 1987. You pay a small fee here to walk along marked trails and climb to the top of an abandoned slag heap for a sweeping view of woodland and flooded quarries. \ connecterra.be

lead to viewpoints where, in the distance, you can see the Dutch town of Maastricht.

Bike from AS STATION The restored brick railway station at As makes a good starting point for a cycle ride through the national park. The marked routes follow dedicated cycle trails through the wooded Kempen landscape. The pretty former station has been turned into a lively café for cyclists and hikers with a terrace overlooking abandoned railway carriages. \ stationas.be

\ toerismemaasmechelen.be

Ramble across the heath at PIETERSHEIM The ruined castle at Pietersheim marks the starting point for several trails that lead through forests and across wild heath. There is also a fun trail for kids called the Kabouterpad. \ pietersheim.be

Take a barefoot hike at LIETEBERG Several hiking trails start at the Lieteberg entrance including one called Blotevoetwandeling, or barefoot walk. You boldly set off barefoot on a meandering trail across different types of terrain, including grass, wood chippings, mud and shallow water. Kids love this sort of thing. \ lieteberg.be

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jULy 15, 2015

Life is a cabaret

Ann Helena Kenis of Belgium’s Got Talent launches new shows Tom Peeters More articles by Tom \ flanderstoday.eu

There’s both talent and stage fright under the crazy outfits and fake eyelashes of Antwerp’s Ann Helena Kenis, the success story of Belgium’s Got Talent, who is onstage this month in Ghent and launches a new show in the autumn.

ANNHELENAKENIS.BE

Limburg but now lives in Antwerp, has done all kinds of jobs, from waitress and sales assistant to financial advisor at a bank. Now she can finally combine her talkative,

nn Helena Kenis was one of the revelations of this spring’s Belgium’s Got Talent TV competition. If you were fond of her weird cabaret songs about thrift shops, retirement and depression, and you like her sweet and talkative personality, go see her at the Lacht Comedy Festival in Ghent this month. The shows are the result of a long and bumpy road. Kenis, 41, who was born and raised in

outgoing character with her singing and song-writing skills on stage – without feeling guilty. “I liked being a waitress, but it wasn’t always fun for my co-workers,” she recalls. “If they weren’t serving customers, they just wanted to be left alone. That’s not easy with a chatty person like me around.” A few years ago, she worked as an investment advisor for Dexia, now Belfius, “but I had to sell products I didn’t even understand, even with my two degrees. It just didn’t feel right. People were coming in for loans, and I kept telling them it’s better to save first and change their spending habits.” Looking for an occupation with more integrity, she stumbled into standup and cabaret. “Isn’t that funny? I could make people smile while staying the same chatty person that put off my former colleagues. For the first time I had the feeling I was being taken seriously, doing what I do. Maybe because it just fits who I am.” As a kid, Kenis went to music school, and she could never resist singing – in school or out. After auditioning for an opening spot for comedian Philippe Geubels (which eventually went to Lies Lefever), she was told they were looking for

someone who could sing. “But I can do that!” was her reaction, as she gradually shifted from words to song. “I always liked to rhyme and had plenty of melodies in my head.” Kenis started looking for an audience herself, initially in retirement homes, performing numbers from musicals and other popular Flemish songs. Soon she was performing for the members of social organisations. “At first, I just sang my songs. The funny sketches in-between came later,” she says. “People seemed to like that and it just got more crazy.” All of this led to a first show, Vrij vertaald (Freely Translated) and a debut on prime-time TV. Her career took off from the moment she performed “Kringloopwinkelvrouw” (Thrift Shop Woman) on Belgium’s Got Talent last March. “During my shows, that song made people really happy, and, besides, I’m a thrift shop woman myself. Check what I’m wearing right now. Jacket: €1. T-shirt: €1… But the tutu and the fake eyelashes are just as big a part of the show. I’ve always been a fan of Liza Minnelli and Barbra Streisand. The glitter of stardom contrasts nicely with my normality.” Her biggest fear is blanking on stage, she says. “People probably thought everything I said during my television debut was planned, but honestly, only the song was. I had so much stress that I flipped out, and my mind went in all directions. When I’m uncertain, I get very lively and chatty.” But she seems to get away with it. “Let me tell you what happened yesterday. I was practising my show in a friend’s living room. Since I’d eaten onions, I had to fart from time to time. At the end one lady said: ‘How can you fart so

20, 21 & 25 July

perfectly timed?’ They thought it was part of the show.” “Because she has such a sweet image, she can get away with almost anything,” theatre and comedy director Peter Perceval said of Kenis. He also compared her act to the fictitious comedy character Pee-Wee Herman, suggesting she could go even further over the top. “But then I wouldn’t be myself anymore, so I refused,” Kenis recalls. “It’s important to stay true to myself.” In Ghent, Kenis will combine fragments of her two existing acts. But in November, she debuts with the brand new cabaret show Lof der Zotheid (In Praise of Folly). “The new one tackles the ageing process, mentally and physically. In these retirement homes, I was confronted with it. My partner is also 20 years older than me. It makes me think. And what does getting wrinkles and being surrounded by beautiful young women do to my self-esteem?” Through performing comedy, she’s learned a lot about herself. “It’s really about dealing with my own life. Often I’m trying to make something funny or hopeful out of misery. I wrote my song about depression when I was feeling down myself, and it did help to make me feel better, just like watching Brigitte Kaandorp’s Zó always does.” Dutch cabaret artist Kaandorp is a huge influence on Kenis. “The first time I saw her, I recognised myself,” she explains. “She’s just as crazy as me. Crazy and fast.” But she’s got her eye on other performers as well. “Ronald Goedemondt, Jochen Myjer, Bert Visscher, Lenette Van Dongen… and of course Hans Teeuwen. He’s totally free on stage, and he still gets people to eat out of the palm of his hand. That’s art to me.”

Vooruit

Sint-Pietersnieuwstraat 23, Ghent

More performance this week Everyman

De gehoornde man

De avond van de luistervink

Am I Right Ladies?!

In these temperatures, a visit to an airconditioned cinema might be in order. London’s National Theatre screens its performances worldwide, and with Everyman, it tackles one of British drama’s oldest plays, with words by Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy and a title role for Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave). (In English with English subtitles) 16 July 20.00, Utopolis, Spuibeekstraat 5, Mechelen

(The Horned Man)

(The Evening of the Eavesdropper)

Kurt Demey, originally a visual artist, dons a pair of horns for this play. Supported by the rich double bass sound of Joris Vanvinckenroye, he’s trying to sell you illusions, but all is fake in this piece about the thin line between the truth and lies – except maybe your own experiences. (In Dutch) 16 July 20.30, Sporthal De Ark, Kleistraat 204, Aartselaar

In their “evenings of the eavesdropper”, stand-up artists Wouter Deprez and Steven Mahieu leave the comfort zone of filling a stage by themselves. At the Gentse Feesten, these comedians with West Flemish roots and a talent for socially committed storytelling share the stage with their equally amusing friends and musicians. (In Dutch) 17-20 July, 20.15, Vooruit, Sint-Pietersnieuwstraat 23, Ghent

London comedian Luisa Omielan made her debut with What Would Beyoncé Do?!, letting go of her frustrations about how the former Destiny’s Child singer can be so in control. She presents her latest one-woman show, Am I Right Ladies?!, about how likes and hashtags are ruining our mental health. (In English) 21 July, 20.15, Vooruit, Sint-Pietersnieuwstraat 23, Ghent

\ utopolis.be

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\ vooruit.be

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\ ARTS

week in arts & CULTURE Giants are protected cultural heritage The Flemish giants culture, which involves the appearance of metres-high figures in parades and other events, has been added to the region’s inventory of Immaterial Cultural Heritage, culture minister Sven Gatz has announced. The first giants appeared in religious parades in about the 14th century. “we are extremely pleased,” said Johan Vancken, chair of Reuzen in Vlaanderen, which represents some 70 giants associations.

Jenever Museum asks residents for personal stories Hasselt’s Jenever Museum is putting out a call to residents of the city for documents, images and objects related to the history of the spirit in the area. Jenever is a historical product of the low countries, and Hasselt has long been the heart of its production in Belgium. Residents can expect an invitation to report all jenever-related items in September. “It’s not our intention to expand our collection or ask people to hand over their pieces,” explained Jenever Museum curator Davy Jacobs. “We are just looking for the information or stories behind the pieces, which are without a doubt valuable for the museum’s collective knowledge about local jenever history.” Every month for a year, a jury will choose the best story or object from a specific neighbourhood and make the Hasselaar the “Jenever baron of the month”. The resident will get a little exhibition and be able to treat friends and family to a glass of jenever at the museum. \ jenevermuseum.be

Five Flemings on longlist for ECI Literature Prize Five Flemish novels have made the shortlist of 25 titles for the ECI Literature Prize, previously known as the AKO Literature Prize and one of the most prestigious awards in Dutchlanguage literature. The five authors on the list are Frank Albers for Caravantis, Buido van Heulendonk for En dan, als ik weg ben (And Then, If I’m Away), Bart Koubaa for De vogels van Europa (The Birds of Europe), Mark Schaevers for Orgelman (Organ Man) and Annelies Verbeke for 30 dagen (30 Days). Schaevers recently won Flanders’ Golden Book Owl for Orgelman. The shortlist of six nominations will be announced in September. \ akoliteratuurprijs.nl

\ 14

Tri-country thriller

Flanders works with Germany and Denmark on TV series The Team Christophe Verbiest More articles by Christophe \ flanderstoday.eu

When the producers behind a European TV thriller failed to obtain the funding they wanted, a Flemish distributor came through with money, actors and a local courthouse. The result is The Team, a TV series with a distinctly Scandinavian feel.

prostitute is killed in Berlin with a gunshot to the eye. Over the next few days, the same crime happens twice again – in Antwerp and Copenhagen. When investigators realise that the murders are connected, they put together a dream-team of detectives from Belgium, Denmark and Germany to catch the culprits. That’s the starting point for The Team, a pan-European TV series shot in several countries and starring German actor Jasmin Gerat (The Girl with Nine Wigs), Denmark’s Lars Mikkelsen (Borgen) and one of Flanders’ leading stars, Veerle Baetens (Cordon, The Broken Circle Breakdown). The cast also includes other local powerhouse talent, such as Koen De Bouw, Filip Peeters and Hilde Van Mieghem. Film distributor Lumière, through its Ghent-based production subsidiary Lunanime, was the engine behind the Flemish leg of the project. For almost 10 years, Lumière has been the Benelux’s main distributor of Scandinavian television series like Wallander, The Bridge and The Killing. In that sense, The Team, conceived by Danish screenwriters and also developed in the Nordic country, wasn’t uncharted territory. The series, now out on DVD, was originally written with Paris,

Berlin and Copenhagen as the main backdrops. “But financially this didn’t work out: they needed €11 to €12 million, but they only had about €7 million and lacked French money,” explains Lumière co-CEO Jan De Clercq, who served as a local producer with Lunanime CEO Annemie Degryse. “I told them straight up: If you can change Paris into a Flemish city, we will be able to find the remaining part of the budget,” he says. “And that’s exactly what happened; we brought €3.6 million to the project.”

theteam.zdfe-b2b.de

with the extra budget, the arc of the story had already been developed. “We could alter a few details, but that was it,” says De Clercq. “Of course, the screenwriters camped out in Antwerp for several weeks to adapt their work to the local situation and customs.” He admits the situation wasn’t ideal. “At times, we had to move too fast, which resulted in a few clichés. But I think in the end we can be pleased with the result.” True enough: the screenwriters were clearly left with too many loose ends, so the plot twists

The screenwriters camped out in Antwerp to adapt their work to local customs That money was pooled from different sources like commercial broadcaster VTM, the federal tax shelter system, Lumière itself, the Flanders Audiovisual Fund and Screen Flanders. To ensure that Flanders would get the necessary return on its investment, all the scenes that took place in a police station – whether in Copenhagen, Berlin or Antwerp – were filmed in Antwerp’s former courthouse, a protected monument on Britselei. “The beautifully designed rooms of the Danish police, for instance, were located right next to the shabby rooms of their Belgian colleagues,” De Clercq explains. “This reduced costs without affecting production values.” Though Lumière saved the day

become a bit overwhelming. And a few questions aren’t even resolved. But, while The Team isn’t as hardhitting or as fully fleshed-out as other Danish productions, like The Killing or Borgen, it’s still highclass entertainment. Each episode in the eight-part series clocks in at just under an hour but flies by in a jiffy. A second series of The Team is already in the pipeline. “And of course this time we’ll be a lot more closely involved in the scripts,” De Clercq confirms, pointing out that they are the second-biggest financer of the series – after the Germans but before the Danish. Mikkelsen, Gerat and Baetens also explicitly asked to collaborate with the screenwriters the second time around to give their charac-

ters more depth. “As with lots of these series, we want to learn from all the little mistakes in order to make a better second season,” says De Clercq. The artistic team behind the new series is mainly Danish, and that probably won’t change much for the second season. “The quality of the series partly stems from the very distinctive look and feel that’s so typical for the successful Danish series of recent years,” De Clercq explains. The co-production between the three countries included a bit of national pride. “The Danish came to Belgium with the idea: ‘We’re the best.’ The Germans reacted with: ‘That might be true, but we invest the most money.’ And we Belgians had to fight for our space,” he says. “But after three difficult months, we were finally able to put all the wood behind one arrow.” Among other specifics, De Clercq fought hard to use “Northern Rd.” by the Aalst indie rock band Intergalactic Lovers as the series’ title song. He persevered and won that battle. The producer’s biggest challenge for the second series will be finding someone to replace one of the two directors, Kathrine Windfeld, who died in January. Luckily, the other director, Kasper Gaardsøe, will stay on board, and De Clercq is hoping that a Flemish director will take Windfeld’s place. He’s hoping to reel in “someone who would be able to preserve its look and feel, like Jakob Verbruggen or Hans Herbots.” To be continued, most likely. The Team is out on DVD and Bluray and will air on VTM in November

\ AGENDA

jULy 15, 2015

Raw voices, twang and a golden oldie

VISUAL ARTS

Blues Peer 17-19 July

Antwerp

Festival site Deusterstraat, Peer bluesfestival.be

he summer music scene in Flanders used to be simple: Every genre had its festival during a fixed weekend in which there was practically no competition from other festivals. In 1985, a few ambitious blues fans picked out a free weekend in the second half of July, giving Peer, a sleepy countryside city in Limburg, worldwide prestige on tour schedules and visibility on band T-shirts. In these first editions of the Belgium Rhythm ’n’ Blues Festival, the organisers stuck to their niche, still able to attract the biggest names in blues. But anyone familiar with the festival’s Wall of Blues, a photo memorial hanging backstage, realised that the most legendary singers and players – especially those rooted in the Mississippi Delta – were getting rare. This year, BB King, who played in Peer three years ago, is new to the wall.

So inevitably at this 31st edition, blues is once again infused with rock, folk and country. Established international blues guitarists such

as Ian Siegal and Guitar Shorty are in the mix with popular local rock bands like The Scabs and K’s Choice, both with new albums. The headliners on Saturday and Sunday have been handed to two raw-voiced women in rock – American singers Melissa “Like The Way I Do” Etheridge and Beth “Am I the One” Hart, while Eric Burdon of Animals and War fame is taking care of this year’s golden oldie moment. But the most eminent name on the bill is veteran country star Emmylou Harris. She’s bringing along her old friend, the Texas country singer Rodney Crowell (pictured). They’ve been working together since 1974 and recently recorded two duet albums: 2013’s Old Yellow Moon and this year’s Joe Henry-produced The Traveling Kind, both filled with polished Americana, soulful twang and sweetheart harmonies. The duo will be backed by a five-piece band. \Tom Peeters

MUSIC FESTIVAL

EXHIBITION

M-idzomer

Nieuwe Tijden

30 July to 2 August

Across Leuven M-IDZOMER.BE

Until 22 December They say you learn something new every day. Maybe you didn’t know, for instance, that Turnhout in Antwerp province is home to Belgium’s National Museum of Playing Cards. Or that 100 years ago playing cards were at the cutting edge of invasive advertising technology. The exhibition Nieuwe Tijden (Modern Times) shows the rise and fall of the branded playing card from 1910 to 1930. Before television and the internet, there was no better way for marketers – pushing mostly beer and tobacco – to get into our living rooms. \ GV

FESTIVAL

EVENT

Parkkaffee

Douglas Coupland

Until 31 August If the crowds and overall toomuchery of Gentse Feesten (see p10) starts to get to you, you might appreciate the laid-back good times of Parkkaffee. The twomonth festival, open every day, takes place in the back garden of a small castle in the Ghent suburb of Mariakerke. The place couldn’t

Groenestaakstraat 37, Ghent PARKKAFFEE.BE

be more bucolic, with its pond, hammocks, evening bonfires, food, cocktails and circus caravans. Yes, this event is for the carny in all of us. Tarot readers are on duty daily, and the programme is brimming with performances by illusionists, acrobats and musicians. \ GV

2 September, 20.00 Douglas Coupland rose to fame in the early 1990s with his first novel, Generation X. The bestseller established the Canadian author as an expert in pop culture and technology. After several more successful books – including the tech-heavy Microserfs and the Morrisseyinspired Girlfriend in a Coma – Coupland changed course to become an accomplished multidisciplinary visual artist. His appearance at Bozar coincides with a major exhibition in Rotterdam and the publication of a new collection of stories and essays. He will discuss both faces of his Januslike career. \ GV

\ fotomuseum.be

MUSIC FESTIVAL Knokke-Heist Kneistival: 30th edition of the free pop and rock festival at the coast, featuring Kenji Minogue, Suzanne Vega and K’s Choice. 19-25 July, Heldenplein \ kneistival.be

FAMILY Bruges

National Museum of Playing Cards, Turnhout SPEELKAARTENMUSEUM.BE

Every year several of Leuven’s cultural institutions, including M Museum and Het Depot, join forces to put on a city arts festival of epic proportions. In addition to multimedia exhibitions, M-idzomer boasts several stages for showcasing the region’s top musical talent. The artist roster spans generations with today’s most happening names like Arsenal, Admiral Freebee and Douglas Firs (pictured), as well as veterans like BelgoBritish jazz guitarist Philip Catherine. Saturday afternoon is all about family-friendly entertainment, with a long programme that includes the seafaring slapstick of Kapitein Winokio, the Raffi of Flanders. \ Georgio Valentino

Cédric Gerbehaye: The Brussels-born journalist and photographer presents works from his series D’entre eux (Among Them), with a focus on daily life in Belgium and the universal search for truth and meaning. Until 22 October, FoMu, Waalsekaai 47

Cirque Plus: Free outdoor circus festival featuring comedy acts, acrobats and a terrace under the trees where visitors can enjoy food and drink. 18-20 July, Tuin Grootseminarie, Peterseliestraat \ bruggeplus.be

MARKET Antwerp Antwerp Vintage Market: Third edition of the indoor and outdoor vintage, second-hand and designers market, featuring retro clothes, accessories, decor and more. 19 July, 12.0019.00, Bocadero Waagnatie, Rijnkaai 150 \ tinyurl.com/Antwerp VintageMarket

EVENT Across Belgium

get tic

kets n ow

Bozar, Brussels BOZAR.BE

National Day: Celebrations abound across the region, from the biggest cities to the smallest villages, in honour of the Belgian national holiday, with highlights including a fireworks display on the beach at Knokke-Heist, a festival in Brussels’ Warandepark and Radio Modern’s Bal Populaire on Mechelen’s Grote Markt. 21 July, across Flanders \ tinyurl.com/nationale feestdag2015

FOOD&DRINK Brussels Resto National 2015: Annual festival featuring the first mussels of the season served with chips and mayo, accompanied by musical fanfare, with accordions and majorettes, and followed by a concert by Rita & Les Martins and sing-along. 21 July, 18.00-22.00, Vossenplein \ restonational.be

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\ BACKPAGE

jULy 15, 2015

Talking Dutch Camel on the tracks

In response to: Minister presents three scenarios for Leopold II tunnel Maroun Kaye The first option is theoretically the best, but since the country is scraping for money it wouldn’t be a good option here.

Derek Blyth More articles by Derek \ flanderstoday.eu

couple of months ago, we had zebras running through the streets of Brussels, so you might not be that surprised to learn there was a camel spotted recently on the railway line between Liège and Luxembourg, near the town of Aywaille. Kameel langs het spoor – Camel on the tracks, tweeted the rail operator NMBS. Verstoord verkeer – Travel disrupted. Vertragingen tot 10’ mogelijk – Possible delays of up to 10 minutes. After an hour or so, someone called Benjamin posed the question – Wat is er met de kameel gebeurd? – What happened to the camel? The NMBS had some good news to report. De kameel is terug naar het safaripark van Aywaille gebracht, Benjamin – The camel has been returned to Aywaille safari park, Benjamin. Wat? – What? asked someone called Noorke. Het hoeft niet altijd een koe te zijn – It doesn’t always have to be a cow, the NMBS responded. Bovendien, met deze hitte... – And anyway, what with this heat... Now people were beginning to get a bit panicky. Woestijn rukt snel op richting België? – Is the desert now moving rapidly in the direction of Belgium? inquired a Dickie Dick. Some hours later, the NMBS issued a new announcement, explaining that it was all down to a muddled translation. Blijkbaar was de kameel die we eerder meldden een dode kat – Apparently the camel we mentioned earlier was a dead cat, it said. It turns out that a French-speaking member of staff had transmitted a warning of a chat mort – a dead cat on the tracks. But a Flemish operator had heard it as a

CONNECT WITH US

In response to: Food service inspection reports now online Silvana Hugue You know, the fact that people in sandwich shops handle food and money without caps and gloves is already something that a real germaphobe could not handle.

In response to: Brussels drinkers splash out €857 a year on beer Nadia Zagui Of course we do!!!

chameau – a camel. Ook bij de NMBS hebben ze blijkbaar last van de warmte – The NMBS are clearly suffering from the heatwave, someone said. ’t is warm voor iedereen – It’s warm for everyone, the NMBS explained. Neem een slokje water – Have a drink of water. An artistic Twitter user, Liesa O, posted a photoshopped image of a cat’s head on a camel’s body. Een katmeel in de woestijn – A catmel in the desert, she captioned it. But NMBS had the final word. Kameel langs het spoor – Camel on the tracks, they tweeted at the end of the day. Situatie hersteld – Problem solved. Normaal verkeer herneemt – Normal service restored.

Tweet us your thoughts @FlandersToday

Poll a. Why not? Religious schools have the right to ask their teachers to uphold their most basic principles

27% b. No, it has no effect on her job performance, and schools should have to obey discrimination laws anyway

73% laws when they feel victimised themselves. In this particular case, the principal had to let one of the teachers go, and she chose the one who was not baptised because, according to the regulations of the network, only teachers who have been baptised can give lessons on Christianity. This teacher had to be replaced by

another when it was time for those lessons. One can hardly blame the principal for choosing to fire that particular teacher. So maybe the problem is the regulation, not the principal’s decision. Should religious institutions be allowed to override federal law? A majority of our readers say no.

\ Next week's question: A pop-up restaurant in Antwerp is serving dishes made with “rescued food” (see p10). What do you think? Log on to the Flanders Today website at www.flanderstoday.eu and click on VOTE!

\ 16

Cheryl D. Miller @roningirl A beautiful night for beautiful music with my beautiful love. <3 @dejohnettemusic #gentjazz... http://fb.me/1QuIVPbEv

@2_Anissa

Brussels remembers Gaza with images moving from TV towers to the palace of Justice and other places in the city.

Samuel L. Jackson @SamuelLJackson Had to interrupt the Vacay for some unfinished Biz in Antwerp, Belgium. Not a bad spot so far. https://instagram. com/p/402ZqED0SQ/

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the last word

Do you think it is OK for a Catholic school to fire a teacher who has not been baptised?

Our readers voted three to one against the firing of a primary school teacher in the Brussels district of Schaarbeek who was not baptised. The majority view: There are anti-discrimination laws in place that should apply to schools – even those of the Catholic network. Religious institutions are, after all, able to refer to these

VoiceS of flanders today

In it to win it

Neighbourhood watch

“Recently we found a receipt from a newspaper shop. My mother had spent €900 in three days on Lotto tickets.”

“We don’t even have a real tipline. These people find us by themselves and say what they have to say. We make it a point to investigate every tip.”

The Gaming Commission has issued its first ban on lottery products – to an 81-year-old woman from West Flanders

Big Mother is watching “If you think you can guarantee the safety of your child with some technical gadget, then you’re fooling yourself.” Dirk Depover of Child Focus is critical of a GPS-like gadget sold at Kruidvat that keeps track of a child’s whereabouts

Francis Adyns of the finance ministry, which has seen the number of reports of tax evasion from members of the public go up by 20% on last year

Cash for kids “If the child can’t yet count or doesn’t realise that a drink on a terrace has to be paid for, there’s not much point giving the child money.” Yves Coemans of the Gezinsbond, or Family Union, on when to start your kids off with pocket money

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