Wab autumn 2014

Autumn 2014

magazine

TEN REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA

International art meets business salon at Liege’s Le Bocholtz Flexible design: Mathias van de Walle Learning a language in the Ardennes

CONTENTS

Editor Sarah Crew Deputy editor Sally Tipper Reporters John Bayliss, Stephanie Duval, Andy Furniere, Oonagh Gannon, Alan Hope, Karen McHugh, Tom Peeters, Georgio Valentino Art director Tine Van Beurden Managing director Hans De Loore

magazine

Autumn 2014

AWEX/WBI and Ackroyd Publications Pascale Delcomminette – AWEX/WBI Marie-Catherine Duchêne AWEX, Place Sainctelette 2 1080 Brussels, Belgium Tel: 00.32(0)2.421.85.76 Fax: 00.32(0)2.421.83.93 email: mc.duchene@awex.be

TEN REASONS TO INVEST IN WALLONIA

International art meets business salon at Liege’s Le Bocholtz Flexible design: Mathias van de Walle Learning a language in the Ardennes

Cover William Echikson Senior communications manager, Google

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 Villers Abbey

Editorial Luring global companies to the south of Belgium is all about economic potential, infrastructure, fiscal incentives, human capital and lifestyle. The region was placed 16th among the Financial Times’ European Cities and Regions of the Future report this year, and in our file, we outline 10 reasons why Wallonia has such great investment potential. While its strategic location gives it a geographic edge, there has also been a concerted effort to rejuvenate the economy and foster creative industries. Wallonia has long boasted a rich cultural heritage and now this sector is leading the way in transforming industrial regions. Examples of local talents are featured in this autumn issue. In the fields of design, gastronomy, film and music, they show how Wallonia is not only a viable and pleasurable place in which to live, it can support entrepreneurs and creative individuals.

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04 BIG PICTURE

The next frontier in cancer therapy

06 NEWS

Headlines from across the region

08 BUSINESS

Language learning in the pearl of the Ardennes

10 INVESTMENT

Surfing multiple screens with Eurotransmedia

12 TECHNOLOGY

Novadip is revolutionising stem cell research

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14-17 FILE

Playing to its strengths: Wallonia’s top 10 investment portfolio

18 PORTRAIT

Local director Xavier Diskeuve turns the camera on rural life in Wallonia

20 CULTURE

Heritage site in Liège transformed into international house

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23 GASTRONOMY

Hainaut countryside harbours Michelin-star chef Stéphanie Thunus

25 DESIGN

Iconic objects by Matthias van de Walle

28 PANORAMA

Mélanie de Biasio: the Charleroi singer with a voice of gold

30 AGENDA

Autumn events across the region

wallonia and brussels magazine AUTUMN 2014

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BIG PICTURE

Life cycle

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Moscow’s Centre for Development of Nuclear Medicine supplies medical

IBA, a spin-off from the Catholic University of Louvain Cyclotron Research Centre, has also carried out the first patient treatment using its compact proton therapy application ProteusONE (pictured) at the WillisKnighton Cancer Center in Louisiana.

Thanks to its smaller size and price tag, IBA hopes it leads to an increased use of proton therapy in the US and elsewhere.

“We are delighted the first patient has been treated with our cutting-edge system ahead of schedule,” said Olivier Legrain, IBA’s CEO. “This is a significant milestone and demonstrates to our customers the benefits of choosing IBA. This speed of delivery further bolsters our conviction that ProteusONE will be a significant driver of proton therapy adoption worldwide.”  WWW.IBA-GROUP.COM

Proteus®ONE proton therapy treatment room 

© WITH COURTESY OF IBA

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isotopes and radiopharmaceuticals for domestic and export markets. The order in Russia is the third contract for an IBA Cyclone 70.

ouvain-La-Neuve company Ion Beams Applications (IBA) has signed a major contract with a Russian centre to install its high-energy cyclotron, a kind of particle accelerator.

The world leader in proton therapy for cancer patients said the contract was worth between €12 and €15 million with “a significant upfront payment”.

A spokesperson said: “This Cyclotron 70MeV will be dedicated to the production of new-generation medical isotopes in the diagnosis of severe illnesses.”

wallonia and brussels magazine AUTUMN 2014

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NEWS

Keywall holds on to international weather services Keywall, the Marcinelle-based provider of audiovisual services, has been retained to provide its virtual studio services to the weather forecasts on TV5 Monde, the international TV station for French-speakers the world over. Keywall already provides the same service for the Belgian public broadcaster RTBF as well as a number of smaller regional stations. The weather broadcasts will be produced in Marcinelle and exported to more than 120 countries, explained director-general Thibault Baras. “We were selected by TV5 Monde thanks to our production competence and our novel way of producing weather bulletins, which is more concentrated on content, something a lot of TV stations are looking for these days,” Baras told Télésambre, also a Keywall client. The TV5 Monde bulletins, which split the world into seven time zones, will cover more than 200 cities.

Onco DNA updates genetic analysis device Onco DNA, a cancer treatment specialist based in Gosselies near Charleroi, has carried out an update of its genetic analysis application, Oncodeep, which was launched in 2013. Oncodeep is designed to analyse the changes to a patient’s DNA when he or she contracts cancer, to allow physicians to design the best possible treatment plan. Oncodeep collects information from DNA research studies worldwide, and is able to propose treatments to physicians using means of which they were previously unaware. That’s particularly useful in the case of rare cancers, which account for about 4,000 cases out of an annual total of 62,000 cancer cases in Belgium alone. Between half and 80% of these cases fail to respond to conventional therapies such as chemo- and radiotherapy.

Alstom wins second China metro contract Alstom Transport of Charleroi has won a new contract worth €21 million to provide traction systems for the metro in Nanjing in the east of China. It will be a joint venture with Shanghai Alstom Transport Electrical Equipment. The contract involves traction for 144 metro carriages due to come into service at the end of next year. The company won a similar contract for another line of the Nanjing metro in May. “Thanks to the solid engineering capabilities of our crews, Alstom Belgium has taken an active role in the development of Optonix, now deployed across the world, in Asia, with more than 10 metro projects in China and one in Hong Kong, in Argentina for the Buenos Aires metro and in North America for the Montreal metro,” said Marcel Miller, president of Alstom Belgium.

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Party marks 25 years of Ferrero Ardennes The celebrated Kinder Surprise chocolate eggs, made by Ferrero of Alba in Italy and beloved by children of all ages for the toys they contain, are this year celebrating their 40th anniversary. Closer to home, the Ferrero factory in Arlon in Luxembourg province has turned 25. The birthday was marked by a party on the city’s Place Léopold. Ferrero Ardennes is one of 20 Ferrero factories worldwide, and the only one in Belgium. Covering an area of 77,000 square metres, it’s the company’s fourthlargest site, both in terms of size and of volume of production. The factory makes all of the company’s Kinder Schoko-bons – about 18 million of them every day – as well as four million Raffaelo and two million eggs.

Ferrero Ardennes employs 700 people, rising to 1,000 during the two peak seasons – around Easter and in the run-up to the end of the year. The factory is one of the biggest employers in the south of the country.

© AIAS

IBA Sailing Team supports cancer patients IBA Sailing Team, a group set up this year by employees of Ion Beams Applications in Louvain-La-Neuve (see page 5), has handed over two cheques, each worth €5,000, to two associations fighting cancer. Un Voilier contre le cancer was formed by Serge Deguide, who has set off on a tour of the world by sailboat, despite suffering from metastasised cancer, and Vie-là supports cancer patients being treated at the SaintPierre clinic in Ottignies. At the same time, IBA Sailing Team presented its programme of taking part in regattas and sailing races to draw attention to proton therapy and to raise funds for cancer charities.

Dinant celebrates Sax anniversary This year marks the bicentennial of the birth of Adolphe Sax, inventor of the saxophone, and the event is being marked by a travelling exhibition called Sax Inspiration, Mélodies Graphiques, featuring cartoons and drawings by caricaturists and artists from Wallonia and Brussels. The exhibition is sponsored by Wallonie-Bruxelles International. At the same time, Sax’s birthplace, Dinant, is hosting a series of activities centred on the anniversary, including a city walk in the footsteps of Sax. Pick up a free map and guide from the tourist office or cultural centre in Dinant.  HTTP://SAX.DINANT.BE/2014

© KCAP/ARUP

 WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/IBASAILINGTEAM

Brussels chosen to host Euro 2020 matches Brussels will host four matches in the 2020 European football championships, Uefa has announced.

The capital will be the venue for three group matches and one in the last 16. The decision comes after intense lobbying; Brussels is one of 13 European cities chosen to host matches, and is still counting on its status as Capital of Europe to win it the right to host the opening match of the tournament. The semi-finals and final will be played at Wembley in London. A new national stadium, to be constructed in time for the championships, will be built by Brussels with private financing on Parking C of the Heysel complex. The stadium will have a capacity of more than 62,000, but it has not yet been decided whether it will also incorporate an athletics track. wallonia and brussels magazine AUTUMN 2014

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BUSINESS

Immerse yourself

Ceran language centre in Spa offers the perfect package for busy executives

BY OONAGH GANNON

H Ceran has given me the confidence I need to express my ideas in English GABRIEL BEHR 8

wallonia and brussels magazine AUTUMN 2014

ow often do we hear that if you want to be proficient in a language, you have to spend long periods abroad immersed in a culture? For busy executives, that’s not a very time-effective solution.

executives can live and breathe a language, building a skill set to fit their own needs. The centre offers programmes in 11 languages for executives, as well as for young adults and children.

Ceran language training centre in Spa offers an efficient alternative way of acquiring language skills without taking a sabbatical and without having to travel beyond Wallonia. The centre in the heart of the Ardennes is an idyllic retreat where language acquisition is as natural as the surrounding environment (pictured above).

Gabriel Behr (pictured right), sales manager at ThyssenKrupp KH Mineral, recently signed up for a week’s residential course at Ceran to improve his English. We spoke shortly after he landed back at his desk in Sarreguemines, France, to get an insider’s impression.

Intensive residential courses using a pedagogical approach that combines unique interactive techniques and activities provide a context where

Why did you choose Ceran?

I was originally considering seeking out one of the many language schools in London for an immersion course when some colleagues who had followed the

With the dynamic way of working and interacting, there is never a dull moment GABRIEL BEHR

programme at Ceran some 10 years ago – and still talk enthusiastically about their experience – recommended it. From a practical point of view, it seemed a good idea – not far from the north east of France where I am based and in a sumptuous setting with a full pedagogical programme. I did not want to have my head immersed in books all day; I was looking for a practical course where communication is the priority.

What was your objective?

German used to be spoken widely at ThyssenKrupp, but today it is a global company with a growing portfolio of international customers and the increasing interaction in English for internal meetings and telephone calls, so I have a real need to improve my level. Although I had no illusions about speaking perfect English after a week’s immersion, I can say that my week in Spa was very productive and has given me the tools and confidence I need to express my ideas in English.

What differentiates Ceran from immersion in an English-speaking country?

A week’s immersion with Ceran is extremely intensive, comprising 14 hours of language practice a day.

With the dynamic way of working and interacting, there is never a dull moment and, for me, time flew past. I would get up in the morning and start conversing in English with other participants and

teachers, then embark on a day of one-to-one sessions with an instructor based on my own needs and field of interest, interact in group sessions and concentrate on my pronunciation in the centre’s sophisticated language laboratory.

Daytime hours were full of repetition, correction, recording and exchange.

In the evening, all the participants had dinner together followed by lively discussions led by the instructors. A typical programme in a conventional school does not cater for students beyond office hours. Having completed a week’s immersion with Ceran, I have no regrets at not crossing the Channel to study.

What are the keys to a successful week at Ceran?

Being with a group of like-minded professionals and native-speaking teachers who really want you to make progress is half the battle. The teachers are present from breakfast time to when the group disperses following the afterdinner activity to keep the momentum and encourage conversation. I stuck to the rules of not speaking French throughout the day and the evening.

At first this was quite a challenge, but as the week progressed and I started applying what I learned during the lessons, communication got easier and I could feel that I was making progress.

As the saying goes, the more you put in, the more you get out.

How do you intend to keep up your progress?

I have come away with the urge to reap the benefits from my week of immersion. Beyond the Spa centre, Ceran is still there for me. One of the tangible things you take away is a tailormade CD comprising the recordings of all the key sentences I created with the help of my instructor, which I will listen to as I drive from place to place, visiting customers. Ceran has also given me a year’s online access to their laboratory to continue working on my pronunciation.  WWW.CERAN.COM wallonia and brussels magazine AUTUMN 2014

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INVESTMENT

Media without borders An EU grant will help Wallonia develop transmedia in Europe

BY TOM PEETERS

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onsumers no longer digest their information on one screen; they use different media on multiple screens, platforms and devices. Transmedia is about spreading audiovisual content all over. It’s about watching your football team on television while checking the game stats online on your smartphone. It’s about going to the movies after being drawn in by a customised trailer on social media.

The ultimate goal is to create new products, markets and jobs PIERRE COLLIN 10

wallonia and brussels magazine AUTUMN 2014

The EU has granted funding of €2 million to the Eurotransmedia project, enabling the development of this new and highly technological field. “First, we’re setting up a European research agenda, bringing together the ideas of world-class experts on how to use media screens in the future,” says Pierre Collin from the Twist business cluster, who’s managing the project.

“But the ultimate goal is to create new products, markets and jobs.

“It’s a revolutionary and extremely fastevolving area with big technological, economic and creative challenges.”

As the executive manager of Twist (Technologies Wallonnes de l’Image, du Son et du Texte), Collin knows what he’s talking about. Established in 2007, it is now Belgium’s biggest business network in the sector of digital audiovisual and multimedia technologies.

“And a proven accelerator of economic development,” he emphasises. He’s currently running the three-year Eurotransmedia project, which is funded by the EU Regions of Knowledge programme.

Because of the many challenges and opportunities for convergence, it’s

only logical that Europe is trying to facilitate the transition from monomedia to transmedia, supporting innovation in the field. Eurotransmedia gathers media clusters to bridge digital content with emerging technologies.

It’s a collaboration between five European regions — Wallonia, Îlede-France, Catalonia, Skåne (around Malmö in Sweden) and Estonia — and Quebec. “Because transmedia cannot be stopped by borders, we were encouraged by the EU to search for a partner outside Europe,” Collin explains.

“Canada is running ahead in the field of transmedia. The federal Canada Media Fund has a yearly budget of €270 million to invest in the local television and digital media industries, and for three years it has only supported projects that spread their content over at least two media. If you stay monomedia there, you don’t get subsidies anymore. For local media enterprises, it was one of the main reasons to start investing in transmedia.”

In the future, Collin thinks Europe can move its subsidy policy in this direction, but we’re not that far yet. For now, Twist and its partners are designing a strategic European agenda, considering the best ways to ‘free’ content from only one medium.

“What will the field look like in the year 2030? is a crucial question we asked ourselves,” Collin says.

The Eurotransmedia project started on September 1 last year. In the meantime, a thorough analysis of the transmedia industry in the regions concerned was made and a global study about media consumption in Europe, North America and Asia was launched, interviewing experts in all territories.

For Wallonia, for instance, the cuttingedge Liège-based technology company EVS and the television chains RTL and RTBF were approached.

The results were due to be presented in early October to a jury of eight experts, all specialised in a different media field. Among them are the European Broadcasting Union (television), Sony (mobile telephony), Ubisoft (games), Média-Participations (publishing) and Havas (communication). “We also gathered specialists in storytelling and second-screen technology, giving us insights into how we can tell a story through multiple media.”

According to Collin, the biggest challenge is not the technological or the economic one, though a lot of convergence issues still have to be solved and budgets will need to increase, since they’re no longer working with a cultural product – say books or movies – being spread

through one medium.

“The biggest challenge is a creative one,” he says. “Most artists are acquainted with only one grammar: theirs. They still work under a onemedium paradigm, such as writing a scenario for a movie. In Europe especially, a few paradigms still need to fall down. A European creative often works by himself, unlike in the US, where working in teams is much more common.

“We can for instance bring together scenarists who specialise in different fields, so know-how can be shared and stories for different screens can evolve simultaneously, enabling the protagonists to really ‘think transmedia’. We need to free the content from its medium. I think that’s what Europe wants, too, and it will be a blessing for the international career of our cultural products, which will be forced to seek global appreciation.”

The one thing that’s still missing for Collin is a reference project, especially in the artistic sector: “Like what the movie Avatar did for Stereoscopic 3D, which already represents 20 percent of the market.” But an increased budget is needed. To get a hold of that, the plan is to identify what the technology needs by next February.

“Then, other regions can register in our agenda,” Collin says. “Regions can start to mark new goals and we will try to represent transmedia SMEs in a new consortium, developing and launching new products, creating new markets, all based on our conclusions.

In doing this we can hopefully create a European transmedia style.”  WWW.TWIST-CLUSTER.COM wallonia and brussels magazine AUTUMN 2014

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INNOVATION

Under the skin

A Walloon company has created a therapy that could revolutionise the treatment of bone diseases

BY JOHN BAYLISS

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tem cells are the building blocks of our bodies. Their significance is so great that they’re sometimes referred to as ‘mother’ cells.

Throughout our lives they are involved in the repair and natural growth of our bodies, able to renew or multiply while retaining the ability to develop into other types of cells. They can become cells of bone, skin, muscles, blood or organs. As such, it’s impossible to

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underestimate the importance of stem cells in medical science.

Established in 2013 and based in Louvain-la-Neuve, Novadip Biosciences was formed to develop and bring to the market innovative stem cell-based therapies for regenerative medicine. The company’s CEO and cofounder, Jean-François Pollet, says the first challenge was to show that simple

sampling of a small fat mass from a patient can rebuild bone that has all the properties of a native bone; and this in three dimensions.

The name Novadip had its origins in the Greek roots ‘nova’, meaning new, and ‘adip’ or ‘adipos’, meaning fat. Both elements are central to the company’s work. The first of Novadip Biosciences’ therapies, Creost, provides treatments

for several musculoskeletal disorders.

Creost is produced from fatty or adipose-derived stem cells that are transformed into 3D, natural and ready-to-use bone implants for patients with severe bone-healing disorders or large bone defects.

The cells are taken from beneath the patient’s skin from a fold in the abdomen in a painless procedure.

This method of extraction retrieves an estimated 500 times more stem cells than the more conventional method of harvesting bone marrow in the pelvis with a needle. These cells then undergo a transformation process to be turned into a mature osseous structure resembling a 3D flexible modelling clay-like matrix with the morphology and mechanical properties of a real bone.

The researchers who developed Creost say it can be used to reconstruct any kind of bone, from the jaw or femoral head to the spine and longer bones.

The means of applying the therapy is determined by the location of the disorder or defect: for example, orthopaedic surgery for tumour resection and trauma or neurosurgery for the spine. The clay-like new bone is shaped into the form required by the surgeon, who inserts it into a lesion. As of mid-2014, Novadip Biosciences was the only company in the world offering this kind of treatment.

Pollet says that pre-clinical results and studies on 11 patients monitored over more than two years have been very convincing. In one case, a 13-year-old boy who had suffered a fracture had a bone disorder that did not allow it to repair. After several conventional

treatments without any success, he was treated with Creost and a little over a year later he was back at school, playing a full and active part in life and joining in sport.

The CEO says the need now is to capitalise on these successes and to start looking towards the future. “We require fundraising at this stage that will support our plans for a multicentre second phase of clinical development in Europe, and after that in the US.” Novadip Biosciences has been supported thus far through the Louvain Technology Fund, Vives: a private seed capital that invests in high-technology companies. Vives maintains its support from the seeding process through start-up and growth to maturity.

There is a particular emphasis on ecoinnovation projects and what are seen as breakthrough technologies.

The funds are managed by Sopartec, a technology transfer company for the Catholic University of Louvain.

Creost has shown that it has the capacity to regenerate bones It is capitalised by a range of leading European investors that include the European Investment Fund, AXA Belgium, Fortis Private Equity and CDC Enterprises in France.

The future for Creost is an exciting one.

It has shown already that it has the capacity to reconstitute and regenerate bones. There is the potential for the technology to be used in a range of indications in orthopaedic surgery, traumatology and neurosurgery. It has applications, too, for people of any age. It could be used to change how surgeons deal with bone repair in children or for fusion of spinal discs in elderly patients where there has been degeneration.

The potential for future broad applications is there. What is needed now, says Pollet, is additional clinical development. “The ultimate phase, of course, is phase-three trials in Europe and the US and the registering of Creost. This will enable us to offer a product that represents an extreme medical need for some patients and to improve the quality of their life.”  WWW.VIVESFUND.COM wallonia and brussels magazine AUTUMN 2014

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INVEST IN WALLONIA

Perfect 10 As many foreign investors have discovered, focusing on Wallonia is a good idea for a lot of reasons. Here are 10 of the region’s best assets

BY ANDY FURNIERE

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n 2013, the Walloon region introduced new branding in which its strengths are symbolically represented by four auras: accessibility, technical knowhow, sense of sharing and high quality of life. Related to each of these auras, we’ve identified 10 good reasons to invest in Wallonia.

Accessibility Wallonia’s science parks are breeding grounds for cuttingedge technologies 14

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Its presence at the heart of Europe Thanks to the proximity of Brussels, the capital of the European Union, Wallonia is at the veritable centre of Europe.

Brussels not only hosts EU institutions but is also the home of innumerable other international organisations such as Nato, and is a hub of international media centres, banks, companies, legal and consultancy firms and schools.

Large companies have long been aware of the advantages of setting up shop in Walloon cities like Liège — one example is e-commerce solutions provider PFSweb. “We established our European head offices in Liège because of its central location, apart from many other advantages,” says company spokesperson Romuald Deckers.

Its access to European markets The vast majority of the European economic market, with about 400 million consumers, lies only a day’s travel away by road. This is possible because the region has almost 900km of motorways connected to the European network. Wallonia’s rail network is one of the densest in Europe, with 1,600km of railway lines.

The region also has an extensive waterway network that is connected

SENSE OF SHARING

with the major European ports and serves as a gateway to Eastern Europe. The Autonomous Port of Liège is the third largest inland port in Europe. The two airports of Liège and Brussels South Charleroi carry a total of 640,000 tonnes of freight and 5 million passengers every year, while 50km from Brussels South is Brussels National airport.

“Thanks to our offices in Liège, PFSweb can easily serve all the European countries by air or road,” says Deckers.

“The road network puts Liège within a four-hour drive of each of London, Frankfurt, Amsterdam and Paris.”

The quality of its business property Wallonia manages more than 230 business parks, characterised by the abundant availability of land at reasonable prices. Incubators at the business parks allow young start-up companies to evaluate the market and determine their future development and property needs before taking the decision to invest in their own infrastructure.

ACCESSIBILITY

Wallonia’s science parks are proving to be fertile breeding grounds for innovation in cutting-edge technologies, in particular in the fields of biotechnology and ICT. The world’s biggest names in biotechnology have set up operations here, including Pfizer and Baxter.

“The real estate market has professionalised immensely in the past fifteen years,” says Christophe Nihon, owner of real estate company ImmoQuest. “Authorities like Awex and local development agencies have also adapted their way of working by proposing land and proactively helping developers to invest.”

Technical knowhow Its identity as a breeding ground for innovation A growth dynamic was triggered in 2005 by the regional government, through the foundation of competitiveness clusters according to six themes: aeronautics and space (Skywin), agriculture and food (Wagralim),

TECHNICAL KNOW-HOW

QUALITY OF LIFE

life sciences (Biowin), transport and logistics (Logistics in Wallonia), mechanical engineering (Mecatech) and environmental technologies (GreenWin). These clusters develop innovative projects carried out by consortiums of public and private players such as companies, university research units and training centres.

“Our life sciences cluster offers large corporations like GSK the opportunity to work with SMEs, university hospitals and research centres,” says Frédéric Druck, communications director of Biowin. “This culture of open innovation levels up the norms and processes of these SMEs, subcontractors and research labs to the highest international quality standards.”

Its labour and productivity advantages Because of its qualified and motivated workforce, Wallonia’s productivity is 20 percent higher than the European average, according to the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook.

The highly qualified workforce guarantees companies an innovative potential.

Many employees also have extensive

Wallonia has set up co-working spaces throughout the provinces, such as Cristal Hub in Seraing and Cowork Factory in La Louvière. This scheme provides entrepreneurs, freelancers and home-workers equipped premises as well as advice to develop their businesses.

The seven region’s welcome offices offer foreign companies the possibility of getting used to the European market and of paving the way for relocation and more extensive outlets. The China welcome office in Mons houses a few Chinese companies, some of which have now become Belgian companies. India, Latin America and Central and Eastern European countries also have welcome offices in Liege, Arlon and Charleroi.

 Liège Airport wallonia and brussels magazine AUTUMN 2014

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INVEST IN WALLONIA

 Albert canal, Liège

language skills, due to the country’s central position at the heart of three major cultures – Anglo-Saxon, Germanic and Latin – and an immigrant population that is integrated into the economic fabric of the region.

Wallonia’s educational system offers a broad range of courses that meet business needs. Courses are available in 130 higher education institutes and nine university centres, united in three academies. Science teaching at university level in particular is advanced.

The Competence Centres represent a new concept in the field of continuous training. Designed in line with an open and multifunctional approach, these new generation centres offer modern training facilities but are also spaces dedicated to knowledge and innovation.

Wallonia has seen clusters of excellence flourish on its territory in the most innovative sectors. They cover a broad spectrum of industries, for example environmental sciences in Luxembourg province and graphic arts in Charleroi.

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To support employers who invest in Wallonia, the public employment service Forem offers a wide range of services. “Skill centres provide specialist in-depth courses,” explains Stéphanie Tambour of Forem. “Several employment and training measures can reduce hiring costs and provide training in enterprises.”

to specific tax breaks. In these zones, investment aid can be up to 40% higher.

“The regional and European subsidies facilitate our expansion projects a lot,” says Bert Worhrman, director of Hotel Nivelles-Sud, Van der Valk group. “It is one of the factors that make the Walloon hotel sector attractive for us to invest in.”

Sense of sharing

Its access to capital The local banking system is characterised by its liberalism, strong concentration and international outlook. There is also a broad corporate credit offering without any discrimination in terms of the investor’s nationality. Most large companies are listed on the Brussels stock exchange, which allows them to easily leverage new capital by raising money on the markets or through a stock market flotation. The formalities governing recourse to public capital are simple.

Its financial incentives A string of financial incentives has been set up to facilitate the relocation of new companies and business growth in Wallonia. This financial aid can be put towards company relocation costs, reducing taxes and fostering the use of renewable energy. There are also various useful financial measures available within the framework of European programmes. Access to venture capital is facilitated by the large availability of private or public funds.

At the beginning of 2006, the Walloon government decided to establish economic redevelopment zones, known as free zones. Companies that are based in or relocate to these areas are entitled

Several bodies in Wallonia make funding available to Belgian or foreign companies wishing to set up or expand in Wallonia: they include the SRIW (Regional Society of Investment) and Sowalfin SA, which provides financing and guarantees for small and medium-

sized enterprises. Private initiatives extend the offering of venture capital, for example E-Capital and Start-it.

“Partnerships with regional investors, like Sambrinvest, are a big support in our financial set-up,” Worhrman says.

High quality of life Its export opportunities The ideal geographical position and the high quality of transport infrastructure of Wallonia facilitate the exploration of foreign markets. Over the past 10 years, the region’s exports have witnessed a constant and significant growth that outstrips the European average.

jewels. Its culinary tradition and sense of hospitality and relaxation are also major assets.

waters. In 2015 the Hainaut capital Mons becomes a European Capital of Culture.

The regional capital Namur, is a good example of a pleasant Walloon city where the living is easy, with its pedestrian areas, trendy boutiques and pubs serving local brews. Charleroi is both a hub of the comic strip and a centre of international contemporary dance. Liège, known as the Ardent City, surprises visitors with its secret alleyways, museums, palaces and cathedral. A little further on lie the beautiful towns of Eupen, Stavelot, Malmedy and Spa – famous for its spa

Those looking for wide open spaces, water sports or climbing should head for the Ardennes, where the natural parks are ideal places to relax and enjoy nature. “The mission of the parks is very broad: sustainable agriculture, landscape protection, restoration of specific biotopes and promotion of sustainable tourism,” says Nicolas Nederlandt, coordinator of Wallonia’s Federation of Natural Parks.  WWW.INVESTINWALLONIA.BE

The Walloon Export and Foreign Investment Agency (AWEX) is the ideal partner to efficiently help all companies looking to broaden their business horizons. It provides advice through 105 sales offices all over the world and numerous experts from all sectors.

Financial aid can also be granted to cover things such as travel expenses and international marketing costs.

“A big dynamic factor that makes Wallonia attractive for foreign investors is the high international profile of Walloon enterprises,” adds an AWEX spokesperson.

Its standard of living Thanks to its readily available accommodation, it’s easy to settle in Wallonia. Another asset is its healthcare network, one of the most modern and efficient in the world according to the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook.

Because of the efficient health insurance system, healthcare provision is almost free and of a very high standard. In Wallonia, you are free to choose your doctor as well as a clinic or hospitals.

Most of the large hospitals and clinics have an emergency department where a doctor can be consulted at any time of the day or night and on weekends and public holidays.

 AGC Flat Glass Europe, Brussels GlaxoSmithKline, Walloon Brabant 

Its leisure activities Central features of Wallonia’s character are friendliness, a festive outlook, centuries-old folklore and architectural wallonia and brussels magazine AUTUMN 2014

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Xavier Diskeuve On the eve of the International Francophone Film Festival (FIFF) in Namur, Xavier Diskeuve spoke to Wab about his first feature film, Jacques a vu. The l’Avenir journalist and satirical writer (Votez pour moi, Bel RTL) has previously directed four awardwinning comedy shorts. Shot in Diskeuve’s home province, Jacques a vu is a continuation of his rural comedy world. When a young couple move from the city to a village in the Ardennes, they are shocked to discover that a Dutch holiday camp is to be built in their garden. Resistance appears futile until cousin Jacques, a tongue-tied bachelor farmer, apparently receives a vision from the Virgin Mary  WWW.JACQUESAVU.COM

How do you feel as Jacques a vu is about to premiere at the FIFF? Pride and impatience that it’s about to be discovered! When you make a comedy, it’s essential to feel the audience’s appreciation of the jokes and the film’s point of view.

What were the challenges in writing your first feature-length film?

Jacques a vu features a number of familiar characters (Jacques, Père Charles, cousin Brice…) and a similar assortment of actors. The challenge was to create a more rounded story with characters tormented by dilemmas and contradictions.

It was also possible to plot more subject matter in this film and examine Wallonia today: invaded by Dutch tourists yet highly influenced by the worship of the Virgin Mary and her past apparitions. And all that while maintaining the DNA and the easy-going attitude of my short films.

The scenario is deeply embedded in rural Wallonia. How important is the notion of terroir for you?

Not especially, as I’m not a regionalist. But by recounting stories set in my region and with actors who are like family to me, I can be sure that no other director is doing what I do. I attempt to be both local and universal.

Where did the idea for the supernatural element of the story come from?

My family comes from the region of Beauraing where the Virgin Mary appeared to five children in the 1930s. One is still alive today and remains greatly affected by the event. As a child I would go every year on a walking pilgrimage to Foy-NotreDame, where there is an enduring worship of the Virgin Mary. So I asked myself, what would happen if the Virgin returned? A few months after shooting the film, there was talk of a small glowing statue of the Virgin Mary in the small commune of Jalhay in the Ardennes. The events that followed only confirmed my feelings about the subject.

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It’s ideal to finance and shoot a film in Wallonia XAVIER DISKEUVE

What were the reasons for shooting the film in Wallonia?

It’s ideal to finance and shoot a film in Wallonia, although there is a limit to the budget if you don’t shoot in France or Luxembourg or accept that some actors and sets will have to be French or Luxembourgish. We had 30 days to shoot and a budget of €800,000, which was very tight. Fortunately there was not one day of rain during the summer of 2013 – a real miracle! Thank you, Virgin Mary!

Why does the Namur region boast so many actors and directors?

The explanation is in the numerous theatre companies such as Théâtre de l’Escalier, Théâtre Jardin-Passion, Compagnie Victor B and TAP’S, which enable Namur actors to thrive in ideal conditions, under good direction and in works that are really interesting. In this pool of talent, you discover actors with comedy potential and impressive physiques and temperament. There are at least 25 actors in my film that I’ve spotted over the years thanks to these groups.

The tax shelter and other initiatives provide some finance for Belgian films. What further improvements could be made?

The tax shelter increases the film’s budget, but it cannot make up more than 50 percent of the total finance, automatically creating a ceiling. Reform of the tax shelter law is long overdue to

make this the ‘net’ amount, allowing more money to go into the production.

As a former film critic, how do you think local films should be covered by the media?

There’s nothing worse than excessive nationalism, in sport as well as cinema.

On the other hand, I think it’s natural that Belgian productions should get plenty of coverage. A film shoot is also a spotlight on an area, sometimes little-known, which thanks to the film will attain a mythical status. There are many interesting aspects to explore, if only the small world of Belgian extras.

The only regret is that the press are frequently unfamiliar with the ins and outs of film-making, particularly the complex methods of finance and the cruelty of commissions that constrain co-productions. When I was a critic, I paid little attention to this. I thought films were made by magic!

What are your favourite films and directors, Belgian and international?

In no particular order: the Coen brothers, Farrelly brothers, Judd Apatow, Wes Anderson, Roy Andersson, Woody Allen, Luis Buñuel, Pascal Rabaté, Alain Guiraudie, Claude Zidi and Alain Resnais. As for Belgians: Damien Chemin and Jean-Philippe Toussaint. If I had to name a film that continues to fascinate me after dozens of viewings, it would be Buñuel’s The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie.

It almost subconsciously inspired the clergy in Jacques a vu.

Any future projects?

I am waiting to see the reception of Jacques a vu before finding the courage to do this again. We don’t have a bankable cast and promotion is on a shoestring. However, we could have a hit. Jacques a vu has the potential to be a real success.

Jacques a vu (Belgium 2014, 90 mins), comedy by Xavier Diskeuve with Nicolas Buysse, François Maniquet, Christelle Cornil (release January 2015).

MARIANNE GRIMONT

Why did you cast the same principal trio of actors as in Mon cousin Jacques?

Having written the plot and dialogue for them, I couldn’t imagine the film without them. Buysse and Maniquet are rather like my Laurel and Hardy.

Are you going to change Laurel or Hardy just for marketing purposes? So I adhered to this casting as much as I possibly could.

 Christelle Cornil (Lara), François Maniquet (Jacques), Nicolas Buysse (Brice) wallonia and brussels magazine AUTUMN 2014

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The house that Bocholtz built A new arts centre in Liège is the renaissance of a centuries-old building

BY GEORGIO VALENTINO

L

iège recently celebrated the grand opening of its newest contemporary arts space, but the Bocholtz isn’t ‘new’ at all. This meticulously restored 16th-century hôtel particulier, in Place SaintMichel, just a stone’s throw from the city’s famous Prince-Bishops’ Palace, has one foot in regional history and another in a resolutely international future, thanks to its enterprising new owner, François Fornieri of Liègebased pharmaceutical firm Mithra.

Fornieri bought the building last year with the intention to restore it to its original architectural glory

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and repurpose the site altogether, to transform it from the private residence Hôtel de Bocholtz to the Bocholtz, Maison Internationale de Liège.

Fornieri has created a space where business meets international art. As 21st-century as all this talk of global culture sounds, the vision is entirely in keeping with that of the Bocholtz’s first master.

There’s a good reason why, architecturally, the Bocholtz fits right into the landscape of one of Wallonia’s most historic and scenic cities. The sumptuous house was built at the end of the Middle Ages by eponymous

Dutch canon Arnold de Bocholtz, who settled in the insular Prince-Bishopric of Liège on ecclesiastical business. This man of the cloth was also a man of the world. Not content with the parochial, mostly gothic architectural values that dominated inward-looking Liège, Bocholtz sought to open the doors of his new parish to the rest of Europe, particularly Renaissance Italy. He led by an architectural example that was widely followed.

been kind to this pioneering piece of architecture. The structure was expanded and modified by succeeding generations of Bocholtzes until the house passed out of family hands in the late 17th century. By the 19th, it was old hat, even shabby. Derelict, this architectural milestone was in danger of demolition by modern developers.

This is our first major public exhibition and the featured artists are legends JEAN-CHRISTOPHE HUBERT

“The Hôtel de Bocholtz was one of the first buildings in Liège to incorporate the Italian style,” says Bocholtz artistic director Jean-Christophe Hubert. “It was a revolutionary gesture at the time and it would influence later developments around the city.”

The house that Bocholtz built was only spared the wrecking ball by a 1953 royal decree naming it a historical monument. Thence it was bought by a succession of banks who launched a seemingly interminable programme of restoration throughout the 1960s and 70s. It was Mithra founder and CEO Fornieri who would realise this prodigious task, decades later.

This was a promising enough start but the intervening half-millennium hasn’t

Fornieri only acquired the place last year but he set to work at once to create

his Maison Internationale de Liège. It was an idea, he figured, whose time had come.

“Mr Fornieri conceived the Bocholtz as a space dedicated entirely to international arts,” Hubert says, “not local, not regional but international.

This global dimension is something that has been lacking in Liège.”

With a crew of contractors already at work on the physical structure, it remained only to assemble a team of culture-sector professionals, including art historian Hubert, to fill the Bocholtz’s luxurious halls and chambers with contemporary art.

This, too, was a process.

A few lucky, art-loving Liégeois got a partial glimpse of a new and improved Bocholtz earlier this year. While some rooms were still in the process of restoration, Bocholtz brass decided to test-drive the main exhibition rooms with a month-long, semi-private exhibition of works by Israeli artist David Gerstein. wallonia and brussels magazine AUTUMN 2014

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With work finally complete in every corner of the structure, Fornieri and his team definitively opened the Bocholtz to the public at the end of August with an homage to Belgian glassworker Louis Leloup. Although a Liège native, who got his start working for Belgian crystal and glassware brand Val Saint Lambert, Leloup has operated on the world stage as an independent artist for decades.

His greatest successes, for example, have been overseas. The local-boydone-good has an entire museum dedicated to him in Kyoto, Japan.

Established in 1997, the Musée Louis Leloup boasts three floors of Leloup originals, 600 works in total. Fifty of these were showcased at the Bocholtz for its official inaugural exhibition.

Now that Fornieri et al have got their feet wet, they reckon it’s time to dive in. To wit, the next Bocholtz event is a

Now that Fornieri et al have got their feet wet, they reckon it’s time to dive in 22

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 Nu couché, pastel, Edgar Degas, 1885, private collection

big one. L’Expérience du Mouvement features more than 100 works in various media by pioneering French Impressionists Edgar Degas, Auguste Rodin and Claude Monet.

“This is a milestone for us at the Bocholtz,” Hubert says. “It’s our first major public exhibition and, what’s more, the featured artists are legends. Degas and his peers were clear precursors of twentieth-century modern art. Their influence can still be felt today.”

The Impressionists’ contributions to contemporary artistic practice are indeed legion. They broke with tradition in matters of form and content. Bored with monumental Romantic tableaux of epic scenes drawn from history and mythology, Degas in particular found his inspiration in the daily life around him. He documented the mundane street scene, the horse race, the cafe,

and he did so with kinetic verve. His seemingly hasty strokes suggested the constant movement of modern life, which, the Impressionists were the first to realise, was more than just a new experience; it was an entirely new way of experiencing the world.

This is a fitting manifesto for Fornieri and his new Maison Internationale de Liège, whose staff embrace this progressive, internationalist brand of modernity. But if their eyes are fixed forward, that doesn’t mean the Bocholtz is turning its back on a very substantial historical legacy. A guided tour of the entire building is available on request. This is a veritable voyage through time. Highlights include the creepy crypt, which has yet to be used for exhibition purposes. So the Bocholtz combines the best of old and new under one (ornate) roof.  WWW.BOCHOLTZ.BE

From farm to table Au gré du vent in Seneffe: seasonal ingredients are the star of the show

BY SARAH CREW

A

fter a whirlwind year of awards and accolades, Stéphanie Thunus has confirmed her status as a chef to watch. Within two years of launching her solo venture in the Hainaut countryside, she has added a prestigious Michelin star and Lady Chef of the Year award to a Gault & Millau Grand de Demain title.

If the star was a surprise, “it came quickly, too quickly”, confides Thunus, who admits she didn’t attend the award ceremony as she thought it wasn’t possible for her to win only a year after opening. Fortunately, husband Sébastien Guchet (who takes care of front-of-house) and sommelier Jean Adelson were present and called with the news. Thunus admits there were tears as well as trepidation about keeping up the high standard required to maintain Michelin status.

“It’s important to keep the star,” she says. “We’ve taken on more staff to be sure of the quality.” New arrivals to the

Michelin galaxy can be sure of a flurry of bookings and Au gré du vent is no exception. Diners now need to reserve a month in advance for a weekend table in the 35-seat contemporary and relaxed dining room, though you could get lucky with a last-minute call for lunch during the week.

The awards of course are only part of the story. Au gré du vent has built up a loyal clientele thanks to the consistent quality of its cuisine and the creativeness of its dishes. Unusually for a top-notch address, the menu changes every six weeks. It keeps the kitchen on its toes, as Thunus explains: “Each time it’s a new challenge as it has to be better than the previous menu. The team are used to it now and it really energises everybody.”

Thunus’s cuisine can be characterised by its attention to good produce and insistence that the star ingredient remains the focus. “If we’re working with pigeon, you’ll recognise it on the

We try and promote small and artisan growers, which is satisfying but also quite demanding STÉPHANIE THUNUS wallonia and brussels magazine AUTUMN 2014

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I think chefs in the region are evolving at their own rhythm STÉPHANIE THUNUS

plate. It won’t be cut into little bits, but we will deconstruct everything else.

That’s the vision of the restaurant; I don’t forget that the client comes here mainly to eat,” she explains.

Diners do get side-tracked by the gastronomic garniture, though.

Vegetables are seasonal and local.

“We try and promote small and artisan growers, which is satisfying but also quite demanding as we need quantity and consistent quality.” The menu pays tribute to these producers, which include the Jurbise farm near Mons and organic grower Daniel Leblond, who has revived the tradition of using animals to plough Ardennes soil.

“Clients will eat produce here and then buy directly from the farm,” Thunus says.

Thunus is excited about her autumn menu: pheasant, the first scallops, young roe deer and local vegetables such as mini celeriac. Always present is her signature dish, langoustine delivered from Guilvinic in Brittany three times a week. “It appeared on my 24

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very first menu and clients have never stopped asking for it. Langoustines are prepared three ways: lightly roasted, split in half and simply served with a herb butter; in a tartare with a lime zest; and as a basil filo parcel, all accompanied by a cappuccino made out of the claws.”

With a pastry chef among the sixmember team, bread and desserts are all home-made and with a contemporary accent. Cheese couldn’t be more local; the large and airy restaurant was purpose-built opposite the Thunus family farm where the chef’s mother provides some of the cheese and all the butter.

Au gré du vent’s clientele hail from the local region and further afield, from northern France and Flanders.

In addition to à la carte options, three

menus are pitched at a variety of budgets: three courses for €39 or four for €52, and a seven-course tasting menu for €65. During the week, a business lunch is available for €39. A selection of wine is proposed for each menu and the cellar stocks French wine and is growing to offer more choice, including New World bottles.

Collaboration with local artisans is one of the conditions of Generation W, the chef co-operative launched last year that showcases the region’s culinary prowess. Unsurprisingly, Au gré du vent will be joining its ranks. “There are some excellent restaurants in Wallonia,” Thunus says. “Generation W is an initiative to promote us abroad which is great; I think chefs in the region, are evolving at their own rhythm and according to what they want to share with clients.”

With two children aged seven and four, Thunus recognises that her work is physically and mentally tough.

After training at the renowned Namur Citadel hotel school, she earned her chef stripes at the Maison du Cygne in Brussels, alongside her husband. The Gril aux Herbes in Wemmel followed, before the pair launched their joint venture in Seneffe, a peaceful spot by a scenic waterway and, conveniently, near two motorways. A terrace is planned for spring and in the meantime she and her husband are content to enjoy their current success and focus on keeping their customers happy.  WWW.RESTO-AUGREDUVENT.BE

MAXIME ELVAUX

Le Clicq, c’est chic Simplicity and flexibility typify the work of Brussels-based designer Matthias van de Walle

BY STEPHANIE DUVAL

Good design, to me, is design without the ‘bling bling’, without artifices MATTHIAS VAN DE WALLE

E

ven if you haven’t heard Matthias van de Walle’s name, the chances are you’ll recognise at least one of the objects he’s created.

Perhaps you even have it lying at home, conveniently folded flat so it fits into your kitchen cupboard. We’re talking about the Clicq’Up: the iconic yellow origami champagne bucket van de Walle designed for French label Veuve Cliquot.

It was one of the young designer’s first projects, and one he remains very proud of. “It looks quite simple, but in reality two years passed between the initial concept, a few dozen prototypes and the final public launch,” van de Walle recalls. “It also took several production tests, so without the ambitious means of the Veuve Clicquot brand, including the production factory input, this project would probably not have been possible.” wallonia and brussels magazine AUTUMN 2014

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I’ve always been attracted by all kinds of contraptions MATTHIAS VAN DE WALLE

In a way, the ice bucket typifies van de Walle’s aesthetic and philosophy. He calls himself a “pursuer of modularity and flexibility” and his work a pursuit of “the object that is practical, easy and economical to produce, store and transport, and design that is meant to be manipulated.” He takes great care to insert the word ‘playful’ in every description, too, and judging from the project that brought him to the public’s attention at Milan Design Week in 2011, this description sounds spot-on.

Van de Walle was born in Brussels but grew up in the countryside of Marche-en-Famenne in the province of Luxembourg. “I’ve always been attracted by all kinds of contraptions,” he explains. “I spent my childhood constructing my own huts, bows and arrows, soapbox carts, and tinkered endlessly in our garage, at my father’s workbench.” When the time came to start his formal education, the young designer moved to Brussels.

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many internationally recognised designers as his teachers: “I was lucky to have designers like Damien Bhir, Charles Kaisin, Pol Quadens and Fabiann Vanseveren as teachers, and to follow interior architecture courses with designers such as Patrice Levecq, Jean Loui De Ridder, François Marc and Suzon Ingber.” During his studies in 2005, van de Walle earned the Prix du Jeune Design Belge, which is known today as the MAD Prize.

After his studies, he applied for the Salone Satellite in Milan and was eventually accepted, allowing him to participate in the 2008, 2009 and 2010 editions under the Belgium is Design label, supported by organisations like Wallonie-Bruxelles Design/Mode (WBDM) and the Walloon Export and Foreign Investment Agency (AWEX). It was here that Veuve Clicquot discovered his prototype for the foldable bucket, which two years later took Milan

by storm as a finished collaboration between the champagne house and the designer.

Van de Walle has come a long way since then, racking up the collaborations with Danish brand Bolia and Belgian design companies Liparus and Linadura. The latter produces two of his designs: the Crab trinket tray made from plotted aluminium foil shaped into origami folds, and the Face mirror (pictured on page 25), which offers a three-faceted reflection. Geometry is a recurrent theme in van de Walle’s work. Liparus currently produces the designer’s Stamp tables: a much more fluid design inspired by the movement of liquids.

Bolia discovered van de Walle’s work in Milan in 2010, when the designer presented a collection of furniture inspired by his grandmother’s manor.

“It’s a house with a lot of historical objects and artistic works. I wanted to create objects that will never go out of fashion,” he explains. The result was the L-Chair and La Console, a furniture duo that brings to mind the age-old tradition of boudoirs but reinvents it for the modern age. The designs intrigued the representatives of Bolia.

“I tend to think Belgian design is part of a Nordic movement, due to our geographical position and influence from neighbouring countries. We are all bold purists,” he says. “For the past ten years, we’ve clearly witnessed a revaluation of the Belgian design scene on a national and international scale.

I guess this is thanks to numerous local associations that encourage and help creatives start up – WBDM, MAD Brussels, Brussels Design September, Wallonie Design, to name but a few.

“These organisations allow visibility both here and abroad, creating great opportunities for new talents at an early stage. Many new local brands appear thanks to them, allowing Belgian design to be spread abroad.” It explains why he feels comfortable enough in Brussels to spend a few months renovating his home and workshop there. “It’s really quite pleasant to live in Brussels, and you can easily get to anywhere else in Europe from here. You also have quick access to many different materials and qualified workmanship.”

 WWW.MATTHIASVANDEWALLE.COM

Q&A WITH MATTHIAS VAN DE WALLE Could you describe your aesthetic and philosophy?

I like to deconstruct the stereotypes people have of furniture. I want to create objects that will never go out of fashion, by means of a universal language. Good design, to me, is design without the ‘bling bling’, without artifices, one with only the essential and an economy of materials.

How has your philosophy evolved?

I think my approach is getting tougher. And I’m being more and more critical of today’s design production.

Your work includes a variety of objects in different domains.

How difficult is it for you to transition between those?

I’m not interested in restricting myself to only one domain. The range of design applications is huge. I am more thrilled to encounter diverse demands than I am annoyed by them. The challenge is always to find the right answer, with a personal language, to one specific project. In a way, experimenting on several projects at the same time stimulates the creation process between each of them. wallonia and brussels magazine AUTUMN 2014

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PANORAMA

The singer

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H

er haunting voice is spellbinding, her performances flawless. Already revered at home, Charleroi-born singer Mélanie De Biasio (pictured) is increasingly charming audiences abroad. Before a mini European tour this autumn, she became the first Belgian to appear on BBC Two’s flagship music show Later…

With Jools Holland.

The daughter of a Belgian mother and Italian father, both of them musical, De Biasio has a smouldering voice with a timeless quality that frequently defies its jazz classification. She studied voice and flute at Brussels Royal Conservatory before releasing her first album, A Stomach is Burning (2007), which evoked jazz haunts of yesteryear.

Her latest album, No Deal (2013),

pushes the boundaries of the genre.

An entrancing interpretation of Nina Simone’s I’m Gonna Leave You is, like De Biasio herself, tipped to endure.

De Biasio appears in concert at Cirque Royal in Brussels on November 12. WWW.MELANIEDEBIASIO.COM

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and its discontents”, more than 150 works are showcased. Following on chronologically, the second exhibition offers visitors the opportunity to view authentic items, evidence and photography linked with the Battle of Mons. A must-see in this year of remembrance.

celebrate that than a sax competition? Held every four years since 1994, it has become known across the world. This year is especially important as it celebrates the 200th anniversary of the birth of Adolphe Sax. All events are open to the public and are free to attend, except for the finals, which take place on November 7 and 8 and for which there is an admission fee. On both these nights, you have the chance to listen to the six best saxophonists play accompanied by an orchestra. Former champions have hailed from France, Japan and Russia, with Belgium looking to keep its title as the most recent winner.

WHAT? COMMEMORATION OF WORLD WAR ONE WHEN? UNTIL NOVEMBER 23 WHERE? BEAUX ARTS MONS

www.bam.mons.be

EXHIBITION SENSATION & SENSUALITY

WHAT? ADOLPHE SAX COMPETITION WHEN? OCTOBER 28-NOVEMBER 8 WHERE? DINANT

Discover one of Belgium’s best-known artists in Brussels this autumn: Bozar plays host to an exhibit on the great Flemish Baroque painter Rubens, described by the fine arts centre as the Quentin Tarantino of his day. Influenced by the works of Italian masters, Rubens in turn put Flanders on the map. The exhibition showcases many of his works, focusing on six themes including violence, lust and power. His masterpieces inspired those who came after him and also on display are creations from those whose oeuvres he shaped – Van Dyck, Manet and Delacroix.

Image: Lukas-Art In Flanders VZW/Royal Museum Of Fine Arts Antwerp, Photo Hugo Maertens

http://sax.dinant.be

Covering the period from World War One to the return of the deported in 1946, this travelling exhibition is on temporary loan from the Auschwitz Foundation. It focuses on Belgium at the heart of European history at the time, through its exploration of Europe’s political situation after the war, the rise of fascism, resistance movements and Nazi ideology. The presentation is supported with accounts given by those who lived through the events. A visitors’ guide is also available to buy.

WHAT? SENSATION AND SENSUALITY: RUBENS AND HIS LEGACY WHEN? UNTIL JANUARY 4 WHERE? BOZAR, BRUSSELS

WHAT? BELGIUM, 1914-1945: WITNESSES IN THE EYE OF THE STORM WHEN? UNTIL NOVEMBER 30 WHERE? MUSEE WELLINGTON, WATERLOO

www.bozar.be

BEAUX-ARTS MONS In the context of World War One, Mons’ Museum of Fine Arts (BAM) pays tribute with two exhibitions: Signs of the Times and The Battle of Mons. The former focuses on the period before the war and the indications of unrest conveyed by the visual arts of the time. Alternating between idyllic and menacing, and showing the instability that Freud labelled “civilisation

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AIAS-PH DEHUIT

COLLECTIONS VILLE DE MONS, PHOTO RINO NOVIELLO

www.museewellington.be

MUSIC ADOLPHE SAX COMPETITION One of Belgium’s claims to fame is the invention of the saxophone, and what better way to

FILIP VANZIELEGHEM

BELGIUM, 1914-1945

PERFORMANCE CHARLEROI BIS-ARTS Spicing up the autumn half-term is the offbeat arts fixture Charleroi Bis-Arts. The city’s annual international festival of arts and street theatre returns for its 19th edition with a multidisciplinary programme of theatre, dance and music. Questioning the human character and its capacity to adapt and forge new paths, the programme features companies from France, Spain, the UK, Denmark and Belgium. Circus arts remain under the spotlight with the Spanish Cridacompany and Gandini Juggling from London, plus a focus on the art of clowning. Homegrown talent includes Virginie Strub’s new production En attendant Gudule and a show for children by choreographer Thomas Hauert. Danse étoffée (pictured) is set to music by contemporary American composer John Cage. The finale of the 10-day programme is a Grand Bal Blanc at Eden cultural centre.

WHAT? CHARLEROI BIS-ARTS WHEN? OCTOBER 24-NOVEMBER 1 WHERE? ACROSS CHARLEROI

www.pba.be

EVENTS TOUR DE BELGIQUE For classic car enthusiasts, watch out for the Tour De Belgique regularity rally on the roads of Wallonia this November. Founder Robert Vandevorst was at a jumble sale two years ago when he found a book on the Tour de Belgique, an annual car rally that was suspended due to the petrol crisis in 1973. He explored the route and decided to recreate the rally, which focuses not on a car’s ability for high speeds, but on average speeds throughout the three-day race.

Participating cars must have been built before 1982. It’s a fun trip back in time for drivers and spectators alike, which fittingly ends in Spa on the Sunday night.

WHAT? TOUR DE BELGIQUE CAR RALLY WHEN? NOVEMBER 14-16 WHERE? THE ROADS OF WALLONIA

www.tourdebelgique.com

HALLOWEEN AT THE CITADEL This year, embrace the Halloween spirit and head to Namur where witches from five continents are ready to greet you and your family. Guided

by Anne de Chantraine – a Namur witch burned at the stake in the 17th century – visitors will be shown around activities such as face-painting, workshops, shows and games and can explore the eerie underground chambers of the citadel, usually closed to the public.

WHAT? HALLOWEEN AT THE CITADEL WHEN? OCTOBER 30-NOVEMBER 2 WHERE? NAMUR CITADEL

www.ville.namur.be

ACCESSIBLE ART FAIR Interested in art but find traditional galleries intimidating? Then the Accessible Art Fair is for you. Set up in 2007 by Canadian Stephanie Manasseh and originally directed towards expats, it has since become an established event on the local art scene. It features 50 artists handpicked by a jury, showcasing their paintings, photographs and designs. Interaction between artist and buyer is encouraged, fostering a more personal ambience. Admission is free and the art is sold for anywhere between €50 and €5,000.

WHAT? ACCESSIBLE ART FAIR WHEN? OCTOBER 16-19 WHERE? CERCLE DE LORRAINE, BRUSSELS

www.accessibleartfair.com

ACCESS ALL AREAS Frenchman Laurent Lagarde is a participant in this year’s Accessible Art Fair. Having lived in New York, Israel and France over the years, he is now back in Belgium after leaving 13 years ago. He’s originally a musician, with photography just a hobby at the start. While in Israel he started taking pictures as a way to deal with the stresses of life. “The light there is amazing,” he says. Self-taught, he appreciates the freedom it affords him.

Lagarde has found that the art world can indeed be hard to access for outsiders. “Not only financially but also intellectually snobby; too exclusive – this is not my approach to art,” he says. “It should be shared with everyone.” Last year’s fair was his first big event. “I was a bit sceptical at first – and also afraid of being confronted by the people, you’re exposed – but I was quite amazed at the direct interaction. You have great conversations and meet people who love what you do.”

And the work he’s most proud of? “I’m most proud that they started to sell. A collector made an order of 60 photos. When someone believes in what you do, it’s very fulfilling.”

You can see Lagarde and his photographs, including his superhero-themed series The Mutants Invade, at the Accessible Art Fair, from October 16 to 19 in Brussels. .BENJAMINwallonia and brussels magazine AUTUMN 2014

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The world is my stage, #Wallonia is my home Franco Dragone

Franco Dragone dazzles the planet with his amazing shows.

Along with thousands of other Walloon entrepreneurs, artists, actors, writers, designers and creators spreading their Belgian creativity and innovation capacity all over the world.

Wallonia is in the World.

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