On Monday 18 January around 4 p.m., a fire was spotted on the roof of the Palais des Beaux-Arts, on the side of the Koningsstraat. The fire broke out at one of the cooling towers on the roof and spread between the roof and the ceiling, which made extinguishing it particularly difficult. The fire brigade arrived quickly and by 9:30 p.m. the firefighting operation was complete. The fire did not spread to the surrounding buildings and there was no spread of fire inside. Work is currently underway to protect the roof against further water damage from rain.
BOZAR is awaiting further expert assessments in order to make a correct estimate of the damage sustained and the cause of the fire. There is no doubt that the damage to the building will be substantial.We can already confirm that the large Henri Le Boeuf concert hall has been affected by water damage, mainly on the right-hand side in front of the stage and to the organ. Music Director Jérôme Giersé is working with the experts to limit the damage to this important heritage as much as possible.
As for the exhibitions, mainly the circuit on the Koningsstraat has been affected. The exhibition that was running there, Danser brut, had fortunately just been dismantled. The works by Philippe Vandenberg. Molenbeek, which were located in the Antichambres on the Koningsstraat, have since been evacuated and will be examined further. The other large exhibition circuit, on the Ravensteinstraat side, where Hotel Beethoven and Facing Van Eyck are currently on display, is said to have been largely spared. Director of Exhibitions Sophie Lauwers, together with her team, is looking into which further actions need to be taken; the safety of the artworks is paramount.
Paul Dujardin, CEO and Director-General of BOZAR: “We wish to express our deep gratitude to the many firefighters who faced danger to contain the fire. We cannot emphasise enough how much we appreciate the support of our audience, our partners, our staff and the various political authorities during these traumatic days.” The building and the exhibitions remain closed up to and including 25 January. The planned online events are also postponed until then.