Restoration of the museum exterior began in April 2018. For a year and a half, its grey outside walls gradually disappeared behind scaffolding as work began in earnest on restoring them to their original glory. The result so far is a truly magnificent facade: the front of the museum is no longer grey but gleaming white!
October saw a highlight in the museum’s restoration: the unveiling of the facade. Karel Breda architects and the contractor Artes Woudenberg completed their brief in style, making the exterior an eye-catching feature once again in the Antwerp cityscape.
The museum’s outer walls are variously constructed in Belgian limestone, Euville stone and Gobertin. The frontage stands out from the other walls with its more numerous shades of colour: if you look closely, you will find hints of pink, yellow, pale orange, grey and blue. The effect is due to the variation in the types of stone used, such as the Brecci stone in the rear wall and the Vinalmont and Merlemont stone of the balusters. The paintwork also contributes significantly.
The rear facade will remain hidden behind its scaffolding for a while longer. We’re still hard at work cleaning and restoring the back of the building. So you’ll need to be patient for just a little longer before we blow your socks off with all four of our phenomenal, historic exterior walls!
Archaeological research in the museum garden revealed the precise location of the Duke of Alva’s fortress.
Our site photographer Karin Borghouts takes you on a privileged tour of our brand-new, gleaming white galleries.
Alongside the renovation of the building, we’re also remodelling the garden around the museum.
The museum rooms look great! Would you like to take a look?
