Bruxelles 1900

The Petit Palais 

 In 1900, in the Grand Palais, opened in Paris, the visitors of the Universal Exhibition discovered, at the same time, the exhibition was consecrated to other nations, a Belgian section that enjoyed an enthusiastic unanime: about 150 paintings and sculptures venues Belgium appears to be a veritable revelation. This Parisian recognition established Brussels as one of the major European artistic centers at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. 

The exposition is an extraordinary focus on culture that includes 250 works: paintings, sculptures, decorative arts, posters, jewelry, photographs, architecture, and graphic arts.

The exhibition has been realized in part with the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium, the Royal Museums of Art and History and the Royal Library of Belgium (KBR) and benefit from the exception of three institutions. 

Following the success of Paris 1900, the Petit Palais, on avenue Winston-Churchill in the 8ᵉ arrondissement of Paris, turns its gaze toward Brussels with a major exhibition, Brussels 1900, on view from November 10, 2026 to April 25, 2027. For the first time in France, such a comprehensive panorama of Belgian creative output at the dawn of the 20th century is gathered in a single venue: painting, sculpture, decorative arts, photography, architecture, jewelry and fashion are brought together to tell a city in full ferment.

What immediately stands out is the sheer scale of the territory covered. We won't just talk about a few well-known Symbolist paintings: the exhibition will bring together works of very different kinds, from monumental triptychs by Léon Frédéric to the movable ensembles and models by Victor Horta, along with posters from the Salon des XX and jewelry by Philippe Wolfers. Horta, a leading figure of Belgian Art Nouveau, breaks with the traditional architecture of bourgeois houses, championing open planning and spatial fluidity, and makes extensive use of metal and glass. Seeing his models in Paris will be a rare chance to get as close as possible to a way of thinking about built space that changed Europe’s face.

Commissariat general: 

Géraldine David, general director of the Royal Museums of Art and History 

Sara Lammens, director of the Royal Library of Belgium (KBR)

Annick Lemoine, president of the public establishment of the Orsay and Orangery Museums, former director of the Petit Palais 

Kim Oosterlinck, general director of the Royal Museum of Fine Arts in Belgium 

Commissariat scientifique: 

Anne-Charlotte Cathelineau, conservatrice and chef du patrimoine en charge of sculptures, Petit Palais Davy Depelchin, conservator in charge of the collection of paintings and sculptures of the 19th century at the Royal Museums Fine Arts of Belgium 

Benjamin Foudral, director of the Musée Gustave Courbet d’Ornans.

Fernand Khnopff, Des Caresses, 1896. Huile sur toile, 50,5 x 150 cm. Musées royaux des Beaux-Arts de Belgique. © Musées royaux des Beaux-Arts de Belgique, Bruxelles / photo J. Geleyns Art Photography