The ‘À cœur ouvert’ project was carried out by Faton Duraj, Laure Gombert and Tom Paturel as part of the third-year Bachelor’s studio ‘La ville des possibles [32 Bruxelles of(f) Nantes]’ during the 2017–2018 academic year at the École nationale d’architecture de Nantes.

The project is set within one of the blocks in the Anderlecht neighbourhood, a area characterised by its industrial past. Six former market halls, nestled at the heart of this block, are currently used as storage facilities by La Fonderie, the Brussels Museum of Industry and Labour. Their architecture thus stands as an exceptional testament to Brussels’ industrial past. ‘À cœur ouvert’ proposes to open up and renovate these now severely dilapidated spaces, with the aim that this revitalisation will benefit the entire block, which has become increasingly densely built-up over time.