To mark its twentieth anniversary, the Fonds Culturele Infrastructuur (FOCI) has published Cultuurhuizen. This book explores various perspectives in order to analyse cultural centres not only from an aesthetic point of view, but also to illustrate the close link between space and use.

A selection of cultural institutions run by the Flemish public authorities, the major cultural centres of Flanders and Brussels, as well as a range of smaller-scale organisations, represent a cross-section of the 150 projects completed (or still in progress). The main component of Cultuurhuizen is Stijn Bollaert’s series of photographs. The photographer presents snapshots of the KMSKA in Antwerp, still undergoing renovation, of the Black Room at deSingel (Antwerp) where a technician is repairing the floor, of rehearsals, ladders, stacked chairs… The approach offers a breath of fresh air compared to conventional, static architectural images of a building that has just been completed, with every trace of use or creativity concealed. “Nobody has tidied up,” explains the editor and author Joeri De Bruyn in the introduction.