Mathilde Wittock’s tubular, earth-toned forms stand clustered at the end of a marble corridor, their rough, fibrous surfaces contrasting with the villa’s polished floors and veneered doors. The sculptural volumes, punctured by circular openings, read as architectural fragments quietly inhabiting the Art Deco geometry.

Zaventem Ateliers Reawakens an Art Deco Landmark in Brussels

Words by Eric David

Brussels, Belgium

The meeting of historic and contemporary design rarely fails to intrigue, often revealing overlooked qualities and unexpected parallels. Such is the premise of Zaventem Ateliers, an exhibition of contemporary collectible design at the 1934 Art Deco landmark Villa Empain in Brussels (March 11 – 19, 2026), which has been taken over by 32 designers from Zaventem Ateliers.  Hosted by the Boghossian Foundation, what makes this project stand out is not simply the collision between eras, but the decision to sidestep the conventions of exhibition-making: rather than arranging objects as static displays, it restores the villa to its original role as a home, each piece becoming part of the property’s daily life.

Lionel Jadot’s metallic chair, formed from angular planes and circular cut-outs, sits poised on a marble landing beside a mirrored wall. Its matte, gold-toned surface absorbs ambient light, while sharp folds and exposed joins contrast with the villa’s richly veined stone and geometric wood grille.

Metal chair by Lionel Jadot. Installation view, Zaventem Ateliers at Villa Empain, Brussels. Photo by Stan Huaux.

Mathilde Wittock’s sculptural forms, composed of tubular, organic volumes with raw, textured surfaces, stand like architectural fragments before a dark wooden door. Their earthy tones and porous finish contrast with the smooth marble floor and pale walls, evoking archaeological remnants reassembled within a refined domestic setting.

Bouze Lamps by Mathilde Wittock. Installation view, Zaventem Ateliers at Villa Empain, Brussels. Photo by Stan Huaux.

The villa’s marble staircase becomes a stage for material contrasts: a sinuous installation of metallic wires and flax linen coils descends along the balustrade, while sculptural lighting and furniture pieces punctuate the landing. The interplay between polished stone, woven texture and patinated metal highlights the exhibition’s tactile experimentation.

Installation view, Zaventem Ateliers at Villa Empain, Brussels. Photo by Stan Huaux.

Considered one of the finest Art Deco residences in Europe, the villa was designed in the early 1930s by Swiss architect Michel Polak for Baron Louis Empain. Opulently appointed with luxuriant materials including marble, onyx and exotic woods, the property later served as a museum, a USSR embassy and a media headquarters before being abandoned in the 1980s. Acquired by the Boghossian Foundation in 2006, it underwent a meticulous restoration following years of partial destruction and vandalism, reopening in 2010 as a centre for art and dialogue.

Into this setting enters Zaventem Ateliers, an unconventional creative hub bringing together independent studios working across metal, textiles, ceramics and lighting, bound together by a shared commitment to experimentation and material intelligence. Nowhere is this ethos more evident than in Loumi Le Floc’h’s ongoing project Precious Peels, where aubergine skins are transformed into translucent bio-based surfaces that hover between paper and textile. In the exhibition, her ethereal screen is suspended in a grey marble-clad hall, its colourful patterns and shimmering translucency both contrasting with the sombre setting and subtly echoing its decorative vocabulary.

Loumi Le Floc’h’s translucent Precious Peels screen hovers in the centre of the hall, its layered, organic surfaces diffusing light. Pale greens and rust-toned traces subtly echo the surrounding marble and Art Deco door patterns, establishing a dialogue between bio-based experimentation and architectural symmetry.

Precious Peels screen by Loumi Le Floc’h. Installation view, Zaventem Ateliers at Villa Empain, Brussels. Photo by Stan Huaux.

KRJST Studio’s monumental jacquard tapestry hangs centrally within the marble-clad hall, its dense, root-like textile relief suspended between two towering stained-glass floor lamps. The soft, tactile surface contrasts with the veined marble walls and polished floors, creating a dialogue between woven intimacy and Art Deco grandeur.

Tapestry by KRJST Studio. Installation view, Zaventem Ateliers at Villa Empain, Brussels. Photo by Stan Huaux.

Equally striking is KRJST Studio’s monumental jacquard tapestry. Positioned between two oversized stained-glass floor lamps, its organic, root-like texture enters into dialogue with the lamps’ intricate patterning and the surrounding veined marble wall panelling. Adeline Halot’s installation of metallic wires and flax linen coils forms another focal point. Uncoiling along the villa’s staircase, the serpentine intervention partially envelops the balustrade, fusing structure and softness in a single gesture.

If textiles introduce tactility, metal brings along a more assertive material presence. Vladimir Slavov’s monumental floor lamp, a textured bronze piece rising over two and a half metres in height and shaped like a giant flower, approaches illumination as a sculptural event, balancing precision with a raw, almost ritual force. Sharing a similarly elemental language, Maison JonckersBetween the Lines coffee table and TATAU side table combine hand-formed oxidised metals with etching-like incisions that recall archaic mark-making while maintaining material refinement.

Maison Jonckers’ Between the Lines coffee table sits low against a backdrop of marble and stained glass. Its hand-formed, oxidised bronze top, incised with etching-like marks, rests on a dark sculptural base, the raw metallic texture absorbing the warm glow of the lamp and asserting a primitive yet refined material presence.

Between the Lines coffee table by Maison Jonckers. Installation view, Zaventem Ateliers at Villa Empain, Brussels. Photo by Stan Huaux.

Vladimir Slavov’s towering bronze floor lamp rises like a molten botanical form against the villa’s veined marble walls. Its textured, hand-worked surface catches ambient light, casting subtle reflections, while a seated visitor introduces scale and presence, reinforcing the work’s sculptural and inhabitable qualities.

Designer Vladimir Slavov and his textured bronze and marble floor lamp. Installation view, Zaventem Ateliers at Villa Empain, Brussels. Photo by Stan Huaux.

Adeline Halot’s installation cascades down the marble staircase in layered metallic strands, coiling and pooling along the steps. The reflective fibres soften the rigid geometry of the balustrade, their fluid movement counterbalancing the veined stone and dark wood display cabinet in the background.

Intervention by Adeline Halot. Installation view, Zaventem Ateliers at Villa Empain, Brussels. Photo by Stan Huaux.

Positioned beneath a broad window, Lionel Jadot’s sculptural metal chair converses with a luminous turquoise geometric form on the sill. The chair’s folded steel planes and perforations echo the linear black radiator grille, creating a layered dialogue between industrial assembly, light and Art Deco ornament.

Metal chair by Lionel Jadot. Installation view, Zaventem Ateliers at Villa Empain, Brussels. Photo by Stan Huaux.

  • Lila Farget’s translucent blue glass sculpture, composed of interlocking geometric volumes, glows softly against the window’s reflective surface. Nearby, Lionel Jadot’s metal chair introduces a grounded counterweight, the interplay of transparency and folded steel heightening the villa’s layered materiality.

    Maze Elements series by Lila Farget; Metal chair by Lionel Jadot. Installation view, Zaventem Ateliers at Villa Empain, Brussels. Photo by Stan Huaux.

  • A curved velvet sofa in muted taupe anchors the room before a large window framing winter trees. A delicate, web-like necklace rests casually on its back, introducing a tactile counterpoint to the villa’s marble fireplace surround, speckled stone columns and herringbone parquet floor.

    Katana sword by Clem Van Hee; Necklace by Lunalotta. Installation view, Zaventem Ateliers at Villa Empain, Brussels. Photo by Stan Huaux.

  • A close-up of Lila Farget’s moulded glass work reveals layered turquoise tones and striated textures within its maze-like structure. Light filters through the thick, translucent planes, casting subtle reflections onto the marble sill and black metal grille below.

    Maze Elements series by Lila Farget. Installation view, Zaventem Ateliers at Villa Empain, Brussels. Photo by Stan Huaux.

Assembled from standard U and L metal profiles, Thibault Huguet’s LAMP#1 embraces construction constraints and economy of means, transforming industrial components into a deliberately pared-back object. A related logic underpins a metallic chair composed of angular planes by multi-hyphenate artist and designer Lionel Jadot, founder of Zaventem Ateliers, whose contributions throughout the villa reflect his longstanding affinity for repurposed materials and experimental processes.

Glass also plays a significant role, most notably in Lila Farget’s moulded works from the Maze Elements and Ondulations series. The former’s maze-like silhouettes reference the large-scale labyrinth installation she created for her 2024 solo exhibition at the Glass Museum of Charleroi, while the latter emerged from a study of a drop of water, its ripple-like surface animated by integrated blue lighting.

Other highlights include Mathilde Wittock’s sculptural Bouze Lamps, whose tubular forms are grown from two textiles derived from the same plant; Aurélien Veyrat’s wall panels composed of discarded bricks and plaster reclaimed from earlier projects; Pascale Risbourg’s hand-crafted clay candlesticks and column-like objects that draw on architectural and archaeological archetypes; and Cédric Van Parys’ billboard-inspired installation.

In a tiled, mosaic-lined room, Lila Farget’s luminous circular glass piece rests on the floor like a glowing pool. Concentric ripples of turquoise light radiate outward, echoing the surrounding blue-green tesserae and transforming the intimate, curved space into an immersive study of reflection and depth.

Ondulations series by Lila Farget. Installation view, Zaventem Ateliers at Villa Empain, Brussels. Photo by Stan Huaux.

Aurélien Veyrat’s panel leans against a richly grained wooden door, its grid-like composition assembled from reclaimed fragments. The irregular pattern of warm terracotta and pale elements stands out against the villa’s marble walls and geometric floor inlay, foregrounding reuse within a refined setting.

Wall panels by Aurélien Veyrat. Installation view, Zaventem Ateliers at Villa Empain, Brussels. Photo by Stan Huaux.

A close-up of Pascale Risbourg’s ceramic candlestick pair reveals earthy glazes, layered patinas and column-like forms that reference architectural fragments. Set against a painterly blue-toned backdrop and marble ledge, the pieces balance archaeological resonance with contemporary craft precision.

Ceramic object by Pascale Risbourg. Installation view, Zaventem Ateliers at Villa Empain, Brussels. Photo by Stan Huaux.

A sculptural composition of industrial steel elements unfolds across the villa’s veined marble floor. Ribbed cylindrical columns, a rough-hewn stone block and slender metal uprights rest in deliberate tension against the ornate wall cladding, foregrounding raw construction language within the disciplined geometry of the Art Deco interior.

Artworks by Cedric Van Parys. Installation view, Zaventem Ateliers at Villa Empain, Brussels. Photo by Stan Huaux.

KRJST Studio’s Hibiki Cabinet stands elevated on a slender metal frame against the villa’s veined marble walls. Its woven jacquard surfaces, rendered in muted metallic tones, introduce a soft, textile tactility that contrasts with the surrounding stone. The cabinet’s refined proportions and layered textures create a quiet yet deliberate tension within the Art Deco setting.

Hibiki Cabinet by KRJST Studio in collaboration with Simon Tentoon. Installation view, Zaventem Ateliers at Villa Empain, Brussels. Photo by Stan Huaux.

Mathilde Wittock’s tubular, earth-toned forms stand clustered at the end of a marble corridor, their rough, fibrous surfaces contrasting with the villa’s polished floors and veneered doors. The sculptural volumes, punctured by circular openings, read as architectural fragments quietly inhabiting the Art Deco geometry.

Bouze Lamps by Mathilde Wittock. Installation view, Zaventem Ateliers at Villa Empain, Brussels. Photo by Stan Huaux.

At first glance, the encounter between these avant-garde works and the villa’s Art Deco heritage appears frictional. The villa’s polished symmetry seems distant from the raw, sometimes radical ethos associated with Zaventem Atelier’s makers. Yet the contrast conceals an affinity. When Art Deco emerged in the 1910s and 1920s, it was decisively forward-looking, propelled by new technologies, new materials and an ambition to redefine modern living. In that sense, both the villa and its temporary occupants emerged from a desire to redefine contemporary living. Bringing these two words together is therefore less a collision than a recalibration: a reminder that innovation is not the monopoly of any single era, but a recurring impulse that emerges when designers actively engage with material, space and the realities of their time.

A minimalist table lamp with a softly rounded shade rests atop an inlaid Art Deco cabinet, set against warm ochre tiles. The lamp’s brushed metal base and restrained form introduce contemporary clarity, while the surrounding materials — lacquered wood, patterned mirror and ceramic tiles — reinforce the villa’s historic character.

LAMP#1 by Thibault Huguet. Installation view, Zaventem Ateliers at Villa Empain, Brussels. Photo by Stan Huaux.

An intimate salon scene unfolds beneath marble walls and geometric wood inlays: a burgundy armchair anchors the corner, layered with a plush pink sculptural cushion, while a stained-glass table lamp casts a green glow. Experimental objects on a wheeled metal table introduce a sense of provisional display within the villa’s formal setting.

Dream Particles aluminum crystal sculpture by Pierre Coddens; Rollmaster metal chair by Thomas Serruys; Sculptural lamp by Lionel Jadot. Installation view, Zaventem Ateliers at Villa Empain, Brussels. Photo by Stan Huaux.

A group portrait of the Zaventem Ateliers designers assembled on the steps of Villa Empain’s Art Deco façade. Framed by geometric bronze doors, stone cladding and stained-glass canopy lights, the collective presence underscores the project’s communal ethos, positioning contemporary makers against the villa’s disciplined symmetry and refined material palette.

Group portrait of the Zaventem Ateliers designers on the steps Villa Empain. Photo by Stan Huaux.

Zaventem Ateliers Reawakens an Art Deco Landmark in Brussels