Brussels' Comic Book Route

The Brussels' Comic Book Route (or also The comic strip route in Brussels) is a path composed by several comic strip murals which deck the walls of several buildings throughout the inner City of Brussels as well as the neighborhoods of Laeken and Auderghem. The large comic strip murals show motifs of the most famous and popular Belgian comics, for instance The Adventures of Tintin, Lucky Luke, Gaston, Marsupilami and Gil Jourdan.

The project began in 1991 by initiative of the local authorities of the city of Brussels in collaboration with the Belgian Comic Strip Center. At its beginning, the project only intended to embellish empty walls and gables of buildings in the city. It then became an opportunity to remember that many well-known comic artists around the world were linked to Belgium's capital, which also claims to be the capital of bande dessinée, or "comic strip".^[1]

Today, the Brussels' Comic Book Route offers more than 50 mural paintings, most of them located inside the Pentagon (as the city center is often called due to its geometrical shape). Following its trail, the Comic Book Route is a good way to discover the capital and even penetrate some neighborhoods less crowded by tourists. The Brussels tourist association Pro Velo organizes a 2-hour bike tour starting at the Bicycle Riders House (Maison des cyclists).

Broussaille was the first comic book wall to be painted,^[2] based on an original project of the Belgian comic book artist Frank Pé. With its surface of about 35 square metres (380 sq ft), the mural painting was inaugurated in July 1991 at the intersection between the central streets Marché au Charbon and Teinturiers. As with most of the mural paintings, the Belgian association «Art Mural» was in charge of the execution of the fresco painting.

«Art Mural» is an association created by five artists in 1984, mainly aimed to realize mural painting in public areas. Since 1993 it has been devoted to the creation and realization of new murals for the Brussels' Comic Book Route, with a rhythm of two to three new works per year.^[3] Georgios Oreopoulos and David Vandegeerde are the only two remaining founder members of the association who have been always involved in all the projects and mural paintings, helped with a large number of other artists who have collaborated and worked together with them.

List of comic strip mural paintings

In the center of Brussels

In La(e)ken

In Auderghem

See also

• Belgian comics
• Belgian Comic Strip Center

References

Bibliography

• La BD dans la ville. Author: Thibaut Vandorselaer (in French)
• Bruxelles dans la BD, itinéraire découverte, 2004 Versant Sud, B-1348 Lovain-la-Neuve. Author: Thibaut Vandorselaer (in French)

External links

• Les fresques sur le site de Bruxelles-ville
• Le site de l'asbl Bruxelles BD, responsable du développement du parcours BD à Bruxelles !
• Galerie photo des fresques BD de Bruxelles, avec une carte
• Une autre galerie de photographies des fresques bd de Bruxelles
• Toute la liste des fresques BD à Bruxelles par ordre chronologique avec liens vers pages individuelles
• La page consacrée au "Parcours BD de Bruxelles" sur le site de l'a.s.b.l. ART MURAL, qui a réalisé toutes les fresques BD Art Mural asbl