What talents are hidden behind stained glass, marquetry, tapestry or ceramics?
Mad'in Europe invites you to visit the Charlier Museum in Brussels and to discover the professions that are hidden behind the works as well as the know-how that has contributed to build the cultural heritage of Belgium.
In the shadow of architects, creators and their patrons, artisans have always shaped our world. Today, however, their jobs are in danger. For the majority of them, the economic crisis from 2008 to 2014 as well as that linked to the pandemic were synonymous with job and income losses. To know better is to preserve better.
The Charlier Museum is a late-nineteenth-century mansion in the center of Brussels owned by the benefactor and art collector Henri Van Cutsem. The house became a museum thanks to Van Cutsem’s protégé, Guillaume Charlier, a sculptor who contributed to enrich this extensive collection after the patron’s death, in 1904.
Many artefacts with an eclectic style made by the skillful hands of craftsmen can be found inside the museum. The owners' decorative selections reveal that they have attempted to decorate this house over time with carpets, porcelain, and furniture from various periods and for varied patterns, all according to Van Cutsem and Charlier's particular tastes.
A craft tour in the Charlier Museum
22. FIREPLACE/ STONE
In this room, you can see a large cast-iron hearth stone inside the fireplace, which absorbs heat from the fire and reflects it back into the room. The modern fireplace evolved from Palaeolithic hearths, through Roman hypocausts, and into early Middle Ages fireplaces. Previously, the cast iron hearth building was...
21. TEXTILE
The armchairs are carved walnut in the manner of Louis XIV (probably 17th century). The chairs’ arms are sculpted with entwined leaves and retract for comfort. Their curved movement raises them up to rest on the support.The intersection with the chair’s legs is adorned with a carved spinning top. The...
20. TAPESTRIES
The Charlier Museum houses tapestries from Belgium and France that date from the 16th, 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. Yet, workshops in Paris and Arras had a monopoly on the tapestry craft in the 15th century. About 1500, a distinct aesthetic that was greatly influenced by altarpiece painting began to...
19. CHANDELIER
The Empire Room features this chandelier, slightly different in style from those previously seen. This one is adorned with glass components simulating grape bunches and leaves made of metal covered in gold leaf. Because of the light tricks, the light provided by the lights, as well as the natural light...
18. BRONZE TECHNIQUE
This piece of bronze, made by Guillaume Charlier, is a portrait of his wife, Marie Charlier. The bronze is meticulously crafted to imitate the chiaroscuro that adds depth to the image. In contrast to iron, which can be forged with a hammer after it is rendered red-hot and may take...
17. FURNITURE
Consider this Louis XV-style chest of drawers. It’s a piece of furniture where the attention is on every detail. Look at how the marble board follows the undulating body of the wood. Due to the marble board’s lack of adaptation, take a look at how blunt the piece of furniture...
16. BRONZE / METAL CONSERVATION
The furniture that resides in this room belongs to the Empire style. The features of this style give the furniture a stern aspect: rigid forms, flat surfaces, sharp corners, and symmetry. The majority of the Empire furniture in this museum is branded Jean-Joseph Chapuis, a Belgian cabinetmaker born in Brussels...
15. STUCCO
Look at the corners of the walls and on the ceiling and admire the stucco ornaments. Some are marked to authenticate and categorise them.The work of the plasterer is either aesthetic (mouldings, false ceilings, etc.) or practical (thermal and acoustic improvements, etc.). In the workshop and later on construction sites,...
14. METAL ENGRAVING
Have a look also at the gold door handle. Incredible craftsmanship is needed to produce such an intricate design. Chisel, burin, or drypoint are some of the numerous tools an engraver uses to cut metal. The craftsman creates artistic motifs, surface effects, or typographic letters by cutting more or less deep...
13. FURNITURE
This is a piece of vestry furniture, probably from Liège, from the late 18th/early 19th centuries. Notice the top, covered in black marble and hemmed with a wavy fringe of white marble. The legs’ ends are made of the same material. One of the most unique and interesting types of...
12. CHANDELIERS
Mount the stairs up to the first floor, it will be difficult not to notice the brightness of the chandeliers above your head, whose light plays with its surroundings. The lighting manufacturer excels in three disciplines: creation, restoration, and reissuing of antique models. It offers classy replicas or modern items...
11. HARP
In the right corner of the room, there’s a beautiful golden harp signed by Barry, from 1800. The craft of lute makers was already well-organised in Spain in the Middle Age, long before the great Italian or Central European luthier schools began to take shape. A harp manufacturer or restorer...
10. PARQUETERY
Take a look at the floor. Observe the intricate pattern which follows geometric lines and reveals an aesthetically delightful symmetry. Making a parquet floor must take a very long time. This kind of woodwork consists of several tiny, delicate pieces arranged in a geometric design that resembles a mosaic. Making...
9. CHINOISERIE
This room is decorated with Chinese furniture and decorations that transport you to the Far East. The furniture decorations, whether carved, pierced or painted, frequently refer to the Chinese opera. This eccentric style was really popular in Europe, therefore we know that they were produced to be exported. Europeans loved...
8. MARBLE
This piece features an elderly woman. Her sorrowful face and frail shoulders bear the weight of years and grief, which Charlier represents with this long cloak with parallel folds that falls heavily to the ground. He was the first to employ a noble stone, such as marble, to symbolize low-status...