Bruegel meets street art in new Marolles mural tour

A pleasant afternoon spent wandering in the Marolles just got even better with Bruegel Meets Street Art, one of the citywide events to mark the 450th anniversary of the death of the famous artist.

Bruegel and Brussels are inextricably linked, especially the Marolles district. Bruegel lived there for a good portion of his life, he was married there, he was buried there and he painted two thirds of his works there.

Visit.brussels, with the support of the City of Brussels, worked with the multi-talented street art collective Farm Prod to develop a 14 fresco self-guided tour through the iconic neighborhood.

Various Farm Prod artists as well as Les Crayons and some invited guest artists from France, Poland, Sweden and the UK were given carte blanche to find inspiration in Bruegel’s works and create a street mural based on that inspiration.

Some of the works are done with acrylic and brush, some with inks and brushes, some with spray paint and some with combinations of the different methods and materials.

Some of the works stayed in the 16th century, others take place in the contemporary world. Elements are changed, the sheep on the shoulders of the Good Shepherd has become a fox, the Flight into Egypt is now a migrant flight into Belgium, the hounds of the Hunters in the Snow are now rats. The wide variety of themes and styles keeps the visitors going as they anticipate what the next fresco will reveal.

Piotr Szlachta, who painted his version of the Flight into Egypt, said: "The neighborhood was incredibly supportive and invested in the project. I was fed like a king, and unsolicited, the neighbours pledged to guard the work from any tagging."

This 14-fresco tour is an extension of the Parcours Street Art initiative that is comprised of over 150 frescos throughout the city. Free map guides of the Bruegel tour are available at www.bruegel.brussels