Modern City

You are here in the Cité Moderne. Did you know that this garden suburb won the grand prize at the Exposition des Arts Décoratifs in Paris in 1925? It made its creator, Victor Bougeois, world-famous. It is often mentioned in art books about architecture. The Beheerstraat in Sint-Agatha-Berchem is the central axis of the Cité Moderne, a garden suburb that is the counterpoint to the romantic style of garden suburbs like those found in the Le Logis-Floréal area. The Cité Moderne consists of 275 homes and was built between 1922 and 1925 by a cooperative society for social housing. It was designed by architect Victor Bourgeois (1897-1962). He was the avant-garde pioneer of modernism in Belgium, which sought a reflection on architecture and urbanism. The houses and small apartment buildings are constructed in a cubist style without frills. The homes consist of sober spaces with right angles and flat roofs. At that time, the use of reinforced concrete was a new technique that helped reduce construction costs. Each home is designed in such a way that daylight is best captured (some rows of houses are built according to a sawtooth pattern). Moreover, each house has a private garden where something can be cultivated. This residential area is the first example of this style of construction in Belgium.

Dromos