Above: Ornate art nouveau details on the 1901 facade of Maison Saint-Cyr designed by architect Gustave Strauven (1878-1919) in Brussels.
I do not want to miss a good chance of getting us a slice of this magnificent African cake.”
King Leopold II of Belgium (1835-1909)
With its sensual plant motifs and curvilinear features softening the severity of brick buildings, for me, Art Nouveau always represented a bit of a whimsical revolt against the expected. The elevation of crafts in design refreshing after classical rigidity, similar to women beginning to abandon their whalebone corsets. Basically, encountering art nouveau always makes me smile. And Belgium is regarded as its birthplace.
In 1884, the silver-tongued King Leopold II (1835-1909) managed to convince the leaders of a 14-nation conference in Berlin that he, individually, should be trusted to manage the civilization of the Congo and to prevent expansion of the slave trade. Maybe it was simply a matter of semantics: slave trade is not the same as forced labor?
Despite bestowing the name for the vast territory of The Congo Free State, King Leopold allowed his new fiefdom no free trade. All exports from the Congo were required to pass through his trading companies. Essentially, a personal monopoly controlling incredible resources, and, perfect timing, with rubber suddenly in high demand.
Continue reading “Belgium: Art Nouveau and its ivory elephant in the room”
