{"id":741280,"date":"2024-05-23T08:57:40","date_gmt":"2024-05-23T07:57:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/?p=741280"},"modified":"2024-05-23T10:44:12","modified_gmt":"2024-05-23T09:44:12","slug":"why-belgium-has-become-a-happy-hunting-ground-for-uk-architects","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/opinion\/why-belgium-has-become-a-happy-hunting-ground-for-uk-architects","title":{"rendered":"Why Belgium has become a happy hunting ground for UK architects"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\">What is it about Belgium? Centuries of shared trade and cultural history over the choppy North Sea mean the similarities and the links with the UK run deep \u2013 just like the weather fronts \u2013 but why are architects so excited by this particular low country?<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">Well, the substantial amount of work out there for UK-based architects is a key factor. Check out our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/buildings\/projects-round-up-what-are-uk-architects-doing-in-belgium\">projects round-up<\/a> for a taster. Belgium has become, as Rob Wilson writes, \u2018by far the richest hunting ground abroad for UK-based architects, at least architecturally\u2019.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\"><span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span>There is an incredible range of work on offer \u2013 across all sectors and scales \u2013 from industrial and commercial, to community and public administration, to cultural, housing, education and beyond.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">This opportunity is supported by the \u2018Open Call\u2019 system, which places design quality at the forefront of public commissions while throwing out an open invitation to foreign practices to apply.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">The establishment of the Flemish government architect has supercharged Belgium\u2019s innovative approach. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/opinion\/why-uk-architects-look-to-flanders-open-call-system-with-envy\">Ellis Woodman observes<\/a> that: \u2018Many exceptionally talented British architects, who have often struggled to make headway in our own risk-averse procurement culture, have found Flanders a more receptive environment.\u2019 UK-based architects are particularly appreciated for their delivery of larger projects (keep an eye out for Anna Highfield\u2019s interview with Flanders Architecture Institute\u2019s Sofie De Caigny in coming days for more).<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span class=\"s1\">There is an admirable embracing of retrofit and reuse, and circular-economy construction<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">Plus, there is an admirable embracing of retrofit and reuse, and circular-economy construction, which the profession here can learn from and contribute to. Between them, Carmody Groarke, ATAMA and RE-ST developed the agenda-setting Ghent Waste Brick, a low-carbon alternative to traditional fired bricks using 63 per cent locally salvaged demolition waste in its make-up.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">There is a general delight and care in the use of materials, too. The skill that has gone into our cover project, local practice <a href=\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/buildings\/building-studies\/duchesse-notan-offices-micro-city-in-molenbeek\">Notan Office\u2019s residential Duchesse\/Micro City<\/a>, is laudable. Salvaged structural elements and doors have been cleverly repurposed. There is texture, detail and skill at work here, making even the most modest of materials shine. Waste has been kept to a minimum. \u2018Everything has been laid out exactly to the individual blockwork\u2019s dimensions,\u2019 explains Fran Williams in her building study, \u2018meaning no blocks needed to be cut \u2013 quite a feat, as it left no room for error.\u2019<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">From the macro to the micro, then: if you\u2019re looking for fresh business opportunities, or just want to be inspired, you might want to book yourself a Eurostar ticket and take a look.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What is it about Belgium? Centuries of shared trade and cultural history over the choppy North Sea mean the similarities and the links with the UK run deep \u2013 just like the weather fronts \u2013 but why are architects so excited by this particular low country? Well, the substantial amount of work out there for &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2185,"featured_media":681899,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_oasis_is_in_workflow":0,"_oasis_original":0,"ep_exclude_from_search":false},"categories":[745],"tags":[101038,2824,2812,101048,101049],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v21.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Why Belgium has become a happy hunting ground for UK architects<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"If you\u2019re looking for fresh business opportunities, consider booking yourself a Eurostar ticket and taking a trip to Belgium\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/opinion\/why-belgium-has-become-a-happy-hunting-ground-for-uk-architects\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Why Belgium has become a happy hunting ground for UK architects\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"If you\u2019re looking for fresh business opportunities, consider booking yourself a Eurostar ticket and taking a trip to Belgium\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/opinion\/why-belgium-has-become-a-happy-hunting-ground-for-uk-architects\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Architects\u2019 Journal\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-05-23T07:57:40+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-05-23T09:44:12+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/cdn.rt.emap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/12\/08104600\/Design-Museum-Gent-WEB-CROP_%C2%A9Drabstraat-1024x682.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"682\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Emily Booth\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Emily Booth\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/opinion\/why-belgium-has-become-a-happy-hunting-ground-for-uk-architects\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/opinion\/why-belgium-has-become-a-happy-hunting-ground-for-uk-architects\",\"name\":\"Why Belgium has become a happy hunting ground for UK architects\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2024-05-23T07:57:40+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-05-23T09:44:12+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/2c3d6da35bfcc6cafeb4e7a9808aaf6c\"},\"description\":\"If you\u2019re looking for fresh business opportunities, consider booking yourself a Eurostar ticket and taking a trip to Belgium\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/opinion\/why-belgium-has-become-a-happy-hunting-ground-for-uk-architects#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/opinion\/why-belgium-has-become-a-happy-hunting-ground-for-uk-architects\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/opinion\/why-belgium-has-become-a-happy-hunting-ground-for-uk-architects#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Why Belgium has become a happy hunting ground for UK architects\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/\",\"name\":\"The Architects\u2019 Journal\",\"description\":\"Architecture News &amp; 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