15.08 > 18.08.2024

Grand-Place,
Brussels

grand place

An ephemeral show on the world’s most beautiful square!

& Panoramic view from the City Hall balcony

Brussels flower carpet

This summer, the flower carpet will be back on the Grand Place in Brussels for its 23rd edition. 

This year, we're aiming to think outside the box and renew the image of the flower carpet with a theme we've never explored before. More information will follow shortly.

puzzle 2023

A puzzle of 1680 m2

The Flower Carpet is 70 m long by 24 m wide. 1,680 m2 of  begonias, dahlias, grass and bark. A hundred volunteers  assemble the carpetin less thans six hours.  The firts Flower carpet of Brussels was created in 1971 and  has been a showstopper every two years on the Grand-
Place since 1986. 

Scents, colours lights and sound...  

Every other summer, on the weekend of August 15th, the  Flower Carpet offers a chance to stroll accross the Grand-
Place, a jewel of Gothic architecture, to inhale the fragrant  scent of the flowers and admire its details. This  extraordinary spectacle is made complete by a visit to the  balcony of the Tawn Hall, wich offers a wide-angle view of  the work. Every evening you can enjoy a magnificent sound  and-light show at the Grand-Place.

flowers flower carpet

The flowers for the flower carpet

The robust tuberous begonia lends beauty and freshness 
to the first carpets. A native of the West Indies, the haerty 
begonia is resistant to all weather conditions: intense 
sunshine, violent winds, rain, cold... Begonias come in a 
rich palette ranging from the most vivid colours to delicate 
pastel shades, with in between the many-coloured and 
white flowers that reflect sunlight so well.

But over the years the plant has become more scarce.
Today, there are only four major begonia producers
 remaining in Belgium (in the area of Ghent), which has led
 the designers to increasingly work with other varieties. This year, a mixture of begonias and dahlias will adorn the Grand-Place in Brussels. These two species are also flagships of Belgian flower production, with an international reputation that's well established.

process

A long creative 
process...

Every two years the non-profit association Tapis de Fleurs
brings together a committee of professionals (illustrators,
graphic designers, landscape architects) who come up 
with scale projects, with each edition illustrating a different 
theme (the commemoration of major events, a country, a 
continent, the coat of arms of a cit, etc.). Once the theme 
has taken shape in the form of model and symbols, the 
number of flowers is calculated and the combinations of 
colours are established. The hundreds of thousands of cut
flowers necessary for the composition can then be
 reserved, very long in advance. Several days before the 
inauguration, a full-size drawing is executed on an 
enormous organic cotton canvas that is laid down stop the
 cobblestones of the Grand-Place. The works can then 
begin.

... for a marvellous ephemeral work

More than 100 volunteer gardeners put together this giant
 floral puzzle in less than six hours. The day before the 
opening, the spaces between the floral motifs are filled in
using rolls of sod. The flowers are so closely-packed that
they can’t be blown away, and indeed they create their
 own microclimate! If there’s a heat wave, the sod is 
wastered to prevent it from wilting. If the weather is too wet,
the grass can grow by 4 to 5 centimetres in 3 days. The
 flowers remain fresh and preserve their splendour during
 the four days.

1971

A first flower carpet on the Brussels’ Grand-Place in 1971

This was the work of the landscape architect Etienne Stautemasn borns in Zottegen in 1927. A graduate of the Horticultural College of Ghent, he began to create flower carpets in the early 1950’s. Simpler, smaller, these “rugs” were  primarily composed of begonias which he loved and with which he worked
ever since. After years of testing and calculations, the team of Etienne  Stautemas, together with designer Mark Schautteet, imposed itself as the
 specialist in the creation of immense flower carpets, with sophisticated
 colours and complicated designs. The team went on to create more than 180
carpets, in Ghent, Bruges, Cologne, Luxembourg, Paris, London, Amsterdam,  The Hague, Vienna, Valencia and even Buenos Aires and Colombus (Ohio). But 
”nowhere else is the carpet as magnificent and distinguished as on the ancient
and unique Grand-Place of Brussels”.

The Grand-Place, a Unesco world heritage site

This is the historical heart of Brussels. here Gothic style can be seen adjacent
to opulent baroque, neo-classical as well as neo-Gothic. The Grand-Place is
 regarded by its admirers as “the most beautiful central square in the world”!
Its construction began in the 15th century, with halls, guild houses and a Town
Hall. It was virtually razed after 3 full days of bombardment by the French
Army in 1695, yet was rebuilt in less than 5 years, notably by the different 
guilds. The tower of the Town Hall is 96 metre hight. Every two years, the
heritage jewel. Since 2000 the entire Grand-Place has been listed as a 
Unesco world heritage site.

About us

Created in 1986, the Tapis de fleurs de Bruxelles non-profit association organises the Flowercarpet events on the Grand-Place in Brussels and the Flowertime exhibitions inside the City Hall. 

The association's aim is to promote floral art in Brussels and throughout Belgium through collaboration with various associations. We support artists from all over Belgium, whether for the design of the flower carpets or for the floral arrangements that we exhibit at during the Flowertime events.

When it comes to choosing flowers (mainly begonias and dahlias for the flower carpets), we also give preference to Belgian growers, for their expertise and international reputation.

The Brussels Flowercarpet has been listed as part of the Brussels Region's intangible cultural heritage since 01/10/2020.

The Tapis de Fleurs de Bruxelles npa is also a member of the International Association of Ephemeral Arts, which brings together organisers of ephemeral art events from all over the world.

 

Head office: City Hall - Grand-Place 1 - 1000 Brussels

Contact: info@flowercarpet.be

Flowercarpet returns thanks to all partners who contribute to the succeeding of the event.