The Musee Hergé has officially opened in Louvain-la-Neuve, a small town near Brussels, Belgium. The museum is dedicated to the work of Hergé (Georges Remi), who created the Tintin comic-books. The official opening for the public was on the 2nd June 2009.

The museum was designed by the architect Christian de Portzamparc.

‘I said to myself, from this point on, that the museum was obviously a tribute to Hergé, but also as much a game played with Hergé, or a letter to Hergé.’

The history of the Hergé Museum:

Over the years, Hergé’s artistic output has become established as a work of distinction.
The idea of a museum has been germinating from as far back as 1979, while he was still alive. The goal was always to make Hergé’s myriad creations known to the wider public.

To do justice to such an important project, a lot of time and careful reflection was necessary. The main task was to strike the right balance between the nuances of a complex reality and the legendary status that was starting to develop around the man and his creation.

In 1986, three years after the artist passed away, the idea took shape in the form of the Hergé Foundation.

From the start of the new millennium, this organization (now renamed Studios Hergé) has worked tirelessly to identify and catalogue the most suitable elements for exhibition in a museum consecrated to Hergé.

On 10 January 2001, Tintin’s ‘birthday’, the important announcement was made: the Hergé Museum was to be built in Louvain-la-Neuve, a recently created university town, less than 30 kilometers from Brussels.

Eight years later and the dream is materializing. The Hergé Museum opens its doors at the start of June 2009, two years after the first stone was laid on 22 May 2007, the artist’s birthday.

Expectations are as high as the project is ambitious. A well-known architect was chosen to bring the industrious plans to fruition: the Frenchman Christian de Portzamparc. In recognition of his achievements, in 1994 he was awarded the Pritzker Prize, the most prestigious accolade in international architecture.

De Portzamparc has used all his skills in building design to integrate the principals of Hergé’s work, superbly highlighting the unique features of the latter’s art, which led to his becoming the founder and master of the clear line technique.

From the architect:

‘An elongated prism floats in the forest while a footbridge connects it to the city. Vast bay windows seem to suggest comic strips spaces, while the prism offers a colorful oneiric and fancied hall. This large reception area accomodates the four exhibition volumes also linked with each other via footbridges.’

‘Louvain-la-Neuve is built on a straight-edged concrete slab with a car park underneath. It immediately seemed like a good idea to disengage the museum from the town, better to move it away a little towards the woods. In this way, bathed in the light streaming through the large bays, the visitor is confronted with ‘four landscape objects’, which correspond to the general layout and Joost Swarte’s scenography.‘

‘Each of these objects has its own personality; each is a kind of character. Each has a specific sculptural form, color and unique design. Each displays an aspect, disproportionately enlarged, derived from Hergé’s drawing style. One traces Tintin in America, another King Ottokar’s Sceptre… To these four ‘objects’, we can add a fifth: the lift shaft, vertical and colored in white and blue, which I had first imagined as red and white, but which Fanny found too literal.’

From the press release:

‘Over the years, Hergé’s artistic output has become established as a work of distinction.

The idea of a museum had been germinating from as far back as 1979, while he was still alive. The goal was always to make Hergé’s myriad creations known to the wider public.

To do justice to such an important project, a lot of time and careful reflection was necessary. The main task was to strike the right balance between the nuances of a complex reality and the legendary status that was starting to develop around the man and his creation.

In 1986, three years after the artist passed away, the idea took shape in the form of the Hergé Foundation.

From the start of the new millennium, this organization (now renamed Studios Hergé) has worked tirelessly to identify and catalogue the most suitable elements for exhibition in a museum consecrated to Hergé.

On 10 January 2001, Tintin’s ‘birthday’, the important announcement was made: the Hergé Museum was to be built in Louvain-la-Neuve, a recently created university town, less than 30 kilometers from Brussels.

Eight years later and the dream came true. The Hergé Museum opens its doors at the start of June 2009, two years after the first stone was laid on 22 May 2007, the artist’s birthday.

Expectations are as high as the project is ambitious. A well-known architect was chosen to bring the industrious plans to fruition: the Frenchman Christian de Portzamparc. In recognition of his achievements, in 1994 he was awarded the Pritzker Prize, the most prestigious accolade in international architecture.

De Portzamparc has used all his skills in building design to integrate the principals of Hergé’s work, superbly highlighting the unique features of the latter’s art, which led to his becoming the founder and master of the clear line technique.

Tintin first saw the light of day on 10 January 1929, in the pages of Le Petit Vingtième, the weekly children’s supplement to the daily paper, Le XXe Siècle.

The Adventures of Tintin are still as fresh and exciting today as they have ever been, inspiring artists, writers, and directors in both the theater and cinema. Tintin embodies timeless values that appeal to humankind worldwide.

His captivating escapades are the result of a unique combination of gripping narratives, sublime ‘clear-line’ graphics and universal themes.’

Address:

Hergé Museum
26, rue du Labrador
1348 Louvain-la-Neuve
Belgium