The great Art Nouveau iconoclasm

When walking through Brussels, you won’t spot lush Art Nouveau buildings wherever you look. And there’s a reason for that! By the time the World Fair was about to be held in Brussels in 1968, Art Nouveau was already considered old-fashioned. As a result, the city of Brussels decided to strip many of these masterpieces of their lush ornaments and leave nothing but their minimalist, concrete structures behind. That is why today’s Brussels is no longer the Art Nouveau capital it once was. Yet, if you know where to go, you can still spot world-class examples of this glorious architectural style.