Bureau Europa provides a platform that offers a perspective on architecture and design in Maastricht, Limburg, and Europe. With the Grand Tour that we are organizing this autumn, participants will embark on a journey through Europe, experiencing ever-changing forms of beauty, knowledge, and stories.
Four different locations in Europe have been developed from scratch in recent years. In Italy and France, these initiatives arose from private efforts, while in Germany and Maastricht, a commission served as the impetus for revitalization. Curators and architects developed a unique and distinctive narrative. Although these projects differ from one another, all four initiatives are indirectly focused on the region and the relationship between heritage and public engagement, with architecture or design often taking center stage.
House Belsito is a place in the picturesque mountain village of Arpino in Italy, where hospitality and local culture are central, and materials such as wool define the current agenda. Château du Fresne in France is a cultural venue where the region itself provides the ingredients that breathe new life into the historic castle. The program of Ornamenta deliberately transforms a series of villages in the Black Forest, Germany, into a public platform for contemporary culture, while the former concrete factory ENCI in Maastricht prompts the architecture firm Rademacher de Vries to reflect on the historically shaped aesthetics of the location. The Grand Tour transcends geographical boundaries by literally bringing these four different spaces together at Bureau Europa. Zooming out reveals unique landscapes and converging histories, and thanks to attention to the periphery, the almost infinite differentiation of European identities based on local culture and heritage becomes visible.
But our Grand Tour begins at the end of August with a beautiful story by Wim van den Bergh about a remarkable apartment in Paris designed by architect Le Corbusier. Later this autumn, fashion, poetry & architecture, and ceramics will follow each other in quick succession, culminating in the call to participate in Heel Maastricht Bakt, an architectural baking competition challenging architects and residents to recreate Maastricht in baked form. Bureau Europa follows a trend that has brought much baking pleasure—and discussion—to New York and London in recent years. A wonderful finale for the Grand Tour.
Due to the varied programming around The Grand Tour, we will have different opening hours in the fall. Bureau Europa will be open on the following days:
