Brussels' Comic Book Route

Brussels' Comic Book Route (or The comic strip route in Brussels) is a path composed by several comic strip murals, which cover the walls of several buildings throughout the inner City of Brussels, as well as the neighborhoods of Laeken and Auderghem. The large comic strip murals depict scenes from various popular Belgian comics, for instance The Adventures of Tintin, The Smurfs, Lucky Luke, Gaston, Marsupilami and Gil Jourdan.

Comic mural in the Stoofstraat depicting a scene from The Calculus Affair

The project began in 1991 as an initiative of the local authorities of the City of Brussels in collaboration with the Belgian Comic Strip Center. Initially, the project only intended to embellish empty walls and gables of buildings in the city. It then became an opportunity to celebrate the rich comic book heritage of Brussels, which claims to be the capital of the "comic strip".[1]

Today, the Brussels' Comic Book Route offers more than 50 mural paintings, most of them located inside the Pentagon (as the city centre is often called due to its geometrical shape). Following its trail, the Comic Book Route is a good way to discover the capital and even penetrate some neighborhoods less crowded by tourists. The Brussels tourist association Pro Velo organizes a 2-hour bike tour starting at the Bicycle Riders House (Maison des cyclistes).

Broussaille was the first comic book wall to be painted,[2] based on an original project of the Belgian comic book artist Frank Pé. With its surface of about 35 square metres (380 sq ft), the mural painting was inaugurated in July 1991 at the intersection between the central streets Rue du Marché au Charbon/Kolenmarkt and Rue des Teinturiers/Verversstraat. As with most of the mural paintings, the Belgian association Art Mural was in charge of the execution of the fresco painting.

Art Mural is an association created by five artists in 1984, mainly aimed to realise mural painting in public areas. Since 1993, it has been devoted to the creation and realisation of new murals for Brussels' Comic Book Route, with a rhythm of two to three new works per year.[3] Georgios Oreopoulos and David Vandegeerde are the only two remaining founder members of the association, having been involved in all the projects and mural paintings, helped with a large number of other artists who have collaborated and worked together with them.

List of comic strip mural paintings

In the centre of Brussels
N° Mural painting Author Date Realisation Location Surface
1 Victor Sackville Francis Carin August 2002 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue du Marché au Charbon / Rue des Teinturiers
(Kolenmarkt / Verversstraat)		 ± 50 m²
2 Broussaille Frank Pé September 1999 Mangnay J.-Y.
Oreopoulos G.
Pieterhons R.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue du Marché au Charbon 39 / Rue des Teinturiers
(Kolenmarkt / Verversstraat)		 ± 45 m²
3 Le Passage François Schuiten July 1995 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue du Marché au Charbon 17
(Kolenmarkt 17)		 ±20 m²
4 Ric Hochet Tibet November 1994 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue du Bon Secours 9
(Bijstandsstraat 9)		 ±30 m²
5 The Adventures of Tintin Hergé July 2005 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue de l'Étuve 33
(Stoofstraat 33)		 ± 36 m²
6 Olivier Rameau Dany June 1997 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue du Chêne 9
(Eikstraat 9)		 ±60 m²
7 Le jeune Albert Yves Chaland May 2000 Mangnay J.-Y.
Oreopoulos G.
Pieterhons R.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue des Alexiens 49
(Cellebroerstraat 49)		 ± 110 m²
8 Monsieur Jean Dupuy and Berberian November 2002 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue des Bogards / Rue du Midi
(Bogardenstr. / Zuidstraat)		 ± 64 m²
9 XIII William Vance
Jean Van Hamme		 September – October 2010 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.
Kuleczko R.		 Rue Philippe de Champagne 33
(Philippe de Champagne straat 33)		 ± 43 m²
10 Yoko Tsuno Roger Leloup June 2010 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.
Ardila A.
Kuleczko R.
Dussart G.		 Rue Terre-Neuve 15
(Nieuwland 15)		 ± 55 m²
11 Isabelle Will October 1997 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue de la Verdure 13
(Loofstraat 13)		 ±86 m²
12 The Adventures of Nero Marc Sleen May 1995 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Place Saint-Géry 20
(Sint Gorikplein)		 ±40 m²
13 L'Ange Yslaire May 1998 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue des Chartreux 19
(Kartuizersstraat 19)		 ± 22 m²
14 Astérix Goscinny and Uderzo August 2005 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.
Marcelle Bordier
Koen Weiss		 Rue de la Buanderie 15
(Washuisstraat 15)		 ± 145 m²
15 Lucky Luke Morris June 1993 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue de la Buanderie / Rue 't Kindt ±180 m²
16 Cori, de Scheepsjongen ("Cori, the Cabin Boy") Bob de Moor September 1998 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue des Fabriques 21
(Fabriekstraat 21)		 ± 48 m²
17 Les rêves de Nic Hermann Huppen October 1999 Mangnay J.-Y.
Oreopoulos G.
Pieterhons R.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue des Fabriques / Rue de la Senne
(Fabrikstraat / Zennestraat)		 ± 160 m²
18 Caroline Baldwin André Taymans and Bruno Wesel July 2003 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Place de Ninove 10
 ±150 m²
19 Blake and Mortimer Edgar P. Jacobs May–June 2005 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue du Houblon 24
(Hopstraat 24)		 ±104 m²
20 Cubitus Dupa October 1994 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue de Flandre 109
(Vlaamsesteeenweg 109)		 ±35 m²
21 Billy the cat Stéphane Colman and Stephen Desberg July 2000 Mangnay J.-Y.
Oreopoulos G.
Pieterhons R.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue d'Ophem 24
(Oppemstraa 24)		 ± 50 m²
22 Spike and Suzy Willy Vandersteen June 1995 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue de Laeken 116
(Lakensestraat 116)		 ±25 m²
23 FC de Kampioenen Hec Leemans April 2011 ART MURAL asbl.
Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.
Ardila A.
Kuleczko R.
Dussart G.		 Rue du Canal 27
(Vaartstraat 27)		 ±90 m²
24 Corto Maltese Hugo Pratt August - September 2009 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.
Ardila A.
Kuleczko R.
Dussart G.		 Quai des péniches
(Akenkaai)		 ± 850 m²
25 La Vache (The cow) Johan De Moor March - April 1999 d'Hainaut E.
Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue du Damier 23
(Damstraat 23)		 32 m²
26 Gaston statue André Franquin February 1996 Delhaize Le Lion Boulevard Pachéco / Rue des Sables
(Pachécolaan / Zandstraat)
27 Le Scorpion Enrico Marini May 2002 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue du Treurenberg 16
(Treurenbergstraat 16)		 ± 35 m²
28 Poje Cauvin and Carpentier Unknown Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue de l'Ecuyer 55 / Rue de dominicains
(Schildknaapstraat 55 / Predikherenstraat)		 Inconnu
29 Gaston André Franquin February 2007 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue de l'Écuyer 9
(Schildknaapstraat 9)		 ± 39 m²
30 Quick & Flupke Hergé July 1996 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue des Capucins / Rue Haute 191
(Kapucijnenstr. / Hoogstraat 191)		 ±150 m²
31 Odilon Verjus Laurent Verron and Yann le Pennetier June 2004 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue des Capucins 13
(Kapucijnenstraat 13)		 ± 33 m²
32 Blondin et Cirage Jijé November 1998 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue des Capucins 15
(Kapucijnenstraat 13)		 ± 32 m²
33 Passe-moi l'ciel Stuf and Janry July 2002 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue des Minimes 96
(Minimenstraat 96)		 ± 28 m²
34 Boule et Bill Jean Roba October 1995 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue du Chevreuil 19
(Reebokstraat 19)		 25 m²
35 La Patrouille des Castors Mitacq April 2003 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue Blaes 200 / Rue Pieremans 47
(Blaesstraat 200 / Pieremansstraat 47)		 ± 50 m²
36 Jojo André Geerts September 1996 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue Piermans 41
(Pieremansstraat 41)		 ±56 m²
37 Le Chat Philippe Geluck August 1993 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Bld du Midi 87
(Zuidlaan 87)		 ±80 m²
38 Heads of Tintin and Snowy Hergé Unknown Lombard Editions Avenue Paul-Henri Spaak 7
(Paul-Henri Spaaklaan 7)		 -
39 Tintin in America Hergé January 2007 - Hall of the South railway station Unknown
40 Signor Spaghetti Dino Attanasio Unknown Unknown Rue van Bergen 22
(Van Bergenstraat)		 Unknown
41 Yakari Derib and Job Unknown Unknown Rue Dethy 25
(Dethystraat)		 Unknown
42 Spirou Robert Velter Unknown Unknown Place Sainctelette, 2
(Saincteletteplein)		 Unknown
43 Thorgal & Aaricia Jean Van Hamme and Grzegorz Rosiński November 2013 Grzegorz Rosinski Place Anneessens 2a
 Unknown

In La(e)ken
N° Mural painting Author Date Realisation Location Surface
1 Titeuf Zep September 2006 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.
Weiss K.
Ardila A.		 Avenue Emile Bockstael 1
(Emile Bockstaellaan 1)		 ± 160 m²
2 Gil Jourdan Maurice Tillieux May 2009 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.
Ardila A.
Kuleczko R.		 Rue Léopold 1er / Rue Thys-Vanhamstraat
(Léopold I Straat / Thys-Vanhamstraat)		 ± 77 m²
3 Natacha François Walthéry October 2009 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.
Ardila A.
Kuleczko R.
Dussart G.		 Rue Jan Bollen 23
(Jan Bollenstraat 23)		 ± 200 m²
4 Martine Marcel Marlier and Gilbert Delahaye October 2004 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Avenue de la Reine 325 / Rue Stéphanie
(Koninginnelaan 325 / Stefaniastraat)		 ± 180 m²
5 Le Roi des mouches Mezzo June 2007 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.
Pieterhons R.		 Rue Hubert Stiernet 23
(Hubert Stiernetstraat 23)		 ± 96 m²
6 Lincoln Olivier Jouvray and Jérôme Jouvray May 2006 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Rue des Palais outre-pont / Rue Arthur Cosyn
(Paleizenstraat over de bruggen / Arthur Cosyn straat)		 ± 120 m²
7 Kiekeboe Merho April 2009 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.
Ardila A.
Kuleczko R.		 Av. du Gros Tilleul / Av. de Madrid
(Madridlaan / Dikkelindelaan)		 ± 81 m²
8 Petit Spirou Tome and Janry May 1996 Oreopoulos G.
Vandegeerde D.		 Boulevard du Centenaire, Place de Bruparck
(Eeuwfeestlaan, Bruparckplein)		 ±50 m²

In Auderghem
N° Mural painting Author Date Realisation Location Surface
1 Gil Jourdan Maurice Tillieux Unknown Unknown Rue du Vieux Moulin
(Oudemolenstraat)		 Unknown
2 Gil Jourdan Maurice Tillieux Unknown Unknown Rue Emile Idiers
(Emile Idiers straat)		 Unknown
3 Le Scrameustache Gos and Walt November 2008 Unknown Chaussée de Wavre 1314
(Wavrelaan 1314)		 ± 50 m²
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See also

References
  1. Herbez, Ariel (30 May 2009). "Bruxelles, capitale de la BD". Le Temps (in French). Switzerland. Retrieved 15 June 2013. Plus que jamais, Bruxelles mérite son statut de capitale de la bande dessinée.
  2. "Tous les murs BD de Bruxelles" [All the BD walls in Brussels]. eBru.be (in French). 19 September 2011. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
  3. "Présentation de l'association "ART MURAL"". art-mural.eu (in French). 19 September 2011. Retrieved 15 June 2013.

Bibliography
  • La BD dans la ville. Author: Thibaut Vandorselaer (in French)
  • Bruxelles dans la BD, itinéraire découverte, 2004 Versant Sud, B-1348 Lovain-la-Neuve. Author: Thibaut Vandorselaer (in French)

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