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JUNE 29, 2016 \ newsweekly - € 0,75 \ read more at www.flanderstoday.eu current affairs \ p2

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Inside-out

Local politicians respond to the UK’s referendum result, which ‘weakens the UK, the EU and Flanders’, according to the minister-president

Flanders’ technical schools are out to challenge attitudes as they produce the region’s much-needed technical workers year after year

A former UHasselt professor has opened a museum of organs on campus, which, we discovered, is even more intriguing than it sounds

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Strike a pose

© Linda Posnick

Six former Madonna dancers star in Strike a Pose

Former Madonna dancer from Antwerp is co-star of new documentary Dan Smith More articles by Dan \ flanderstoday.eu

In 1990, Madonna chose Salim Gauwloos as one of seven back-up dancers for her epic Blonde Ambition world tour.

Now he’s part of a new documentary about the legacy of the tour and the follow-up film Madonna: Truth or Dare.

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or Salim Gauwloos, life has taken many turns since his atypical childhood in Antwerp’s Borgerhout district.

“My dad was a Muslim from Morocco, but my parents separated when I was young, and I grew up with my mum, who was very free-spirited,” says the former dancer who now lives in New York. “I dressed up in her heels and clothes from the age of five.”

When Gauwloos turned eight, his father moved back in for

a few years, so the clothes and the collection of Barbies had to go back in the closet, and “I had to become more of a boy again”.

Following Nadia Coma˘neci’s perfect performance at the 1976 Olympics, he began dreaming of following in her footsteps and took up gymnastics. “I was into everything girly – I even did baton twirling,” he says. “With that, my lisp and my migrant looks, I experienced a lot of bullying in school.

But I survived, and the experience shaped me into who I am today.”

Gauwloos (far left in above photo) believes he was very fortunate to have been raised in a house with an open atmosphere. “When I turned 13, my mother enrolled me at the

Royal Ballet School in Antwerp, and my whole life changed.

I met lots of gay and international students, and the school became my sanctuary. I would leave home an hour early just so I could get a good place at the barre. I was very driven.”

At 18, Gauwloos and his friend, Heidi Daelemans, went to nearby Schoten, where the renowned New York-based Steps on Broadway dance academy was holding auditions. Out of 2,000 candidates, they were both selected and found themselves arriving in New York in June 1987.

After the two-month course, Daelemans headed home to take up a position with the Royal Ballet of Flanders. Alone in the Big Apple, Gauwloos began studying different types of dance and took up to three classes a day. continued on page 5

\ CURRENT AFFAIRS

Belgium reach quarter-finals Red Devils thump Hungary to move into the final eight of Euro 2016 Leo Cendrowicz More articles by Leo \ flanderstoday.eu

B

elgium pummelled Hungary 4-0 on Sunday night in the Euro 2016 in France, putting on a blistering display of football to set up a quarter-final clash with Wales.

Captain Eden Hazard gave an inspired performance, including a fine solo goal, as Belgium’s “golden generation” finally showcased the skills that have made them Fifa’s top-ranked European side.

Hazard set up one goal and scored another as Toby Alderweireld, Michy Batshuayi (pictured) and Yannick Carrasco completed a comfortable victory in Toulouse.

“We have been criticised,” coach Marc Wilmots said. “But we don’t pay atten-

tion to that. We don’t really care what people are saying about us. There’s only one answer to the critics, and that’s on the pitch.”

This is only Belgium’s fifth appearance in the European Championships since 1960 and is their best performance since they lost in the final to West Germany in 1980.

Belgium’s opponents in Lille this Friday night are Wales, a side that they beat just once in four games in qualifying for both the 2014 World Cup and Euro 2016. Wales held the Red Devils to a draw twice in Brussels and won 1-0 in Cardiff just over a year ago. © Bruno Fahy/BELGA

Vigil for murdered British MP Jo Cox held in Brussels About 300 people gathered at the Ancienne Belgique in Brussels last week for a memorial vigil for Jo Cox, the British MP who was killed in her constituency in Yorkshire earlier this month. Cox, a member of parliament for the Labour party, worked in Brussels for six years earlier in her career for the charity Oxfam and for the European Parliament.

It would have been her 42nd birthday, an event marked by gatherings in not only Brussels and Trafalgar Square in London, but also in New York and Nairobi in Kenya.

Cox was shot and stabbed in the lead-up to the vote on the referendum that would decide whether the UK should leave the European Union. Cox was a strong supporter of the UK remaining in the EU. A 52-year-old man has been charged with her murder. After her death, major parties suspended campaigning

© Thierry Roge/BELGA

for two days.

The memorial began with a video message from Cox’s husband, Brendan, followed by a minute’s silence. A musical group then accompanied participants to the steps of the nearby Beurs, where they could lay a white rose in remembrance. \ Alan Hope

Mini Miss Belgium pageant banned The first Mini Miss Belgium, a beauty and talent competition for girls aged six to 10, will not be taking place in July as planned because it is in breach of labour laws, federal labour minister Kris Peeters has announced.

“Aside from the fact that I find Mini Miss or Mini Mister contests to be very inappropriate and not a good idea, the law is very clear,” Peeters said. “This is child labour. And that is illegal.”

The law states that children under the age of 15 may not work, with occasional exceptions in circumstances where the well-being of the child is not be endangered. According to the minister, this contest presents such a risk.

The decision follows negative advice from the social inspection unit of the labour ministry, and talks with the contest’s organiser, Darlene Devos, who also organises the

© Lloyd Gallman/FLICKR

adult Miss Belgium competition.

The ban does not necessarily extend to other forms of competition, such as The Voice Kids, the government said. “By promoting a beauty ideal, the Mini Miss contest could have a damaging effect on a broad group of children,” the inspectors advised. “Children have as good as no control over appearance.

That makes a beauty contest different from a talent contest or sporting competition, where a child can grow their talents by practising and receiving feedback.” \ AH

Suicide bomb hoaxer arrested at City 2 shopping centre in Brussels

of rotting and contaminated food confiscated when police raided a restaurant in Brussels. The kitchen was in breach of numerous rules on social security, hygiene and food safety

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arrested, he continued to claim that he had been kidnapped, forced to wear the vest and dropped off at City 2, to be blown up by terrorist at some future moment. The bomb vest turned out to be fake, and the man soon recanted his story, admitting he had made the whole thing up.

According to Geens, B is known to the intelligence services as a possible IS sympathiser.

He is also known to police as someone with

psychiatric problems.

Meanwhile the zone set up for football fans on Rogierplein just metres from City 2 re-opened after being closed since Sunday in response to a terrorist threat. The organisers have reinforced security precautions.

“We’ve brought private security in, as well as police and military, who will patrol on and around the square,” said spokesperson Jeronimo Moreira. \ AH

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400kg

terrorist attack. Emergency services attended the scene, including the bomb disposal unit Dovo, and traffic on Kruidtuinlaan was diverted.

Prime minister Charles Michel cancelled a TV appearance and went straight to the federal crisis centre, where he was joined by federal home affairs minister Jan Jambon and justice minister Koen Geens.

When the man, identified as Jamal B, was

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A man who called police early on the morning of 21 June claiming to have been kidnapped and forced to enter City 2 shopping centre in Brussels wearing a suicide bomber vest invented the entire story, the prosecutor’s office has confirmed. The man was arrested, and the home-made vest turned out to contain only salt and biscuits.

City 2, in the city centre near Kruidtuin, had been mentioned as a possible target of a new

people watched Belgium play Hungary on Flemish public broadcaster Een, the second-best rating for a Flemish station ever, about 34,500 viewers behind the BelgiumUS World Cup match in 2014

11.7% of young people who left secondary school in 2014 were still without work in 2015, according to figures from VDAB, a reduction of 0.8% on the previous year

22% people removed from the lists of blood donors by the Flemish Red Cross because they are too thin or too small in stature to give the standard donation of 450 millilitres

of the management at the Flemish public broadcaster VRT were women in 2015, down from 30.4% in 2013 and far from the government’s target of 33%, according to the latest annual report

JUNE 29, 2016

WEEK in brief Police in Limburg have issued a message encouraging members of the public to spread information about missing persons and other crimes on social media. In 30% of criminal cases in the province, a tip from the public helps solve the case, they said. But they warned against taking the role of detective too far. “The suspect also has the right to privacy and the presumption of innocence,” said a spokesperson. “Everyone is innocent until the opposite is proven.”

Anderlecht city council has approved plans to build a new residential quarter of 4,000 homes around the Biestebroek dock on the Brussels canal – the largest building project in the municipality in 100 years. The plans for the project also include a new park and primary and secondary schools, as well as apartments, mayor Eric Tomas said. The area is currently mainly devoted to the shipping industry.

face of flanders Tourism agency Visit Brussels has launched a new museum card, valid for three months and good for 10 entries to Brussels museums (excluding Bozar). The card is part of the agency’s 100 Masters campaign designed to improve tourist numbers after the March terrorist attacks. The new card is selling for a promotional price of €40 until 27 August. \ ticketing.visitbrussels.be

Furniture maker Van Hoecke from Sint-Niklaas has won the first Best Belgian Maker award, organised by Unizo and DHL shipping. The prizes are awarded to manufacturing companies that demonstrate innovative and sustainable local production. Van Hoecke sells furniture from the Austrian company Blum and also carries out custom office work.

The award for the most promising company went to SwitchGear from Nevele, East Flanders, which makes medium voltage for electrical supply. \ vanhoecke.be

A documentary filmmaker from Zaventem has won the public prize for best short film at the Los Angeles Film Festival. Rachida El Garani’s film Into Darkness tells the story of a partially sighted Moroccan boy and his blind family.

El Garani started film studies in her 30s at the RITS school in Brussels; her final project was a short film about people with disabilities in the region of Morocco where she was born.

Blankenberge city council has banned begging in busy areas of the coastal town, as well as in the vicinity of schools and supermarkets, a move described as “disturbing” by the Flemish Human Rights League, which intends to file a legal complaint. A blanket ban was rejected on the grounds that begging is considered a human right. “We are able to declare zones where it is not allowed,” explained mayor Patrick De Klerck. “If we find beggars operating in those areas, they will be asked to move on.”

minister Joke Schauvliege has said. Marghem, she said, had pledged at a meeting in April not to announce any new initiatives and to leave the question of a ban on single-use plastic bags to the regions. Brussels has announced a ban on plastic supermarket bags to take effect in September 2017.

World music festival Couleur Café will have to find a new location for next year’s edition, after the Port of Brussels and Tour & Taxis said the festival could no longer take place on the Tour & Taxis site. Couleur Café moved there from Les Halles de Schaarbeek 20 years ago when Tour & Taxis was a deserted wasteland.

Now new office buildings are being constructed for the Flemish administration, a park has been created, new housing will be complete by October and a new building for Leefmilieu Brussel is already up and running. Next year sees the arrival of local brewers Brasserie de la Senne, as well as a showroom and garage for Citroen.

A proposal by federal environment minister Marie Christine Marghem to introduce a nationwide minimum price for plastic bags is in conflict with agreements made previously, Flemish

Former journalist Stephanie De Smedt is returning to Flemish business daily De Tijd to take over from Isabel Albers as editor-in-chief. Albers took over Het Laatste Nieuws earlier this month. De Smedt, a native of West Flanders, covered the textile and food industries of that province until last year. She will take up the new post in September, after her appointment is ratified by the editorial board.

Ghent’s museums will introduce new opening hours starting in September, with a number changing closing day from Monday to Wednesday. This is the case for De wereld van Kina, city museum STAM, industry museum MIAT, Huis van Alijn and the Design Museum. Other museums, including contemporary arts museum SMAK and fine arts museum MSK, will continue to be closed on Monday. The museums will also have different opening times. \ degentsemusea.be

Flemish public works minister Ben Weyts was in Rotterdam last week for the TEN-T Days, an annual conference and exhibition on European infrastructure policy. Current major infrastructure projects in Flanders include the new lock at Terneuzen for the Ghent-Terneuzen canal, works on the Albert canal and the new Seine-Scheldt connection. The conference also gave Weyts the opportunity for private talks with his Dutch counterpart and representatives of the European Commission.

OFFSIDE Coming up for air

Jacques Vendermeiren Jacques Vandermeiren has been named the new CEO of the Antwerp Port Authority, to replace Eddy Bruyninckx from 1 January. Vandermeiren was CEO of electricity network Elia until January last year.

According to the Port Authority board, he has useful experience not only for the port’s industrial activities, but also with complex stakeholder management and public shareholders. “Both aspects, combined with the required international experience, strong communications skills and inspiring people management, convinced the board to put forward Vandermeiren as the new managing director of the Port Authority,” said Marc Van Peel, who as city councillor for port affairs chairs the Port Authority board and the nominations committee.

Bruyninckx, who has headed the Port Authority for 25 years, announced his retirement earlier this year. Executive search office Spencer Stuart was brought in to find a successor and produced a long list of candidates, who were screened according to various criteria. A shortlist of candidates were then

interviewed, with Vandermeiren emerging as the most suitable.

Vandermeiren will shadow Bruyninckx for two months before taking over. “It is certainly an honour for me to face the important local and international challenges of the Port Authority, in collaboration with the board of directors, the management committee, the personnel and the many stakeholders,” he said in a statement. “Assuring the rich history of the port while moving into a sustainable future is a task I shall assume with pride and determination.”

The port passed the 200 million tonnes of traffic mark for the first time ever last year, with 208.4 tonnes of freight handled, an increase of 4.7% on 2014.

Earlier this month saw the opening of the Kieldrecht lock, the biggest in the world, which allows Antwerp’s Waasland harbour to handle the largest container ships.

Growth has continued this year, with 53 million tonnes of freight passing through in the first quarter, up nearly 4% on the same period last year. \ Alan Hope

Flanders Today, a weekly English-language newspaper, is an initiative of the Flemish Region and is financially supported by the Flemish authorities.

their skin,” he told De Standaard. “If their underground passageways fill

up with water, they have to come to the surface. And there’s another reason they come up: they migrate in search of a mate.”

But coming to the surface has a major disadvantage: It makes them vulnerable to prey. And getting out © Ingimage

Recent weather conditions have left many Flemish farmers with ruined crops and households with flooded cellars, not to mention the havoc it has played with the transport system. But spare a thought for the earthworm.

Earthworms in Flanders are particularly hard hit by heavy rains.

In Dutch, they’re even known as regenwormen – rain worms – probably because they come out of the ground when it rains. They’re coming to the surface now to get oxygen, explained professor Bart Muys of the University of Leuven last week.

“Earthworms breathe through

© Thierry Roge/BELGA

is a lot easier than getting back in if, for example, they’ve strayed onto a paved surface.

Professor Muys isn’t surprised the worms have come to the attention of farmers. “You can easily find 300,000 worms in one hectare,” he said. “Imagine if one in five of them were to die – that’s a lot of worms.”

The soggy conditions are perfect, however, for mosquitoes to lay their eggs. With all that water lying on open ground, from farms to festival campsites, it looks like a plague of mozzies is on the way. Chin up, though: So is better weather.

The logo and the name Flanders Today belong to the Flemish Region (Benelux Beeldmerk nr 815.088). The editorial team of Flanders Today has full editorial autonomy regarding the content of the newspaper and is responsible for all content, as stipulated in the agreement between Corelio Publishing and the Flemish authorities.

Editor Lisa Bradshaw DEPUTY Editor Sally Tipper CONTRIBUTING Editor Alan Hope sub Editor Bartosz Brzezi´nski Agenda Robyn Boyle, Georgio Valentino Art director Paul Van Dooren Prepress Mediahuis AdPro Contributors Rebecca Benoot, Derek Blyth, Leo Cendrowicz, Andy Furniere, Lee Gillette, Diana Goodwin, Clodagh Kinsella, Catherine Kosters, Toon Lambrechts, Ian Mundell, Anja Otte, Tom Peeters, Senne Starckx, Christophe Verbiest, Denzil Walton General manager Hans De Loore Publisher Mediahuis NV

Editorial address Gossetlaan 30 - 1702 Groot-Bijgaarden tel 02 467 23 06 editorial@flanderstoday.eu subscriptions tel 03 560 17 49 subscriptions@flanderstoday.eu or order online at www.flanderstoday.eu Advertising 02 467 24 37 advertising@flanderstoday.eu Verantwoordelijke uitgever Hans De Loore

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\ POLITICS

5TH COLUMN Optimal damage

The possibly fraudulent bankruptcy of Optima bank has had some political fallout. Geert Versnick (Open VLD), provincial delegate in East Flanders, has resigned from all of his functions in the Optima Group. He has done nothing wrong, he says, but “we live in an age where perception is more important than facts”.

Optima is far more damaging, though, for the socialists.

Luc Van den Bossche, former government minister, is also a former CEO at Optima. He left the bank before its slide into bankruptcy, but he is believed to have received a generous parting bonus.

Van den Bosche, father of SP.A figurehead Freya Van den Bosche, describes himself as a socialist but has gained a reputation for money grabbing, first at Brussels Airport, then at Optima.

His former party quickly distanced itself from him.

Party president John Crombez does not want to be held responsible for “a man who has not been active in my party for over 13 years”. SP.A has gone on the offence, demanding a parliamentary investigation committee into Optima, but the damage is hard to escape.

A photograph of Crombez himself in the Optima offices has even surfaced, from the time he was secretary of state for Fraud Prevention.

Crombez now faces innuendo about a tax investigation into Optima that was halted in the same period.

The hardest hit, however, is Ghent mayor Daniël Termont.

A man of the people, Termont cherishes his folksy image.

First he claimed that Jeroen Piqueur, Optima’s head, was not a friend. Then it emerged that Termont had delivered a speech at Piqueur’s wedding.

In an emotional video message, the mayor stated that he had “nothing to do with Optima Bank or Optima Group”. In interviews he also denied having set a foot on Piqueur’s yacht. Termont accused N-VA, opposition party in Ghent, of gossip.

It has been discovered since that Termont was in close contact with Optima’s realty branch. That includes meetings at a realty fair in Cannes… on a yacht (admittedly not Piqueur’s). The mayor later admitted he had been “careless” in his contacts with the Optima group.

There’s an old saying in Flemish politics: Money is to socialists what sex is to Christian-democrats. Even if socialists haven’t specifically done anything wrong, they’re in deep trouble with Optima.

(See related article, p6) \ Anja Otte

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Politicians react to Brexit

Move ‘weakens UK, the EU and Flanders’, says minister-president Alan Hope Follow Alan on Twitter \ @AlanHopeFT

F

ollowing the UK’s decision in a referendum to exit the European Union last week, Flemish minister-president Geert Bourgeois stressed the need for a negotiated agreement with the British – what he called a “soft Brexit”.

“Of course I deplore the outcome of the referendum to leave the European Union,” he said in a statement on Friday morning. “This weakens the UK, the EU and Flanders. The United Kingdom offers huge added value for Europe on a political and economic level. But we respect the British decision, and now we have to be pragmatic and take the necessary steps for a ‘soft Brexit’.”

Bourgeois’ statements soon struck a note of melancholy. “The cultural and political ties between the Flemish and the British date back a long time and are very close,” he said. “They have allowed both nations to create prosperity and security. We were each other’s allies in both good and bad times. The British casualties of both World Wars, buried in Flanders Fields, will forever remain our precious common heritage.”

He went on to talk about the economic ties between the UK and Flanders. “The UK is a very important business partner: It’s our

fourth export market. Particularly in industries where Flanders excels – like food and textiles – it’s crucial that the trade across the Channel continues. That’s why we have to strive for a soft Brexit.”

And he sketched out his vision of the future of Europe in the wake of the British decision. “The EU needs to regain trust. In order to do that, Europe needs to focus on those areas where,

thanks to its scale, it can provide added value. A thorough debate on the future is needed.”

The government of Flanders, he said, will present its own vision for the future of the EU. “Not a leap into the dark, but an inventory of where we can reinforce each other, such as in a common digital market and an energy union,” he said.

Belgian prime minister Charles Michel, meanwhile, called the situation “a difficult moment” for European democracy. “We are waking up in a different Europe. But we need to grasp the opportunity to look ahead. The European dream is the most wonderful of the previous century.

We need to find our perspective on a new dream.”

Federal economy minister Kris Peeters said the vote was “a wake-up call for the European project,” and the government would immediately begin considering the effect of the result.

“The choice of the British people will have political, diplomatic and also economic consequences for Belgium,” Peeters said. “I will be bringing together the crisis group, under the chair of Paul Buysse.” Buysse is the chair of the board of steel wire company Bekaert and author of Belgium’s Code for Corporate Governance.

Flanders signs co-operation agreement on closer relations with Mexico

Historic commitment on Flemish energy policy

The government of Flanders has signed a memorandum of understanding with the government of Mexico on closer relations in a number of fields. The signing took place in Brussels last week between Koen Verlaeckt, secretary-general of the Flanders International department, and Mexican ambassador to Belgium Eloy Cantú Segovia.

The memorandum covers economic co-operation, higher education, scientific research, innovation and technological development, culture and business. The two sides would like to see closer co-operation on tertiary and postgraduate education, and the memorandum proposes closer ties with the Centre for Mexican Studies at Antwerp University, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.

It provides for structural funding for the centre from the three partners: the Flemish government, Antwerp University and the National Autonomous University of Mexico.

Before the signing, minister-president Geert Bourgeois held a meeting with Cantú in which he stressed the importance of Mexico as a trading partner and offered Flanders’

More than 30 organisations and Flemish energy minister Bart Tommelein have signed an agreement which commits them to developing a long-term vision of Flanders’ energy policy.

The priorities are to keep energy costs affordable and increase the use of renewable energy. This is the first time so many organisations in Flanders have committed to working together on an energy vision for the future.

Among the participating organisations are sector federations, unions, environmental organisation, universities and research centres. They include the federation of industrial energy consumers Febeliec, farmers’ union Boerenbond, environmental organisation Bond Beter Leefmilieu and the Flemish Institute for Technological Research (Vito).

“Everyone is aware of the efforts that Flanders needs to make in the field of renewable energy,” said Tommelein. “This is the chance to work together on a widely supported vision.”

Experts are now working on concrete proposals in working groups, and after the summer, every Flemish citizen will be able to post ideas and discuss issues on a forum.

From these online contributors, 150 citizens will be selected to debate in October with each other and with experts. By the end of the year, the best ideas should lead to a concrete energy vision and energy pact. \ Andy Furniere

expertise in areas such as harbour construction, dredging and water management for the development of Mexico’s economy.

“Relations with Mexico are very important,” Verlaeckt said. “There are many historical and cultural ties, as well as on the economic level. The volume of trade in both directions is quite substantial.”

Flanders exported goods worth just over €1 billion to Mexico in 2015, putting it in 40th place for exported goods, according to Flanders Investment & Trade. Imports from Mexico were worth €2.5 billion, making Flanders the 23rd biggest export destination for the Mexicans.

Flemish exports to Mexico are headed by pharmaceutical products (16.2%) closely followed by machines and mechanical equipment (15.4%). Other products include organic chemicals, plastics and fertiliser, iron and steel and optical instruments.

In return, Flanders imports vehicles, machine parts, electrical equipment, zinc and rubber. The region accounts for 88.7% of all Belgian exports to Mexico and 83.4% of all Belgian imports. \ AH

Flanders and Germany strengthen ties during state visit The Flemish parliament received representatives from Germany last week to renew a pledge to give the country the same priority in Flemish foreign policy as that received by the Netherlands. That includes political representation in Berlin, as well as commercial representation in Berlin, Stuttgart and Cologne.

Flanders accounts for 84% of Belgian exports to Germany, making the country the region’s most important trading partner. Flanders sold goods and services in 2015 worth €51 billion, an increase of 2.8% over 2014. Germany accounts for 17% of Flemish exports in all, and Flanders provides 5.5% of all German imports.

Minister-president Geert Bourgeois stressed the importance of good cross-border relations with

the German regions, in particular with North Rhine-Westphalia, which alone takes one-third of Flemish exports to Germany.

Frontier infrastructure is crucial to the economies of the ports of Antwerp and Rotterdam, he said, as well as the development of the German port of Duisburg.

At the same time, bilateral relations offer multiple opportunities for both sides. A first inter-governmental meeting with North Rhine-Westphalia in December last year was a good start, he said, and meetings with other regions would follow. Last week saw representatives of the region of Bavaria make an official visit to Flanders.

Bourgeois also stressed the importance of both sides getting to know each other’s language and

© Monika Skolimowska/BELGA

Flemish minister-president Geert Bourgeois and his counterpart in the North Rhine-Westphalia, Hannelore Kraft

culture, with the teaching of German in Flemish schools and cultural co-operation such as this year’s joint guest-of-honour status at the Frankfurt Book Fair by Flanders and the Netherlands. \ AH

\ COVER STORY

JUNE 29, 2016

Strike a pose

From ballet school in Antwerp to global stardom and life with HIV continued from page 1

Towards the end of 1987, he began experiencing some health problems and returned to Belgium for a check-up. “They treated me for a kidney problem, and I recovered,” he recalls. “Then, the day before I was to fly back to the US, the doctor called me back to the hospital and told me I had HIV.” The infection was a result of Gauwloos’ first sexual experience. “My whole world caved in, but I buried my emotions in dance. I thought to myself: Not everybody dies. Dance gave me something to hold on to.”

Gauwloos returned to the US, moving between New York and Houston, Texas, where he began choreographing for the Delia Stewart Dance Company.

In early 1990, he saw an audition notice for Madonna’s Blonde Ambition tour. “It was one of those auditions where you think, ‘I don’t know if I should go for this’. But you take on those jobs. Dancers will understand what I mean.”

The audition was a swift reminder that he wasn’t in Belgium anymore.

“It was a cultural shock,” he says.

“Madonna was in the room for every audition. There were people crying because she was there, with many giving her presents. That kind of thing was very foreign to me.”

About a week later, the phone rang.

“Madonna called me at home and asked if I’d like to go on tour with her,” Gauwloos recalls. “Two weeks later, I was in Los Angeles rehearsing.”

Despite Madonna’s pro-gay message, Gauwloos and the other two HIV-positive dancers, Gabriel Trupin and Carlton Wilborn, kept their health situation to themselves. “Nobody wanted to face it,” he says. “I wouldn’t have talked about it even if I thought I could confide in Madonna, or if the other two had confided in me. The power of denial is very strong.”

Unaware of their HIV status, Madonna performed with the three dancers for a cover of the song “Don’t Be Silly”, with the lyrics, “Don’t be silly, put a condom on your willy”.

In Strike a Pose, a new documentary on the legacy of the Blonde Ambition tour and follow-up film Madonna: Truth or Dare, Wilborn expresses regret at not speaking out

STRIKEAPOSEFILM.COM

© Facundo Gabba 2016

Keeping secrets: Gauwloos says he and the other dancers have more projects up their sleeves

© Courtesy Strike a Pose

Of the seven original members of Madonna’s troupe, only six remain. Gabriel Trupin (far right) died of Aids in 1995. Salim Gauwloos of Antwerp is pictured far left

about his HIV status at the time.

For Gauwloos, keeping his health status out of the public sphere was never an issue.

“I wasn’t faking it,” he says. “I was just being myself. Getting Aids didn’t fit into my programme. I still don’t want people to worry about me. Dancing has kept me healthy and has enabled me to forget myself.”

The wildly successful tour led to the 1991 release of the behindthe-scenes movie Madonna: Truth or Dare (known as In Bed with Madonna outside of North America). The film became an instant hit, particularly in the gay community.

In one scene, Gauwloos is dared to kiss Trupin – a challenge he readily accepted.

The passionate kiss was one of the first between two gay men to hit

the big screen. Gauwloos still gets letters and emails from people whose lives he changed because of that kiss. “In 1990, there was no

drugs, alcohol and partying. Gauwloos was no exception. “I lost everything, even my tour jacket.”

He took up modelling and dancing, but work was hard to get without legal residency. He had also never undergone treatment for HIV since being diagnosed with it years earlier. “I worried that if I sought treatment, I would be deported back to Belgium,” he says. “But what would I do there?”

In 1997, the power of denial ran out, and Gauwloos ended up in hospital with bacterial pneumonia, an infection that had a 99% death rate among AIDS patients at the time.

My whole world caved in, but I buried my emotions in dance. I thought to myself: Not everybody dies social media or internet, so it was revolutionary,” he says. “I understand its importance now. But we didn’t know it then, we just wanted to kiss.”

When Blonde Ambition came to an end, it hit the dancers like a hammer blow. Most lost their way, turning to

“Lying in bed, I saw the staff wearing these protective ‘space suits’,” he says. “I remember thinking: ‘This is for real now’.”

After three weeks, Gauwloos was discharged and given medication which has helped to keep him well ever since. “It surprised me that

there were so many private organisations that took care of people in my situation,” he says. “Even if you didn’t have health care, they would look after you.”

As he slowly got better, he still had no official papers. Then, in 2000, he met Argentinean photographer Facundo Gabba. “I fell in love with Facundo, and he fell in love with me. He has helped me to get my life together – legally and otherwise.”

Gabba gathered evidence of Gauwloos’ life in the US, including articles, photos and videos. “We presented everything to a lawyer who told us that my HIV status would make it tricky,” Gauwloos explains. “The lawyer said there was only a one percent chance of success. It took about two years, but in the end I received my green card.”

He now works as a choreographer and teacher. With his partner, he divides his time between New York and Buenos Aires. He is also continuing to work with some of the other dancers from the Blonde Ambition tour, but won’t divulge details. “Madonna can have her secret projects, so why can’t we?

Strike a Pose won’t be the last time the world hears from us!”

Strike a Post releases on 29 June across Belgium

AT a cinema near you In 1990, pop icon Madonna came to global attention with her raunchy Blonde Ambition tour. Featuring the provocative song “Like a Virgin” and simulated sex, the concertseries outraged conservative groups and led to calls for a boycott from the Pope himself.

Accompanying Madonna on stage were seven male dancers, six gay and one straight, including then-20-year-old Salim “Slam” Gauwloos from Antwerp.

In Strike a Pose, a Dutch-Belgian co-production by Dutch directors Ester Gould and Reijer Zwaan, the six-surviving dancers meet 25 years after the global tour to compare battle scars. One of the key revelations is that three of the dancers, including Gauwloos, were HIV-positive before the tour, but kept the information to themselves.

Homosexuality was still a taboo in many

western countries in 1990. Infection with HIV/AIDS was considered a death sentence.

These factors influenced the lives of each of the dancers and the choices they made.

The individual stories are told by the dancers themselves. In the case of Gabriel Trupin, who died of AIDS in 1995, his mother, Sue, takes over. The testimonies are moving and show how the tour – such a high in their lives – subsequently led to long periods of

depression and struggle for some of the dancers.

For Gauwloos, the difficulties of life off stage only ended when he came to terms with his HIV status and with the help of his partner. “In the end, we all found someone who put us back together again,” says Gauwloos.

“Except Carlton. We need to find someone for Carlton. And Madonna of course!”

\5

\ BUSINESS

week in business Hotels Hilton The US-based hotel chain is opening its new 143-room Hilton Garden Inn in Brussels on Berckmansstraat near Louizalaan in early August.

Also included in the property are 60 apartments for short stays. The company already operates two hotels in the capital.

Supermarkets Bio-Planet The Halle-based Colruyt plans to open 15 more of its Bio-Planet organic supermarkets over the next three years and will further develop its neighbourhood brands Spar and Okay. The company hired 1,500 new workers last year.

Air Brussels Airport Despite the terror attack of 22 March, Brussels Airport expects to reach the same total of passenger traffic this year as in 2015. The attack and subsequent closure have had an impact of some €100 million. Meanwhile, the airport has won the Airport Council International (ACI) award for the best mediumsize airport in Europe.

Cinema Kinepolis The Ghent-based chain of multiplex cinemas is building an eight-screen complex in Toulouse. The company already operates 10 cinemas in France and 46 in total in seven European countries.

Metals Umicore The Brussels-based nonferrous metals and materials group is investing €100 million to push capacity of its Hoboken rare metals recycling unit to 500,000 tonnes a year by 2020. The company today recycles some 350,000 tonnes of used mobile phones, tablets, computers, electronic equipment and components.

Freight Etihad The Abu Dhabi-based cargo airline is launching a twoflights-a-week freight service between Brussels and the United Arab Emirates.

Human resources T-Groep The temp work agency owned by the government of Flanders has been sold to the Dutch Gilde investment fund for over €150 million. T-Groep has 121 offices and operations in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and Poland.

\6

International businesses re-affirm commitment to Belgium

Corporations meet with local chambers of commerce and prime minister Lee Gillette More articles by Lee \ flanderstoday.eu

On 22 June, three months to the day after the bombings in Zaventem and Brussels, 11 foreign and international chambers of commerce – united since February under the Twitter banner #Yes2Belgium – hosted prime minister Charles Michel and a panel discussion at a Brussels hotel.

Attended by hundreds of members of the international business community, which employs 700,000 people in Belgium, the event’s aim was to stress that the country continues to be an attractive place to invest. Businesses trust Belgium, “the world’s third most globalised economy,” Michel said. “Commerce and trade make

© Courtesy Charles Michel/Twitter

up 80% of GDP. More than 2,000 foreign company headquarters are here.”

Despite what some media say, Belgium is not full of surprises,

according to Toyota Motor Europe CEO Johan Van Zyl. “Business doesn’t like surprises,” he said.

“Brussels is a wonderful place to live,” he said. And also to invest:

Toyota is opening a new style and design centre in Zaventem.

Pfizer regional president Richard Blackburn praised Belgium’s “stable, predictable tax environment and highly qualified scientists.” Bombardier Transportation president Per Allmer said his company “always gets the best value from our people in Belgium”.

British Telecom’s president for Continental Europe, Corrodo Sciolla, cited Belgium’s sixth-place world ranking in industry-university relations. “Predictability is what you look for when investing,” he added. “I haven’t had a single discussion that we should invest less in Belgium.”

Challenge over expired Uplace socio-economic permit

VLM Airlines files for bankruptcy and sacks entire staff

The controversial shopping and leisure centre Uplace in Machelen, just outside of Brussels, is under fire again, this time over an expired socioeconomic permit.

Last week, the Flemish parliament’s economy committee voted in favour of a new decree on commercial establishments. It included the recognition that all permits valid on 1 July, 2014, would remain valid as long as a procedure was ongoing before the Council of State or the council for permit disputes.

That includes the socio-economic permit for Uplace, which expired last September. According to the opposition, the measure is a way of renewing the Uplace permit while avoiding a legal procedure.

Unizo, the organisation that represents the self-employed in Flanders, has called the move “the Uplace back door”. Unizo is one of the organisations to have contested Uplace before the Council of State, arguing that the complex would be damaging to small businesses in nearby town centres such as Vilvoorde and Leuven.

Environment minister Joke Schauvliege has approved a new environmental permit for Uplace. A previous permit, issued in 2012, was declared void by the Council of State in 2014. The new permit takes account of the council’s objections relating to brownfield covenants and to public transport infrastructure. \ Alan Hope

VLM Airlines, which operates mainly out of Antwerp Airport in Deurne, has applied for bankruptcy and fired all of its 160 staff.

All flights have been cancelled.

The decision follows a filing at the end of May by the company for protection from its creditors, normally seen as the last step before bankruptcy. The final step was taken on Wednesday, with the company declaring bankruptcy the same day.

VLM made a loss last year of €13 million, leaving debts of some €15 million.

The Flemish airline was founded in 1992 by former Vlaams Belang politician Freddy Van Gaever. He sold his holding in 1996 and later stepped down as CEO. Together with partner Carl Legein, owner of The Aviation Factory, Van Gaever has now suggested that

Tax inspectors re-open Optima money laundering investigation Federal finance minister Johan Van Overtveldt has asked the special tax unit (BBI) to re-open an investigation into suspected money laundering activities by the Ghent-based Optima bank, which was declared bankrupt earlier this month.

The investigation into the use of Luxembourg insurance derivatives to launder Belgian cash remains officially open, though it had seen little movement since 2013. A court in Ghent ruled at the time that documents uncovered by BBI the year before could not be used as evidence against Optima.

“A number of matters have recently come to light in the media that raise various questions,” a finance ministry spokesperson said. “The minister is ready to respond.”

The investigation is expected to require considerable resources and manpower.

This week the federal parliament’s finance committee was due to hold a hearing on Optima. Opposition socialists are pressing for the establishment of a separate committee to consider the case.

Meanwhile, Ghent mayor Daniël Termont has issued a video message in which he denies rumours of close links to Optima via his friendship with main shareholder Jeroen Piqueur. The mayor denied holding any shares or bonds and did not have a seat on the board. “I don’t even have an account,” he said. He later admitted his ties to Piqueur were closer than he had suggested. (See related article, p4) \ AH

he take over VLM. According to Van Gaever, it would be possible to relaunch the airline in a limited form offering charter flights out of Deurne, or to continue with a more ambitious plan involving flights to regional airports in Southampton, Genoa, Rotterdam and Hamburg. To date, VLM has been flying to Southampton, Hamburg, Dusseldorf and London City.

An administrator will now consider the future of the company, including possible rescue. Flemish mobility minister Ben Weyts said the bankruptcy was “an unfortunate affair” but pointed out that the effects would be limited. VLM accounted for only 10,000 of the 220,000 passengers passing through Deurne each year. \ AH

Information point for companies with questions on Brexit The government of Flanders and Flanders Investment & Trade (FIT) have set up an information point for businesses with questions about the effects of Brexit – the decision by UK voters to leave the European Union.

“To be perfectly clear, nothing will change in the short term,” said FIT in a statement. “Flemish businesses will continue to export to the United Kingdom. Trade doesn’t just fall quiet from one day to the next.”

Even if the British trigger Article 50, which would officially begin the process of leaving the EU, the procedure could take two years or more, the statement says. In the meantime, to deal with questions and concerns companies may have, FIT has set up a contact point where people can ask for advice.

Flemish minister-president Geert Bourgeois visited the first Flanders Export Fair on Monday in Tour & Taxis in Brussels, to explain his government’s international strategy. “Companies that do business internationally need to have security – legal, fiscal and social security,” said Bourgeois.

“Of course, companies will have questions about what the consequences of Brexit are for them.”

Businesses with questions can email brexit@fitagency.be. \ AH

\ INNOVATION

JUNE 29, 2016

Secrets of the cell

week in innovation

UGent and VIB develop a new method of studying cellular processes Ian Mundell follow Ian on Twitter \ @IanMundell

VIB.BE

R

esearchers from Ghent University and the Flemish life sciences research institute VIB have developed an elegant way of studying the biological machinery within cells.

Called Virotrap, it takes the process viruses use to reproduce and puts it to more benign use.

Every cell in the human body contains thousands of different proteins, which can only fulfil their functions when they are working together.

Scientists are therefore keen to know which proteins associate together, but often the only way to get at these protein machines is to break the cell open.

“The first step in a classical study of protein complexes essentially turns the highly organised cellular structure into a big messy soup,” explains Sven Eyckerman, who has developed Virotrap with colleagues in Ghent. Once mixed up in this way, it is hard to work out which proteins interact together and how the cell mechanism functions.

The search for an alternative was inspired by the way viruses reproduce. Once attached to a host cell, the virus hijacks the cell’s internal machinery and uses it to make copies of itself. A new genetic core is created and then wrapped up in a shell, forming a new virus particle. These particles are then released from the cell and go on to repeat the process.

The process can be used to study how cells react to viruses Proteins from the host cell are often caught up in these particles, so Eyckerman and his colleagues wondered if they could make a virus pick up specific proteins from the interior and bring them out. They tried this with a safe, strippeddown version of HIV, the virus that causes Aids.

© CSP_bogdanhoda/Belga

“HIV is well-studied, of course, and it is also used as a system to deliver genes to cells,” Eyckerman explains. “We were already using the virus in that way, so we had the tools in the lab. We just had to retune it a little bit in order to make it work.”

Introducing just one HIV protein, called the Gag protein, into a cell is enough to kick-start the production of empty virus particles. To the protein, the researchers attached a “bait” protein, calculated to bind to the protein complex within the cell and draw it into the developing virus particles.

Collecting the virus particles once they have been released into the cell culture medium proved a challenging step. “It’s a big volume of medium, with only a few, very small particles,” Eyckerman explains.

The established methods, such as ultracentrifugation, he adds, are not satisfactory. “It took us about a year to figure out a system that lets us purify these particles in a single step.”

A further challenge was to ensure that the puri-

fication process did not interfere with analytical methods, such as mass spectrometry, used to identify the proteins collected. “It’s a pretty complex sample,” Eyckerman adds, “so we have also devised our own data-analysis tools.”

Three years into developing the method, they have confirmed that it worked. Pairs of proteins that were already known to interact inside the cell could be extracted using Virotrap, along with new complexes for future study.

Virotrap is now being used to investigate the basic functions of cells, such as the pathways that are set in motion during inflammation, and even the way cells react to viruses. “I think it’s a nice idea to use a virus system to understand anti-viral pathways,” Eyckerman says.

The method has also been adapted so that small molecules, such as potential drugs, can be attached to the Gag protein. This will allow researchers to investigate how such molecules behave inside the cell, and fine-tune their effects.

Eyckerman says this is something the pharmaceutical industry is particularly interested in.

iMinds studies how children interact with toys online and off From refrigerators that text you when you are out of milk to heating systems that automatically turn off on a sunny day and fitness bands that monitor your heart rate, smart gadgets are transforming all aspects of our lives. And Flemish scientists are at the heart of this quiet revolution.

Dr Bieke Zaman, professor of communication sciences at KU Leuven, studies the way these new technologies influence education, both at home and in the classroom.

Working with the Ghent-based digital research institute iMinds, she leads a team of researchers who are exploring the fuzzy line in children’s minds between on- and offline play.

“A lot of things are changing in the world of children’s toys,” Zaman explains. “Youngsters are engaged with the digital sphere, so tablet computers have been enormously successful. But children still want to play with something tangible.

They see a character in a comic

book and want a figurine of that character to play with at school.

Then they go home and want to play with that character online, with their friends.”

Whereas adults draw a clear distinction between their online and offline activities, she continues, for today’s children, these worlds occupy the same space.

Through the Woopi project, funded by the government of Flanders’ innovation programme, Zaman’s team observed the way four- to sixyear-olds interact with physical and digital toys in the same space. They also assessed parents’ attitudes to the various “hybrid” toys currently on the market, which combine digital and physical elements.

“We have learned that parents have mixed feelings when it comes to digital technology,” says Zaman.

“On the one hand, they want to develop their children’s digital skills, and they are convinced this is the future. But on the whole, they favour ‘old-school’ activities

© Courtesy iMinds

Hybrid toys that exist in ‘rea life’ but also plug into a computer are a big hit with modern kids

such as playing football outdoors.

They don’t want their children to be sitting in front of a screen for long periods of time.”

Aware of these concerns, the researchers set about finding ways to incorporate more physical play into the children’s digital activities. Modern hybrid toys such as the immensely popular Skylander series allow children to import electronic information stored in a

IMINDS.BE

physical toy to their computer.

The iMinds researchers decided to turn this concept on its head through the use of 3D printing.

Developers created software that would transform a 2D character on screen into a 3D object. They then used a 3D printer to create a physical version of the character for children to play with offline.

According to Zaman, hybrid toys represent not just added fun for children, they also have the potential to contribute to their education and foster digital literacy skills. “We presented the kids with a robot that teaches them how to code,” says the researcher. “This is a skill that is being introduced into school curriculums across Europe.

Previous research has also found that interactive teddy bears are great for kids on the autism spectrum. They act as a companion to the child, but their reactions are programmed and predictable.” \ Ellie Mears

ESA rewards UGent engineer

Bio-engineer Merel Van Walleghem of Ghent University has won this year’s Young Researcher Award from the European Space Agency (ESA) for her investigation into the influence of stress factors in space that limit the immune system. Van Walleghem presented her research at ESA headquarters in Toulouse, where she took part in a scientific symposium about long-term space travel. She presented her research into how space travel and longterm stays in space can influence an immune system that is not designed to function outside the Earth’s atmosphere. According to the bioengineer, who is finishing her PhD, there are several stress factors in space, where there is no gravitational pull, atmospheric pressure or protection from radiation.

Single test for all blood disorders Together with colleagues from Cambridge University and the University College London, a team of KU Leuven researchers have developed a method to diagnose any genetic blood disease with just one test.

Medical researchers have long wanted an all-in-one test that would determine which of the 63 genes related to blood disorders was present in a patient. Because many blood diseases are genetic, including haemophilia and clotting disorders, doctors first have to identify the gene involved to know which treatment they should apply. Current procedures are extremely costly and can take up to a year. The new test delivers a diagnosis in six to eight weeks.

HIV+ patients to stop treatment Microbiologists from Ghent University and Ghent University Hospital have started a unique project that involves temporarily stopping antiviral treatment for people with the HIV virus. The goal of the research is to pinpoint in which organs and cell types the suppressed virus starts its comeback. Patients involved in the project will soon undergo a “total body sampling” – a procedure in which doctors will cut small samples of every vital organ and tissue, from the brain to the bone marrow.

Later this year, the patients will stop taking their medications.

It is expected that the HIV virus will come out of hibernation, allowing researchers to compare blood samples with the cells obtained from body sampling. \ Senne Starckx

\7

\ EDUCATION

JUNE 29, 2016

Positive attitudes

week in education Catholic education to work with VDAB

Flanders’ technical schools seek to change mindsets and futures Linda A Thompson Follow Linda @ThompsonBXL \ flanderstoday.eu

SODAJOBS.BE

Flanders’ technical and professional schools are fighting back against the snobbery that has haunted them for years, by teaming up with employers to prepare pupils for professional life.

F

or decades, the technical and professional schools in Flanders that groom tomorrow’s hair stylists, woodworkers and aeroplane technicians have been haunted by the reputation that they attract only no-good students, unfit for subjects like maths, modern languages and economics.

Their notoriety is encapsulated in a single word with unspoken but loaded socioeconomic connotations – crapuulscholen, or “schools for lowlifes”.

It’s a reputation that’s at odds with the realities of the job market, which is in desperate need of skilled workers. Of the vacancies that local employers struggle to fill – known as bottleneck professions – most are technical. It’s a trend that has persisted for years and has only grown under the pressures of an aging workforce.

The image problem among technical and professional secondary schools is compounded by the strict divisions in Flanders’ tracking system. The education system is known as being structured something like a waterfall – with general education schools at the top and technical and professional schools at the bottom.

Twelve and 13-year-olds, sometimes under pressure from their parents or friends, start out in general education. Typically, pupils who fail their year are forced to repeat it or move on to the next year, but in a different subject.

This way, over the course of sometimes three or four years, they successively skip down school track after school track until they’ve hit the supposedly final and lowest rung – technical and professional education.

One of the overriding aims of the recently announced reformed master plan for primary and secondary education in Flanders is to erase the stubborn barriers between the tracks by transforming schools into “domain schools” – but that plan isn’t expected to take effect until 2018.

In the meantime, some teachers have resolved to take matters into their own hands with the aim of polishing the reputation of professional and technical schools – and simultaneously instilling more confidence in their pupils.

They award “Soda” certificates to children in technical and professional schools who’ve mastered

The Catholic education network and Flemish employment and training agency VDAB have signed an agreement to work together on preparing students for the labour market and providing learning opportunities for adults. Under the agreement, which also applies to special-needs schools, the parties said they would build partnerships between learning centres and the VDAB, thereby optimising opportunities for young people and job-seekers.

They also said the diversity of society must be positively used and that all actors must strive for a more inclusive education and labour market. They highlighted the need to encourage “a love for science, engineering and technology”.

Teacher suspended for child pornography

Project manager Céline Saeyens and Simon Mensaert (right) with Wouter Torfs, CEO of Schoenen Torfs and a Soda ambassador

the soft skills the project name is short for – stiptheid (punctuality), orde (order), discipline and attitude. It seeks to reward students aged 16 and over who show a positive attitude in professional, special, part-time and technical secondary education.

“My students are absolutely not more stupid or anything like that; they aren’t at all less fit,” say Simon Mensaert, who launched the Soda project in 2013. “It’s just that – like a company – we don’t make the best use of our natural resources.”

A long-time teacher and a graduate of a technical school himself, Mensaert says that management theories have long shown that rewards are much more efficient than punishments in motivating workers. “But in schools, it’s still all these medieval punishments, with negative reports, visits to the principal and detention,” he says, pointing out that teachers have only a limited toolbox to motivate students.

“I thought it was high time that we focused on attitudes much more and teach students to be more disciplined and to pursue something in their lives.”

The carrot in the Soda project is offered by local companies.

Employers who participate in the project agree to open a range of summer, weekend and temp jobs, traineeships and actual, grownup jobs to students who have obtained the certificate. In turn, employers can be confident that they are hiring young people ready and willing to get their hands dirty.

Four times a year, students in Soda schools receive a report that evaluates their soft skills as part of the project. On punctuality, for instance, students who are absent without a justified reason more

than twice, or miss more than two lesson hours in one term, receive a B grade.

Students with more than six B grades over the course of a year are typically not awarded the certificate, though teachers have some leeway to take into account personal circumstances.

Mensaert says setting up the rules was a balancing exercise that they conducted in his own school, KTAMoBi, a technical and professional school in Ghent, before the project expanded. “We tried out and designed the criteria so that in every class there are students who can obtain the certificate,” he says. “So students see examples of people who were able to get the certificate in their immediate environment.”

He estimates that between 30 and 45% of students today earn the certificate – a figure that touches on the elephant in the room.

Because of how it’s structured, the Soda project is an implicit acknowledgement that professional and technical schools are sending young adults into the world lacking in the professional attitude and skills needed in the workplace.

Mensaert admits that this is true.

“Are we going to deny this? Make it a taboo? The waterfall system is real. I think it’s better that we be frank,” he says. “That perception already existed; it’s not as if we’re going to make it bigger.”

He was inspired to start the project when he returned to technical education as a teacher in mechanics after a stint in the private sector.

A graduate in 2002 of Don Bosco Sint-Denijs-Westrem – a crapuulschool in the words of his friends – he was surprised to encounter the same negative perception he’d

found 13 years ago when he was studying industrial sciences.

It was as if the school environment hadn’t caught up with the reality of the labour market – the wealth of jobs open to workers with technical and professional secondary school degrees and the high starting salaries he encountered.

“I realised that the way we interacted with students, the perception of ‘dropping down’, it was all still present,” Mensaert says. “All these schools are still battling this negative perception.”

After testing the project in KTAMoBi in the 2012-2013 school year, it was extended to 40 schools across Flanders and Brussels, with an additional 62 schools with pending applications to join.

This year, some 20,000 students obtained certificates, and the project receives support from the Flemish Community and the province of East Flanders, while Soda employers include major companies like NMBS, Carrefour and Bosch.

Along the way, Mensaert has made adjustments. Initially, they had used a fairly static mathematical calculation to determine whether students deserved the certificate.

Today, it’s much more important that students show improvement.

A grade of B at the end of a school year after only As, for instance, will more severely impact a student’s chances of earning the certificate than a B at the start of the school year. “These are, after all, still adolescents we’re dealing with,” he says. “Education should be a time when students are allowed to fall, but we educators should pick them back up and give them feedback – ‘here’s what you did wrong, but if you do it this way, you’ll get your A in the future’.”

A primary school in Ronse, East Flanders, has suspended a teacher after it was found that he has been the subject of a child pornography investigation for the last 18 months.

Sint-Antonius College said that it discovered that the teacher was under investigation for “inappropriate behaviour with minors and other offences” via the media. “We are shocked and regret this situation very much,” said Sint-Antonius in a statement. “At no time were we informed by anyone.” Local media has reported that a 45-year-old teacher from the school had been found with 14,000 images related to child pornography on his computer, including some he had made himself via a webcam. “As far as we know, these events have taken place outside of our school,” said Sint-Antonius.

Dual-learning students ‘need safeguarding’ The Flemish Education Council (Vlor) has called for additional measures to safeguard students in a new dual-learning scheme that allows those studying in technical and professional schools to spend up to 60% of their time on internships with a company. Vlor said in an advisory note that it wanted to see an apprentice allowance for students on work placements linked to the guaranteed average minimum monthly salary, with an increase according to student performance. While welcoming the end to uncertainty that the new scheme gives to students involved in current systems of learning and working, Vlor called for “immediate” and “clear” communication to parents, teachers and businesses about the scheme. \ Emma Portier Davis

\9

\ LIVING

week in activities Harry Potter Exhibition A must for every Harry Potter fan, this immersive experience includes sets, props and costumes from the movies, including the Gryffindor common room, Hogwarts classrooms and the Forbidden Forest. Visitors can throw a Quaffle in the Quidditch area and sit in Hagrid’s giant armchair. Reserve a slot in advance to avoid a long wait at the door. 30 June to 11 September, Paleis 2, Brussels Expo, Belgiëplein 1; €15-€20 \ expoharrypotter.be

Museum picnic The Dhondt-Dhaenens Museum in East Flanders specialises in 20th-century and contemporary work by Flemish artists. On Sunday, the museum hosts a picnic, with music, children’s activities and brunch. Bring your own picnic blanket and join in the fun. Reservations required at beatrice.pecceu@ museumdd.be. 3 July 10.0014.00, Museumlaan 14, Deurle; €20 \ museumdd.be

Evening castle walk The beautiful moated castle of Ooidonk dates to the 16th century and is still in private hands. The owner, Count Henry t’Kint de Roodenbeke, has given permission for a guided nature walk around the grounds, covering the history of the estate as well as its flora and fauna. 2 July 17.00, Kasteel van Ooidonk, Ooidonkdreef 9, Deinze; free \ herita.be

Bokrijk Circus Day On Sundays in July and August, the open-air museum in Limburg hosts themed activities for families. The first is Circus School, when kids can learn basic circus skills and everyone can enjoy circus acts of yesteryear, including jugglers and acrobats. 3 July 10.00-18.00, Bokrijklaan 1, Genk; free with admission of €12.50 \ bokrijk.be

Zwin Nature Reserve This nature park on the coast, a haven for migratory birds, has a new €25 million visitor centre. It’s designed with an airport theme where birds take off and land, and visitors get to experience life as one of 10 avian species. There’s also a bird observation centre with telescopes. Daily, Graaf Leon Lippensdreef 8, KnokkeHeist; €10 \ zwin.be

\ 10

Trading places

Antwerp stock exchange to rise from the ashes once again Toon Lambrechts More articles by Toon \ flanderstoday.eu

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ntwerp will soon be able to add a new landmark to its already vast stock of valuable heritage. “New” might not be seem the most accurate description for a building that dates from 1872, but the public have had to wait 15 years to see the beautiful covered courtyard of the Handelsbeurs, with its neo-Gothic architecture.

The former stock exchange, tucked away behind Twaalfmaandenstraat in the city centre, has been thoroughly refurbished and will open again to the public within two years.

Antwerp mayor Bart De Wever has presented the plans for the future of the Handelsbeurs. The central part of the building will remain a public space: the ground floor with its domed hall will be a meeting place, housing eateries, bars and spaces where events can be held, and there will be an underground car park.

The complex, which also includes the Schippersbeurs – where captains would log shipping schedules for the city’s port – and adjacent houses, will also be home to a new branch of the Marriott hotel and a restaurant. The historically valuable elements will be integrated into the hotel, due to open in early 2019, with the original mosaic floors and original domes preserved.

And there’s to be a makeover for the pagaddertoren, a small watchtower over the harbour from which ship owners could look out for their vessels.

The current Handelsbeurs was constructed in 1872 after it was destroyed by fire. Its previous incarnation dated from 1531, and

© Bart Gosselin/AG VESPA

The end is in sight for a years-long renovation project to restore Antwerp’s Handelsbeurs to its former glory

was established after the centre for international trade in the Low Countries shifted from Bruges to Antwerp. It was the first building designed specifically for this kind of trade and was a model for the exchanges in London, Amsterdam and Rotterdam.

After that fire, it was rebuilt in the old style with new techniques, resulting in a beautiful indoor arena with neo-gothic facades and a dome using an innovative metal construction.

The site has faced problems more recently, too. The building lost its

function when the stock exchange closed in 1997 and merged with the one in Brussels. For a while its central hall was used to host events, until problems with fire safety made it unusable in 2003.

Since then, the Handelsbeurs has stood empty. Hampered by its size and architecture, previous attempts by the city to give a new use to the building were not successful.

Three years ago, though, a solution was worked out, and the city found partners to participate in the restoration and redevelopment.

In February this year, archaeologists completed their study of the site, having made some remarkable discoveries in the subsoil, including medieval floors and urns from the Iron Age. The renovation should be finished by 2018.

The project has been an ordeal for the city. There was even a court case when it emerged that one of the previous developers had removed valuable artefacts from the site.

But with a little more patience, visitors can soon go for drinks in one of Flanders’ most beautiful domed courtyards.

BITE

Chihuahuas welcome as Mexican fast food arrives in Brussels While the burrito trend has found favour in other European capitals, it’s still difficult to find decent Mexican food in Brussels. But that might be about to change with the arrival of CHEZWaWa, a laidback restaurant in the Kastelein neighbourhood with the mission of getting Belgian tastebuds excited by the stuffed wheat flour tortillas.

While rice, beans and salsa are a bit of a must as a filling, burritos can technically be filled with just about anything. “There isn’t that one perfect burrito. It all depends on how you like it,” says restaurant founder Palmer Colamarino, who grew up in San Francisco, the cradle of the dish in the US. That’s why instead of a classic menu, the restaurant has a roll-your-own-burrito counter, a steam table assembly line where customers can get creative, pick the ingredients they like and try out new combinations with each visit.

The California-style, rolled-your-own-way burrito is also known as the Mission, named after the San Francisco district, a traditional taqueria stronghold. Colamarino went to secondary school there and fell in love with Mexican food. He moved to

Europe after college.

“For the last 25 years, I’ve stuffed Mexican ingredients into my suitcase every time I visited family back home,” he says. With the launch of his new venture, that won’t be necessary any longer.

When it comes to finding suppliers, he actually counts on local, fresh produce. “Though I spent lots of time trying out recipes on my friends and researching cookbooks, for me it’s not the exact recipe that’s key, but the choice of high-quality ingredients,” he explains. Accordingly, products are farm-fresh, organic and seasonal, and everything you see on the counter is made from scratch.

If burritos aren’t your thing, the slightly lighter tacos are an alternative, and there’s a dish of the month for those who prefer to not have to think about which ingredients to pick.

And good news for dog owners: Customers are encouraged to bring their chihuahuas along, and might even get a discount. For those who haven’t noticed: The restaurant’s name is a play not only on the name of the Mexican region but also on the dog breed that originated there. \ Sarah Schug

© Frederic Raevens

CHEZWAWA.COM

JUNE 29, 2016

Bodies talk

A new cabinet of medical curiosities at UHasselt finds beauty in the bizarre Alan Hope Follow Alan on Twitter \ @AlanHopeFT

UHASSELT.BE/ORGAANMUSEUM

T

he Diepenbeek campus of Hasselt University (UHasselt) is an oasis of green a short bus ride from the train station and the centre of town, all low modern buildings snuggled in the surrounding woodland. But at its centre, this bucolic idyll hides something dark and secret.

Well, not really. But when the subject is a museum of human organs, the temptation is to slip into ideas of 19th-century travelling fairs, cabinets of curiosities and even Burke and Hare.

The cabinet of Dr Johan Van Robays is nothing like that. He’s an anatomist and pathologist, now retired after a 40-year career, first at the East Limburg Hospital in Genk and later here at UHasselt. His surroundings are medically spotless, whether it’s the pathology lab or the room next door, where his collection of 160 organs is displayed.

The collection is made up of interesting pieces Van Robays came across in his career.

Each one passed through his own professional hands. “Every jar tells its own story,” he says, “and I know the story behind every piece. Nothing was purchased or anything like that. I received each piece from the surgeon concerned.”

Most pathology is routine: A surgeon opens you up, spots something wrong, cuts it out and sends it to the lab. There, the pathologist examines it, then write a report, which goes back to the surgeon.

The first thing that happens when you visit the Organ Museum is that Van Robays sits you down in the pathology lab, a setting familiar from TV and movies, takes down one

In the abnormal, nature reveals some of its secrets of about 40 plastic buckets and fishes out a 30-centimetre length of something that turns out to be colon, or large intestine. Normally cylindrical, it’s been opened out flat, and on the inner side we see a tumour and several polyps of increasing size. Polyps can be harm-

Hasselt’s new Organ Museum is a lovingly curated collection of tumours and tragedies

less, but these turned out to be pre-cancerous.

In the museum proper, we find cabinet after cabinet containing glass jars of all sizes, each containing some fascinating item of pathology. And they are fascinating. “People are curious to see how we look on the inside,” Van Robays says.

Some exhibits are rarities, like a conglomeration of hair, teeth and thyroid cells found growing in a woman’s ovary; others are perfect examples of a more common condition, like the lung of an emphysema sufferer.

“There are also some unique pieces you could never lay hands on these days, like one case of holoprosencephaly, where the embryonic brain fails to split into two lobes, leading to severe facial and cerebral defects,” Van Robays explains. “Now, if that were to show up in the 12th week or so, the pregnancy would be terminated. Before, things were different.”

While that may be the rarest piece in the collection, the most beautiful is probably the pair of twin foetuses, aged 24 weeks, sharing a jar. The twins are perfectly formed, but their mother was involved in a car accident, the placenta became detached, and the foetuses died. The story is tragic, of course, but they could not look more ethereal, or at peace.

“Even an organ with an infection or a tumour presents a beautiful anatomic image,” Van Robays says. “In the abnormal, nature reveals some of its secrets, and that’s always interesting, even for non-scientists.”

The strangest story concerns a woman who had a growth on her head but covered it with a scarf and refused to see a doctor because it was too expensive. Eventually she was examined, and doctors found a tumour on her brain that had eaten through her skull and was growing outside and in. A biopsy was sent to Van Robays’ lab.

“Microscopic examination revealed thyroid

50 weekends in Flanders: Swim in the Antwerp suburbs Flanders Today has launched an e-book with ideas for how to spend a year’s worth of weekends. Visit the link above to get your free copy of 50 Weekends in Flanders. We’ll also print one of our suggestions every week here, too.

floor with more than 22,000 aquatic plants to maintain water purity. It’s one of the most appealing pools in Flanders for a summer swim (pictured), but when it gets crowded, you’re limited to a 15-minute slot. \ tinyurl.com/boekenberg

Antwerp has some of the finest pools in the country for indoor and outdoor swimming.

Just make sure you follow the rules on what to wear.

BOEKENBERG The open-air pool in the attractive Boekenberg park was converted in 2007 into the country’s first eco swimming pool. German landscape architects Dongus lined the pool

VELDSTRAAT A beautiful Art Deco swimming pool that gleams like new after an extensive fouryear renovation. The oldest public pool in Antwerp, it opened in 1933 to serve a poor working-class district. Designed by architects Emiel Van Averbeke and Daniel Algoet, the building is a masterpiece of modernism, with stained glass, neon lighting and energy-saving heating. The renovation added an elegant hammam. \ tinyurl.com/veldstraat-zwembad

© Sporting A

WEZENBERG This modern indoor Olympic pool on the south side of town attracts serious lap

tissue, meaning this was a metastasis of thyroid cancer,” he says. Amazingly, the tumour was removed, and the woman survived with a new 3D printed skull section.

“She was lucky there were no other metastases, because usually they’d be fatal.”

The museum has been open for three months now, and Van Robays gives tours twice on Friday afternoons, which bring in people from all walks of life. “We’re aiming at a broad audience, because standing eye to eye with real human organs is a learning experience for everyone. Team building groups, firefighters, lots of students,” he says.

“Visitors are shocked when they see how large the human liver is, or how small the uterus is.

It takes me two hours to explain everything, and I don’t think anyone is bored,” he says.

“I like to take people round because they appreciate it. Otherwise I’d have been happy to enjoy my retirement. But this is something you won’t find anywhere else.”

TINYURL.COM/50WEEKENDS

swimmers. As well as the 50-metre pool (often used for competitions), it has a small pool where children can learn to swim. \ tinyurl.com/wezenberg

DE MOLEN In this huge open-air pool on the left bank, you can swim next to the river. Opened in the 1930s near an old windmill, the 50m pool is marked out for lane swimming. It was recently renovated, making it the ideal place to swim in the summer. Easily reached by tram or bike, it’s close to the cafes and restaurants on Sint-Anna beach. \ Derek Blyth \ tinyurl.com/de-molen-zwembad

\ 11

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\ ARTS

JUNE 29, 2016

Where the wild things were

week in arts & CULTURE

FeliXart celebrates the Brabant Fauves, an obscure corner of Flemish art Ian Mundell follow Ian on Twitter \ @IanMundell

FELIXART.ORG WARANDE.BE

An exhibition in Drogenbos curated by a London-born, Antwerp-taught artist looks back at a movement that found expression in vivid colours and raw brushstrokes.

A

n obscure but colourful corner of Flemish modern art is explored in a new exhibition at the FeliXart Museum in Drogenbos. The movement is the Brabant Fauves, and our guide is Nick Andrews, an artist based in Antwerp who shares their interest in colour and rhythm in painting.

The Fauves were a loose group of artists working in France at the turn of the 20th century. The movement’s figureheads were Henri Matisse and André Derain, who in the summer of 1905 started to paint in vivid, unrealistic colours with raw, undisguised brushwork. They also abandoned the realistic representation of space, instead creating a visual space based on different planes of colour.

The name, meaning “wild beasts”, comes from a critic’s playful reaction to this work by Matisse and Derain. Other artists followed their lead, such as Georges Braque and Raoul Dufy, but by 1908 most had worked through these ideas and moved on to other things, most notably to Cubism. Only Matisse continued in the same vein.

The Brabant Fauves were not linked to the French group and could barely be called contemporaries, most working in this fashion only after 1910. But their late arrival is one of the things that makes them interesting, since they also reflect artistic developments parallel to Fauvism, such as German Expressionism.

“What I enjoyed about seeing these works was that it was like a mixture of the French artists, the Blaue Reiter from Munich, and I could also see an influence of the Italian Futurists,” says Andrews, for whom much of this work was new.

Born in London in 1972, Andrews studied art in Antwerp and has been based there for much of his career. His work incorporates the same bold use of colour as the Fauves, but also draws on earlier traditions of figurative art as well as the experiments in colour and space from later abstract painting.

It was this view of Andrews as an inheritor of the Fauve tradition that gave Sergio Servellón, director of FeliXart, the idea of inviting him to curate the exhibition.

“Instead of a making a museological show around the Brabant Fauves, we thought: why don’t we ask Nick to make an aesthetic show, based purely on what someone from 2016 sees, someone who is a painter with a life-long fascination for colour.”

The Brabant Fauves were also a loose collection of artists rather

Rosas to perform at Tate Modern Flemish choreographer Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker and her company Rosas are taking their unique Work/Travail/Arbeid piece to Tate Modern’s Turbine Hall in London. The danceexhibition hybrid premiered at Wiels in Brussels last year and was performed for nine weeks.

Dancers use the space that would normally house exhibitions for a dance performance that takes place continuously during the opening hours of the venue. Visitors can walk in, around and out of the space as they choose, creating their own experience of the performance in the process. Flanders’ Ictus Ensemble will play music live for the performance at the Tate during the three-day run next month. \ rosas.be

Antwerp to get covered food market

© Courtesy Francis Maere Fine Arts Gallery, Gent-Deinze/Photo by Cedric Verhelst

A 1914 view of Hoeilaart church by Rick Wouters. Rick Andrews: “For me this is a pure Brabant landscape.”

than a distinct movement, connected by friendship and shared patrons, such as the Linkebeek brewer François Van Haelen.

Foremost among the artists was Rik Wouters (1882-1916), who is well represented in the exhibition, alongside friends and associates such as Edgar Tytgat, Ann-Pierre De Kat, Jehan Frison and Jean Brusselmans.

But the “movement” also included the young Felix De Boeck (18981995), around whom the FeliXart Museum is built. His Fauvist period was relatively brief, from around 1916 to 1919, but is still significant.

“It explains a lot about his evolution towards abstraction,” says Servellón. “His first purely abstract works have very odd choices of colours, and that has to do with this Fauvist period.”

Alongside works by De Boeck, Andrews has selected several by his friend Prosper De Troyer (18801961), who is usually considered on the fringes of Brabant Fauvism.

Yet his “Portrait of a Man” (1917) struck Andrews as going furthest towards the Fauvist idea. “It’s like a musical composition. It works with contrasts of strict and lyrical lines, of cold and warm colours.”

Another significant work is the “Portrait of Roger Avermaete” (1919) by Jan Cockx, included here despite the artist being based in Antwerp rather than Brabant. “He brings in every idea from Fauvism,” Andrews says. “The way he uses shadows and colour, everything is in rhythm. And he breaks with

tradition by not using perspective to enhance the painting.”

Only the realistic rendition of Avermaete’s face anchors it to tradition.

“He’s making a portrait of a good friend, so he does make a portrait,” Andrews adds. “But it is not obvious to paint in this way. These are colours that are so primary they shout to each other.”

As well as portraits, the Brabant Fauves liked to paint domestic interiors, where colour transforms scenes that would otherwise be quite banal, and local landscapes.

A 1914 view of Hoeilaart church by Wouters (pictured) stands out. “For me this is a pure Brabant landscape,” Andrews says. “With these streets, it could be now.”

As well as these solidly Fauvist works, the exhibition includes paintings that either anticipate the trend or show how it developed afterwards. The former includes “October” (1910) by Emile Claus, an Impressionist landscape that makes subtle use of red and blue.

The latter includes a 1919 selfportrait by Jos Albert, which has more than a hint of Cubism, and work by De Troyer and De Boeck that is already heading for abstraction.

Each room of the exhibition also The Brabant Fauves

Until 2 October Within Me

Until 21 August

has one work by Andrews himself, illustrating the idea that he is working in the same tradition. But to get a fuller picture, head to De Warande in Turnhout, where the exhibition Within Me presents a selection of his work from the past decade.

“For me it is not so much a retrospective, but a synthesis of what I have done in the last 10 years,” Andrews explains. It is also an emotional choice. “These are the works that stay in my mind. I can’t turn them off.”

In contrast to the Brabant Fauves, Andrews’ work often has a feeling of narrative about it, even if the sources or the stories sometimes remain mysterious. There are scenes from artist’s studios and museums, casinos and theatres, which suggest film stills or book illustrations. Only the large painting “Champagne Charlie” fully unfolds its theme, expanding into a series of lithographs imagining the music hall character’s path through life.

The exhibition also picks up on some of Andrews’ collaborative work, including a carpet produced with Vera Vermeersch, lithographs accompanying texts by Jeroen Olyslaegers, and ceramics made with Nadia Naveau.

FeliXart

Kuikenstraat 6, Drogenbos

De Warande

Warandestraat 42, Turnhout

Antwerp will welcome a covered market later this year on the central Groenplaats square. The food market, which will be called Mercado and match the style of those typical in southern countries, is being established inside the former post office on the south side of the square. The protected building was built in the 16th century to serve as the home of the city’s mayor and was renovated in the neoclassical style in the 1800s, when it became home to the city’s post office. Much of the interior, including the picturesque service counters, will be retained during current renovations. The upper floors will be turned into apartments. The project is being carried out by Thomas Wijnen, who owns the Magiq speigeltent on site at the city’s Noordkasteel during the summer. \ magiq.be

FAI hosts lecture series at Venice Biennale Flanders Architecture Institute (FAI) is launching a debate and lecture series at the Venice Architecture Biennale in August. Encounters in Optimism: Utopia in a Finite World will take place in various national pavilions at the event.

The Antwerp-based organisation is collaborating with the British Council, the Deutsches Architekturmuseum and the Creative Industries Fund NL. “Utopia has often been imagined as a place that is separated by water or distance, removed from the messiness of everyday life,” said FAI director Christoph Grafe. “Today, utopia should not be sought in a faraway place but in the midst of our everyday existence.” \ vai.be

\ 13

\ ARTS

Hunting the killer

Crime writer pits serial killer against Flanders’ favourite female detective Rebecca Benoot More articles by Rebecca \ flanderstoday.eu

WPG.BE

Toni Coppers is back with another instalment of the Liese Meerhout series, which sees the Antwerp detective face her most formidable case yet.

L

iese Meerhout, the brainchild of Flemish crime writer Toni Coppers, is a police detective who fights injustice and will do anything to save the innocent. For eight years running, she’s been the star of the best-selling thriller series bearing her name.

In 1995, while working as a travel journalist for VRT, Coppers launched his literary career with De beha van Madonna: brieven van een reiziger (Madonna’s Bra: Letters From a Traveller), a collection of letters addressed to friends and acquaintances. Ten years later, he published his first novel, Dixit, a pastiche about a communications guru, which was quickly followed

by Heilige nachten (Holy Nights).

“Those books gave me the necessary push to become a full-time writer,” Coppers tells me. “Niets is ooit (Nothing is Ever) became the first book in the crime series about Liese Meerhout, who started investigating art crimes in Brussels in 2008. But she moved to Antwerp in 2013 to work as a homicide detective.”

Coppers, who won Flanders’ Hercules Poirot prize for crime fiction in 2014, comes from a nonfiction background, but he adores thrillers. “I love crime fiction because it deals with issues of a fundamentally ethical nature – good and evil, and that fine line in-between,” he says.

© Gerrit Op de Beeck

More importantly, however, “it also deals with human flaws, which I find particularly fascinating. Underdog characters, for example, have a lot of empathy, and this frequently leads to catastrophic consequences.”

His latest novel, De Hondenman (The Dog Man), is full of underdogs. Meerhout and her team are faced with an intricate and baffling case when the body of a woman is

found in Antwerp’s Galgenweel lake.

The perpetrator appears to have taken the victim’s heart. Soon several other bodies, all killed the same way, turn up abroad, making this the most complicated and wide-reaching case Meerhout has ever had to face.

All of Coppers’ novels can be read separately as they focus on individual cases, but when read chrono-

logically, you delve in the intricate details of his character’s psyche and her personal life.

“To me, Liese is flesh and blood,” Coppers says. “She’s been with me for quite some time and she has evolved like real people do. Technically, she might not the best cop because she’s rather chaotic, but she has a heart of gold.”

Meerhout is also one of very few Flemish female investigators with her own series. “I chose a woman because I was tired of the cliché that detectives have to be grumpy old men with a drinking problem,” Coppers says. “I wanted to create a young and hopeful female character who finds her way in the world and does what she believes in – making the world a little more righteous.”

De Hondenman is also unique because it features the series’ first serial killer. “I’ve never written about one before,” Coppers says.

“It never felt challenging enough because serial killers often lack motive. For the 10th instalment, however, I wanted to do something special, create a real tour de force”.

While working on his novels, Coppers puts a lot of time into research, but not everything ends up in the finished story. What matters to him is that every detail is accurate, so he learns about more than is probably needed.

The Liese Meerhout series has proven to be a huge success, and the broadcasting network VTM has recently adapted it into a series. Coppers aired this spring, with Flemish actor Hilde De Baer-

demaeker (Louislouise, Dossier K) in the role of Meerhout.

The series has met with great critical acclaim and a second season is in the works. “I’m very pleased with the result,” Coppers says. “Hilde De Baerdemaeker is the true embodiment of Liese Meerhout.”

De Hondenman is a real treat, filled with intense dialogue and several unexpected twists. It is also a slow-

burning novel, where psychology and character development take central stage. Lovers of lots of action and nail-biting suspense risk being disappointed. But if it’s well-rounded characters, an intoxicating atmosphere and a cosmopolitan setting you’re after, look no further.

De Hondenman ( ) published in Dutch by WPG

is

More crime fiction this summer Relikwie (Relic) • Bart Debbaut (Lannoo) Former banker Bart Debbaut has written his eighth novel, and sixth thriller.

Relikwie is the latest instalment in his series featuring Leuven detectives Leyssens and van Cattendyck. A young mother ventures into a passionate affair with an attractive widower she has met at a weekly swim session. What starts out as pure escapism soon turns into a harrowing threat to her family. Relikwie is a thrill ride, even if pretty predictable.

Drift (Temper) • Luc Deflo and Sormaria Marchan (Borgerhoff & Lamberigts) Luc Deflo is one of Flanders’ top crime authors and a past winner of the Hercule Poirot Prize. Known for his in-depth psychological profiles, he collaborated with Aloka Liefrink in 2014 for the thriller

\ 14

Onderhuids (Under the Skin). This time, he has written a novel with his wife, Sormania Marchan. Inspector Masha Kirilenko and her team are baffled when a decomposed body turns up in Hasselt’s canal. There are no leads on the killer, or on the victim. Marchan adds a nice nuance to a novel that is otherwise classic Deflo – intriguing and fast-paced.

Het kwalijk geheugen (The Ill-Tempered Memory) • Marc Peirs (Houtekiet) Marc Peirs grew up in the Flemish Ardennes and is now a journalist for the VRT. This year, he became their foreign correspondent in Poland. For this debut novel, he has returned to his roots in Kluisbergen, East Flanders. The peaceful rural town is witness to the brutal murder of a prostitute. Ghent police detective Victor Vansina takes the case, aided by his girlfriend, radio journalist Lydia Blauw.

With winter lurking in the background, the plot soon thickens. Het kwalijk geheugen is flawed but entertaining.

Scorpio • Hilde Vandermeeren (Querido) After a stint as a teacher and a degree in clinical psychology, Hilde Vandermeeren, who has already written more than 40 children’s books, has decided to take a stab at crime fiction. Scorpio is her fourth thriller and focuses on Gaelle, who wakes up in a psychiatric hospital in Berlin. The protagonist has been seriously wounded but has no memory of what happened.

That is until the police inform her that she tried to kill her seven-year-old son. Unable to come to terms with the accusation, she goes in search of the truth. Scorpio is a well-written thriller, and Vandermeeren has a keen eye for character.

\ AGENDA

JUNE 29, 2016

The past returns to the waters of Antwerp

PERFORMANCE

Tall Ships Races 7-10 July

V

isitors to the Tall Ships Races in Antwerp next week will now be able to take to the water themselves, with two waterbuses laid on to bring visitors from the south in Hemiksem via Hoboken to Steenplein and back.

The waterbuses are making their first appearance on the river, before they are introduced as a regular service in 2017.

The Tall Ships Races, on the other hand, have been running since 1956, an event that sees historic sailing ships crewed by trainee cadets. The city, province and port of Antwerp sponsored the event between 2004 and 2010, when the Polish port of Szczecin took over.

Ostend Swan Lake: Only Belgian stop on the Moscow City Ballet’s 2016 European tour of the classic 19th-century ballet choreographed by Petipa and scored by Tchaikovsky. 3 July 20.00, Kursaal Oostende, Westhelling 12

Antwerp harbour, tsrantwerp.be

This year’s edition launches in Antwerp before sailing to Lisbon, Cadiz and La Coruña in Spain and ending in Blyth in north-east England. This 60th anniversary of the race consists of 50 ships, crewed by 40 officers and 4,000 trainees. They’ll be moored along the riverside from Steenplein to Rijnkaai and open to the public to visit.

The last time the race visited Antwerp was in 2010, and those who were there will recognise a few familiar ships: the Dar Mlodziezy from Gdynia, Poland; the Statsraad Lemkuhl of Bergen, Norway; the STS Mir from St Petersburg; and the Gulden Leeuw from Kampen in

\ kursaaloostende.be

VISUAL ARTS Antwerp

the Netherlands.

Alongside the ships, magnificent as they are, the city has also organised a series of events between the MAS museum and Grote Markt, including the screening of Euro 2016 matches, a crew parade followed

by a surprise concert and fireworks over the river on Saturday night. The Tall Ships Races ends on Sunday with the Parade of Sail – the unforgettable sight of 50 sailing ships leaving the city on their way to Portugal. \ Alan Hope

VISUAL ARTS

EVENT

I Don’t Know Where This Is Going

Zomer van Antwerpen

Until 29 July

iMAL, Brussels, imal.org

This group installation explores the relationship between art, society and technology. Brussels arts association Constant invited six international multimedia artists, including locals Julien Deswaef and Pascale Barret, to create an alternative to Google Maps. The final product is an interactive mechanism with no simple itineraries but rather circuitous journeys complicated by social forces and disrupted by conflicts like the civil war in Syria. This exhibition takes place in the context of Iterations, an itinerant arts-and-technology festival that was inaugurated last year in Graz, Austria.

Until 31 August Antwerp’s annual summer festival boasts dozens of events across the city. Many of these, including open-air concerts and film screenings, are free, while the headline theatre and circus performances require tickets. ZVA’s meeting point is a centrally located sandy beach bar, open every day from 14.00 to midnight. It’s the perfect

Across Antwerp, zva.be

place to while away a sunny afternoon lounging in a hammock, playing petanque and munching on healthy snacks before enjoying a performance in the neighbouring circus tent or participating in a free urban dance workshop at the Zomerfabriek. That’s open most days, too, also hosting a bar and late-night jam sessions. \ GV

Bruno Pieters: (Behind) the Clothes: Flemish fashion designer Pieters presents his vision of an environmentally and ethically sustainable garment industry. In the context of Born in Antwerp.

Until 31 July, KattendijkdokOostkaai 22

\ behindtheclothes.be

Ghent Zvi Goldstein: Distance and Differences: Retrospective exhibition of Jerusalem-based Romanian visual artist Goldstein covers four decades of unclassifiable, experimental works, taking the Middle East as the source of a new aesthetic in the world of contemporary art, which he says is still mainly oriented towards the West. Until 23 October, SMAK, Jan Hoetplein 1 \ smak.be

FAMILY Ostend Dinos Alive: Multimedia exhibition featuring life-sized animatronic dinosaurs in various scientifically approximate settings. Also educational videos, 3D effects and an interactive playground.

Until 4 September, Kursaal Oostende, Westhelling 12 \ dinosalive.be

\ Georgio Valentino

MARKET

FESTIVAL

FILM

Kroning Festival

Plein Open Air

3-10 July Every seven years the townsfolk of Tongeren dust off their Catholic relics and put on a parade for pilgrims who come from near and far. They’ve been doing it since the Middle Ages. The modern version incorporates a ceremonial crowning of the city’s statue of the Virgin Mary, a gesture authorised by the

Across Tongeren, kroningsfeesten.be

Pope himself over 100 years ago.

More than 3,000 residents will participate in a historical re-enactment of biblical proportions. In addition to several performances of the Coronation, the festival also features choral concerts, organ performances and an exhibition. \ GV

1-9 July Cinema Nova’s open-air film festival returns with a programme dedicated to citizenship and urban planning. To illustrate the concrete effects of urban policy, the festival occupies two totally different urban spaces: the Marollen, one of central Brussels’ oldest and grittiest neighbourhoods, and the trendy suburban Vorst municipality. The festival shines a spotlight on urban issues from Detroit (Liz Miller’s The Water Front) to India (Fahad Mustafa and Deepti Kakkar’s Powerless, pictured). Screenings are free but require registration. Fringe events include guided neighbourhood tours, concerts, debates and a historical exhibition on the changing face of Brussels. \ GV

Brussels

Across Brussels, nova-cinema.org

Brussels Vintage Market: Popular local market with dozens of vendors selling vintage clothes and accessories as well as second-hand designer furniture and decoration. 3 July 12.00, Sint-Gorikshallen, Sint-Goriksplein 23 \ brusselsvintagemarket.be

FOOD&DRINK Ostend Ostend beach bars: The coastal metropolis’ seasonal establishments are open for business. Every stretch of sandy beach has its bar, and every bar has its theme, from Riviera-style luxury to vintage nostalgia. Q-Beach House at Zeedijk 2 also features openair concerts and movies. Q Beach House until 28 August, rest until 18 September \ visitoostende.be

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\ BACKPAGE

JUNE 29, 2016

Talking Dutch

VoiceS of flanders today

The kids are all write

Derek Blyth More articles by Derek \ flanderstoday.eu

Y

ou know how it goes with foreign languages. You want to say something, but you can’t be sure it’s quite right. Some people just keep quiet, scared of making a mistake. But an inspiring competition for primary schoolchildren in Flanders deliberately lets them say whatever they want.

De Wondere Pluim – The Wonderful Pen ontstond in 2002 in basisschool De Kleine Wereld in Antwerpen – was launched in 2002 in the Small World primary school in Antwerp, Het Nieuwsblad explains.

Op een oudervergadering – During a parents’ meeting, liet een Marokkaanse moeder weten dat haar zoon dolgraag verhalen schreef – a Moroccan mother explained that her son loved to write stories, maar dat hij het in opstelwedstrijden steeds moest afleggen – but he always failed to get anywhere in writing competitions tegen leerlingen die Nederlands als thuistaal hadden en correcter schreven – because he was up against pupils who had Dutch as their mother tongue and wrote it correctly.

The school decided to launch a competition that didn’t require children to write perfect Dutch.

© Ingimage

Kinderen mogen fouten schrijven – children are allowed to make mistakes, wij kijken naar creativiteit, fantasie en mooie beelden – we’re looking for creativity, fantasy and beautiful imagery, explained organiser Annemie Morbee.

This simple idea has gradually spread to other schools across Flanders. Voor 2016 schreven bijna 4.000 kinderen uit dertig scholen een verhaal – In 2016, almost 4,000 children from 30 schools wrote a story.

The competition is judged by three juries made up of parents, writers and children. Ze reiken elk twaalf Wondere Pluimen uit – They each pick 12 Wonderful Pens, twee per schooljaar – two for each school

DEWONDEREPLUIM.BE

year, één voor kinderen die thuis Nederlands spreken – one for children who speak Dutch at home, en één voor anderstaligen – and one for those who speak another language.

Het is jammer dat we maar twaalf Wondere Pluimen mogen uitdelen – It’s a pity we can only award 12 Wonderful Pens, said children’s author Joke Van Leeuwen, who sits on the jury, want meer verhalen verdienden een prijs – because many more stories deserve a prize.

– The titles alone get your imagination going, Morbee said. Wat te denken van De Zeshoekige Cirkel of Een Druppel Tijd – What to make of The Circle with Six Sides or A Drop of Time.

The competition is now starting to cause ripples beyond the Flemish school system. Een schrijfwedstrijd in Japan wilde een buitenlands luik – a writing competition in Japan was looking for a foreign angle, en vroeg of ze de verhalen van onze prijswinnaars van 2015 konden lezen – and asked if they could read the stories written by our 2015 prize winners.

Ze zijn in het Engels vertaald – The have been translated into English.

With a happy ending like that, it’s all beginning to sound like a fairytale.

PHOTO OF THE WEEK

In response to: Labour minister bans Mini Miss Belgium pageant Mira JoHanna Peltomaki: Absolutely the right thing to do... this is incredibly damaging to the kids.

In response to: KU Leuven is Europe’s most innovative university, says Reuters Sophie Delair: I spent such a great time there! A wonderful university with very high quality teachers.

In response to: Transport disruption on Friday as socialist unions strike Terese Van Oel: Every bus we ever saw seemed to be going to ‘Geen Dienst’ when my wife and I first moved to Flanders.

What a popular place it must be, we assumed.

Gail Polejewski @GailPolejewski Power is out in Ghent. Pizza arrived just in time. Yum.

David Llada ♔ @davidllada I wonder what happened in Leuven while I was distracted in Almaty...

Béné Vernemmen @BeneVernemmen Dancing in the rain @Oudenaarde!

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the last word Down the hatch

New generation

“Luckily our British beers are brewed in Belgium.”

“We still don’t know much about the dangers of these new modes of transport. That’s what our research is aimed at.”

A new ad campaign by John Martin, brewers of Gordon’s, among others

Apart from one thing

“The clients of prostitutes are often remarkably ordinary people.”

Ghent University post-graduate student Kim Karamanlis interviewed 83 clients in Brussels, Antwerp and Ghent for her thesis on the men’s motivations

© Jasper Jacobs/Belga

AGILITY TEST Gymnast Gaelle Mys pictured during a training session in Ghent ahead of the Rio Olympics, which begins in August

Stef Willems of Belgium’s Institute for Road Safety, which is looking for testers aged 18 to 24 to take part in research into hoverboards and monowheels

And finally…

“There’s a lot of news and much demand for news. If you want to meet the needs of a variety of viewers, you inevitably have to run a longer bulletin.”

Kris Hoflack, editor of VTM News, which will extend its evening edition, already one of the longest in Europe, by another five minutes

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