Lieselotte Vaneeckhaute (Photography: David Plas)
On Tuesday 21 May, the Vrije Universiteit Brussel announced the new name of its legendary KultuurKaffee. Pilar is the name of the new cultural location at the VUB campus in Etterbeek, with a concert and event hall, exhibition spaces and also a sustainable café. It will be an open, artistic laboratory for young people where art and science go hand in hand.
Since its opening in 1981, KultuurKaffee has been known as a meeting place for many generations of students and a well-known name in the cultural life of Brussels. In 2015, KultuurKaffee was demolished and the construction of a new cultural hotspot started on the VUB campus. The construction works are almost finished. After 4.5 years of wandering around as a nomadic arts organisation in Brussels, KultuurKaffee is now returning to the VUB campus in Etterbeek, but under a new name: Pilar.
An open, artistic laboratory for young people
Pilar becomes an open, artistic laboratory in Brussels. A support pillar for and by young people. A house in which the interaction between art and science and also cultural entrepreneurship is given a place. The soil where the develoment of young talent is key. Pilar presents, experiments, creates, researches, mixes, merges and involves.
The focus of Pilar’s work is twofold. On the one hand, Pilar remains a place where new and innovative artists, as well as established values, are given a stage. Even more than in the past, different disciplines will gather in Pilar, and the boundaries between these disciplines will be explored. On the other hand, Pilar will develop accessible formats to involve young people and to support future thinkers and doers with entrepreneurial ambitions.
Pilar’s new rooms include a concert/event hall and exhibition areas and will also include a sustainable café. The official opening of Pilar is planned for 17 October 2019. (Continue story below the picture)
Bar Pilar: a testing ground for sustainable and affordable food
With Pieter Bonte (Muntpunt Café, Brussels) at the helm, day manager Fleur de Boer (eco-café De Ceuvel, Amsterdam) and Joris Vermeir (chef at Recyclart, Brussels), Bar Pilar brings a surprising café to the VUB campus that is strongly committed to sustainable and affordable food.
Bar Pilar will be a gateway for campus visitors: highly visible and inviting, accessible and stimulating, it has has been set up as a practical research project to really work on ecological innovation in the spirit of the VUB.
The bar design of the young agency FELT architecture & design will welcome smaller events. During the day, reading and collaborative groups can meet each other in the co-work café.
With the support of Duvel-Moortgat, Bar Pilar will have every opportunity to grow into a new iconic café in the south of Brussels on the VUB campus. After ‘De Walvis’ in the north or ‘Bar du Matin’ in the west, you’ll soon find a house of trust in the south with ‘Bar Pilar’.
Want to know more about Pilar?
Go to: www.pilar.brussels
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