Historical stroll: the Solvay family and how they left their mark on Brussels

Solvay House is, without doubt, the most famous of the buildings left by the Solvay family in Brussels. Heritage enthusiasts had to wait a while, but this Art Nouveau masterpiece is now open to the public. In addition, the Solvay Library in Leopold Park has been granted a new art gallery: Triforium. All the more reason for us to take you on a journey that follows in the footsteps of the Solvay family in Brussels!

When we think of the Solvay family, the first person to come to mind is Ernest Solvay, the researcher, industrialist, financier and philanthropist. He was one of the key figures behind the creation of Leopold Park as a "Science park", and thought of science as his "fifth child"! Ernest created and financed three institutes at the turn of the 20th century: the Institute of Sociology, another of Physiology and a Business School. The first, which already had a library when it was created, is now known as Solvay Library and houses a vast reading room spread over two levels. Today, the building is an events and congress centre, and also contains an art gallery offering beautiful temporary exhibitions throughout the year.

Undoubtedly Victor Horta's most luxurious creation, this house is of particular importance as it is an insight into the bourgeois and worldly lifestyle of the time, through the prism of a family that had made its fortune in the industrial sector. Resident Armand succeeded his uncle, who died unexpectedly in 1894, as head of the "Solvay et compagnie" business. The interior is exceptionally well preserved — Horta designed it from the ground up, down to the smallest detail, including the beds, stools, chandeliers, door handles, etc.! The house is large, fortunately, as the staff was numerous: up to 12 people would have been at the family's service!

The ground floor and the first floor are the most striking in their splendour, as they are the reception areas. The second and third floors, the family's private quarters, are more sober. The basement and attic were dedicated to staff.

The already chic at the time Avenue Louise was very popular with the Solvay family. In 1888, Ernest's brother Alfred, co-founder and salesman of the Solvay company, commissioned Jules Brunfaut to build a sumptuous neo-Renaissance style house at number 137a on Avenue Louise. It was a house ideal for grand receptions! Sadly it has now disappeared... Edmond, Ernest's other brother, also owned a house on Avenue Louise, at number 178!

Still little-known, Tournay-Solvay park is a magnificent green area, on the edge of the Sonian Forest. Alfred Solvay had a country house — or rather a country manor house — built there in 1880, in the Flemish neo-renaissance style, which was very fashionable at the end of the 19th century. Bought by the Brussels-Capital Region in 1980, the park was opened to the public one year later but the building was badly damaged by fire in 1982. Since then, it has been abandoned and is currently undergoing renovation work to become an inter-university centre of excellence for physics.

La Villa Blanche, built a little later in the Art Nouveau style, was the Solvay family's guest house. Today it houses the European Foundation for Sculpture.

The Faculty of Economics and Management of the Université Libre de Bruxelles. This faculty's predecessor was the Solvay Business School, which was founded at the beginning of the century in Leopold Park.

Since 2010, the faculty has been housed in a brand new building with a contemporary architecture and large glass openings.