Boerentoren

The Boerentoren rises in Antwerp as a protected Art Deco high-rise, standing near the Cathedral of Our Lady. Built between 1929 and 1932, it reached 87.5 metres and became Belgium’s tallest building. Its height also made it Europe’s second-tallest structure by roof height, after Madrid’s Telefónica Building.

Jan Vanhoenacker, Émile Van Averbeke, and Jos Smolderen designed the tower for Antwerp’s 1930 International Exhibition. A load-carrying structural frame brought construction methods from New York and Chicago into European high-rise design. Middenkredietbank commissioned the building while managing funds for farmers and the Farmers’ Union. Shops and the Torenkelder brasserie opened on the ground floor, while offices and apartments filled the upper levels.

War damage from German grenades and a V-1 bomb led to repairs, while later changes raised the roof to nearly 96 metres. Katoen Natie acquired the building in 2020 and plans a cultural institution with exhibitions, public events, restaurants, bars, and a rooftop sculpture garden. Daniel Libeskind guides the transformation, while the Phoebus Foundation is set to organise exhibitions inside. Sculptures above the main entrance preserve a visible link between the tower’s history and its future artistic role.