LES BATELIERS

Originally, the building between the Sambre river and the heart of the town was apparently used as a refuge by the abbey of Villers-la-Ville. In the ^mid-18th century, Thudinian architect Jean-Baptiste Chermanne transformed it into a magnificent mansion for the Counts of Groesbeeck de Croix. Bought by the City of Namur, the building changed vocation once again, and was converted into a decorative arts museum in 1935. It came into its own in the 1950s. Today, more than just a museum, Les Bateliers aims to become a museum hub, grouping together the Museum of Decorative Arts (^18th to ^20th centuries) and, in the future, the Archaeological Museum. This section is still under construction at the time of writing, but will feature archaeological collections from the Namur region and surrounding area, from the Palaeolithic to the Middle Ages. Architecturally, the center is a delightful blend of the contemporary and the old, including a magnificently restored chapel that was part of the Saint-Jacques des Bateliers school until the 1980s. The section devoted to the decorative arts has been designed to retain an immersive feel in keeping with the setting. Transported back to the Age of Enlightenment, visitors are already benefiting from this overhaul, visible in both the walls and the spirit. Themes and exhibitions are multiplied (several are organized each year). This magnificent mansion is regularly used as a film set, one of the most resounding being Les Visiteurs: La Révolution. Several scenes are re-enacted every year for the FIFF, the French-speaking film festival. Among the rooms in the building that have been deliberately left as they were, the kitchen with its large fireplace and bread oven is a remarkable example of ^18th-century architecture. The stables, a former janitor's lodge occupied as such until 2013, feature pretty stone troughs. Like the former carriage house, they are now used as an exhibition space. Behind it, the former greenhouse will become the setting for a restaurant overlooking the garden. The latter, a veritable haven of peace, is a little jewel in the French ^18th-century style. At its center, a two-hundred-year-old tulip tree majestically occupies the space. Soon to be connected to the Musée Rops by their respective green spaces, the cluster will become "L'îlot des Bateliers". Their gardens, open to the public, will be open to visitors during museum opening hours.