Belgium's oldest museum turns 225 years old

The MSK in Ghent is celebrating: Belgium's oldest museum turns 225 and is thus one of the oldest in Europe. The MSK kicks off the festive year with an exhibition of Albert Baertsoen (1866-1922), a scion of a Ghent manufacturer's family and one of the most important painters in the fin de siècle art scene.

225 years MSK

At the end of the 18th century, Ghent was under French rule and many of the city's art treasures were confiscated. Some of these could still be seen in the Louvre in Paris. Rebellious Ghent did not rest on its laurels and steadily built up a broad art collection, for which it spent years looking for a good location. The ideal location was the building by architect Van Rysselberghe in the Citadel Park, a museum with a fantastic sense of space and plenty of light.

The collection, which ranges from Hieronymus Bosch over Rubens to Magritte covers an enormous variety of paintings, sculptures, drawings, etchings and tapestries from the Middle Ages to the 20th century.

An auditorium, a library, a children's workshop and a brasserie make the MSK a contemporary multifunctional complex, where you can spend pleasant hours during your city trip in Ghent, surrounded by beauty.

© BELGA PHOTO JONAS DHOLLANDER - Queen Mathilde of Belgium and King Philippe look at the 'Madonna van Nicolaas van Maelbeke' panel (thought to be Van Eyck's final work) during a royal visit to the opening of the 'Van Eyck in MSK, Thursday 30 January 2020.