Reconstruction, Modernisation, and the Evolution of a University City |Architecture Walk in Leuven

Photo: Erasmushuis Leuven (c) Letterenbibliotheek.

As a side event to the Belgium-Taiwan Social Sciences and Humanities Research Days, we have put together a programme that allows you to explore some of Leuven’s most striking buildings in depth over the course of just a few hours. This is a rare opportunity to visit the marvelous brutalist Erasmushuis, otherwise closed for the general public.

There are only a few places available, so if you wish to take part, you should register straight away. Participation costs just 10 euros, but a paid DOCOMOMO Belgium membership for 2026 is an absolute prerequisite.

Reconstruction, Modernisation, and the Evolution of a University City

Leuven is internationally known for the six-century history of KU Leuven and for its remarkable historic landmarks, such as the Grand Beguinage of Leuven and the Leuven Town Hall. Less well known is the profound impact of the two World Wars on the city and its inhabitants. During the First World War, Leuven suffered extensive destruction and humiliation. One of the most devastating losses was the burning of the university library, which led to the destruction of approximately 300,000 books and manuscripts. The city was rebuilt after the war, only to be heavily damaged again during the Second World War. The Leuven we see today is therefore the result of successive phases of reconstruction, restoration, and modernisation. From the 1960s onward, the rapidly growing student population created a need for new academic facilities and urban infrastructure. This period brought a new architectural layer to the city, combining historic reconstruction with bold examples of modernist and brutalist design. This architectural walk explores three buildings that reflect these different moments in Leuven’s twentieth-century development: the monumental reconstruction of the University Library, the adaptive reuse of a modernist school building into the public library Tweebronnen, and the creation of a new university campus in the 1970s.

Buildings Included in the Walk:

KU Leuven Library and Bell Tower (guide: Luc Verpoest)

Architect: Whitney Warren
Completed: 1928 (rebuilt after 1945)

A gift from the American people after the First World War, the University Library on Ladeuzeplein became a powerful symbol of resilience and international solidarity. Designed in a neo-Flemish Renaissance style by Whitney Warren, the building was inaugurated in 1928. After being destroyed once more in 1940, it was carefully reconstructed after the Second World War. Today, it stands as one of Leuven’s most iconic landmarks and a reminder of the city’s turbulent twentieth-century history.

Tweebronnen Library (guide: Luc Verpoest)

Original Architect: Henry van de Velde (completed 1942)
Conversion: Georges Baines (1997-2000)

Originally built as the State Technical Institute (Rijksinstituut voor Technisch Onderwijs), this modernist complex was designed by Henry van de Velde, one of Belgium’s pioneering modern architects. At the turn of the twenty-first century, the building was sensitively transformed by Georges Baines into Leuven’s public library, Tweebronnen. The project is a notable example of adaptive reuse, preserving Van de Velde’s architectural legacy while giving the building a new civic function.

Erasmushuis, Faculty of Arts, KU Leuven (guide: Zsuzsanna Böröcz)

Architect: Marc Dessauvage
Built: 1972–1975

Behind the University Library, the university developed a new campus in a botanical garden for the Faculty of Arts in the 1970s. Marc Dessauvage designed the Erasmushuis as a bold brutalist complex, characterised by exposed concrete, modular organisation, and a strong spatial relationship with the surrounding campus. The building reflects the changing educational ambitions of KU Leuven and the architectural experimentation of the period.