Today, in the nice warm Belgian autumn sunlight, I went for a short walk around the nearby Joseph Lemaire sanatorium. Built in the 1930s to accomodate tuberculosis patients, it was once one of the most striking and beautiful Art Deco/modernist buildings in the country (as this photo from the 1950s shows). Once, in the early '80s, we went for a visit and took the lift to the top floor, which had a magnificent view. The gardens were, even then, still beautifully maintained, and the building's tilework seemed to glow in the sunlight.

Since 1987, though, it's been derelict. It has been completely ruined by vandals, and is being reclaimed by nature. It's a sad sight. Because it's cheaper to build a new building of the same size than to renovate a listed building like this one, noone seems willing to sink money into it, although there's now talk of a Dutch developer converting the place to luxury flats. I think it could be fantastic, and I hope they succeed. Ideally before the entire thing just collapses.

More photos here. More information here and (in Dutch) here.