Spazio Nobile: Le Sacre de la Matière

The Ancienne Nonciature is an iconic heritage site, emblematic of an era when it played host to the Vatican embassy in Brussels, as the residence of Cardinal Pecci, the Apostolic Nuncio who later became Pope Leo XIII. As of the start of March 2020, the building is a quintessential meeting place for Belgian contemporary art and design. Owner, interior designer and art historian, Anne Derasse opened the doors of her superb Brussels residence, in the heart of the capital, as a “new embassy of art and culture”. With its ambiance preserved, the Ancienne Nonciature offers a respectful aesthetic of the past, a beautiful texture and quality of space and of light, and for several years already has hosted largescale exhibitions. In line with the programming for spring, Spazio Nobile holds its first ‘hors les murs’ exhibition here, coinciding with Collectible Design Fair and TEFAF Maastricht, inaugurating a biannual season.

The “genius loci” is revealed immediately: the colonnade of the coach entrance and its monumental stairway leading from the ground floor, the longitudinal openings and vistas of the successive rooms, the whole of the interior and exterior volumes redesigned by Anne Derasse are majestic and incarnate her gestures and thoughts. As she emphasizes, “Times change, but messages persist.”

With its somewhat enigmatic presence, the Ancienne Nonciature invites the visitor to an initiatory walk through a place of remembrance, rich in emotion. The courage and perseverance of Anne Derasse in restoring the site, coupled with the artistic vision of her companion Jörg Bräuer, led them in quest of a new, contemporary and unique identity for the site, through the hosting of carefully chosen art exhibitions.

At their invitation, Lise Coirier and Gian Giuseppe Simeone, founders of Spazio Nobile and both art historians, like Anne Derasse herself, join the fray. Their first exhibition is stamped with their shared philosophy and culture: of the authenticity of materials, of the craft of design, of the nobility of natural materials beautifully patinated by time.

While the Ancienne Nonciature had its moment of glory as a sacred site and the representation of the splendor of the Church, it has certainly experienced a few disruptions in its centuries-long journey to us.

Rekindling its living flame, with an openness to creation, Spazio Nobile brings together six designers, including our hosts, Anne Derasse and Jörg Bräuer, along with Kaspar Hamacher, Fabian von Spreckelsen, Silvano Magnone and Sébastien Caporusso, around the theme “Le Sacre de la Matière”.

“Le Sacre de la Matière” echoes a notable Rite of Spring. It comprises the works of these six strong and free creators who relate to each other, each in their own way, together with translating the vital energy of creation in the applied arts and contemporary artistic design.

Spazio Nobile’s exhibition Le Sacre de la Matière takes place from the 4th until the 25 March 2020 at the Ancienne Nonciature.

All images courtesy of Spazio Nobile/Ancienne Nonciature.