Building
On a plot extending from Rue Defacqz to Rue Paul Emile Janson, owned by the Ciamberlani family, architect Paul Hankar built a mansion at each end, the first in 1897 for Albert, the well-known Symbolist painter, and the second in 1900 for his brother José. This second home would turn out to be Hankar's last project, and was overseen after his death by his collaborator Émile Van Nooten.
As a horse lover, José Ciamberlani wanted the back of his town house to have stables, a tack room, sheds and living quarters for the groom. The architect designed a rather low ground floor, with a simple straight flight of stairs parallel to the street, giving access to the first floor with its extensive stairwell and spacious, bright reception rooms. Taking up the whole width of the façade was the large drawing room, lit by a wide street-facing window, to which an oak oriel was added in 1920. Then came the dining room and conservatory, opening up to the rear and adjoining the pantry room. The upper floors were where the owners actually lived.
Despite alterations to the original layout, which had given the interior an imposing, grandiose look, the spirit of Hankar can still be felt here, both in the originality of the floor plan and in the surviving decorative features: the Japanese-style banister, the ceilings with their sophisticated arrangement of decorative beams made of high-quality timber, the two-toned mahogany joinery and brass handles, and the colourful fireplaces. On the façade, Hankar had planned to decorate the entablature with a large sgraffito, but this was never executed.
Nearby
By the same architect
As a horse lover, José Ciamberlani wanted the back of his town house to have stables, a tack room, sheds and living quarters for the groom. The architect designed a rather low ground floor, with a simple straight flight of stairs parallel to the street, giving access to the first floor with its extensive stairwell and spacious, bright reception rooms. Taking up the whole width of the façade was the large drawing room, lit by a wide street-facing window, to which an oak oriel was added in 1920. Then came the dining room and conservatory, opening up to the rear and adjoining the pantry room. The upper floors were where the owners actually lived.
Despite alterations to the original layout, which had given the interior an imposing, grandiose look, the spirit of Hankar can still be felt here, both in the originality of the floor plan and in the surviving decorative features: the Japanese-style banister, the ceilings with their sophisticated arrangement of decorative beams made of high-quality timber, the two-toned mahogany joinery and brass handles, and the colourful fireplaces. On the façade, Hankar had planned to decorate the entablature with a large sgraffito, but this was never executed.
