ARCADES PROJECT

The highlight of Charleroi’s Passage de la Bourse is surely the curve in the length of the arcade, which means the glass ceiling not only curves up to form a rounded roof, but it also curves round the length of the passage. It’s a striking feature as you enter the arcade from the red brick façade in the rue de Marchienne.

The other end of the arcade once housed the city’s stock exchange (Bourse), but post-war reconstruction saw this pulled down in favour of the more modern shopping mall which now lies perpendicular to the Passage at this far end. The modern mall was busy on the Saturday we visited, but go through the doors into the old arcade and there was very little footfall, probably largely due to the lack of occupancy of the various shop units in the Passage de la Bourse.

There are two superb second-hand bookshops in this arcade, one with an excellent, cosy café inside; the other much larger, a real treasure trove for old book lovers, and this second bookshop has a nice poster on its front window marking the 125^th anniversary of the arcade in 2016. It also has a fascinating map of Charleroi dating from 1911, which shows just how much heavy industry there used to be in this Belgian city perhaps struggling in the post-industrial age.

There was a pop-up shop in the arcade (magasin ephemeral in French) for the weeks leading up to Christmas, and posters in one shop window have notice of a new night-time chip shop (classic Belgian speciality) due to open soon.

But Passage de la Bourse felt like it needs a bit of initiative and some ideas to draw the crowds in through those doors leading to the modern mall behind. It’s a stunning 19^th century arcade, with a beautiful shape, lovely arched windows up to the second floor above, and some quirky original features in the shop doors (old numbering and very low letter boxes – those posties must have stooped low to deliver the day’s mail). And I loved the bookshops that are there, but it is such a shame to see so many shop units empty.

My favourite shop today

This has to be the cosy cafe near the entrance to the arcade, with its wonderful selection of second-hand books and lots of social events organised through the month. A great spot to sit in peace among beautiful things.

My pick of the arcade’s past

Passage de la Bourse was built from 1890-92 on the site of an old Capucin convent. It opened  on 10 April 1892 (Gazette de Charleroi 11.4.92), meaning the 125^th anniversary in 2016 was slightly wide of the mark officially.

The arcade used to house a cinema (Trianon), a music hall (Monico) and the offices of a satirical newspaper (EL Crequion); then post war it became the home to art, music and book shops (of which only two now remain)

The Belgian equivalent of the BBC, the RTBF, moved out in 2011 after 37 years in the arcade and the neighbouring buildings were knocked down in 2014 to make way for today’s modern mall next door.

The poster in one of the book shop windows shows a flood in the arcade up to waist height but no indication of when this was. I’d love to hear stories of how the flood entered and how it affected the businesses at the time; but I’ve also struggled to find the usual day-to-day stories about Passage de la Bourse, as I have for most of the other arcades in An Arcades Project… There was once a mural at the shopping mall end of the arcade by Gustave Camus. It is shown in the photo in this Wallonie tourism page, but is no longer visible today. Camus lived from 1914-84, so the mural would not have been an original feature of the arcade, but it is a shame also that it no longer there for visitors to admire!

This arcade in films or books

I’ve yet to find any, but my knowledge of Belgian literature is limited. I am surprised if no films were ever set in this stunning arcade, though. Can anyone help?

What memories do you have of visits in years gone by?

Have you got any good stories to add on the past of this arcade?

What’s your favourite shop in the arcade today?

Is there a website for this arcade?

I found no specific website for the arcade or social media activity by the arcade itself. Maybe that’s what it needs to kick-start its occupancy rate…