Can comics, the ninth art, be considered heritage? In any case, they are recognised as intangible cultural heritage of the Brussels-Capital Region.
In other words, comics are not just a reading hobby but are deeply rooted in our culture – and, through the Comic Book Route, in our urban heritage.
The aim of the route was to give a fresh lease of life to blind walls, partitions, shared walls, etc. There are now almost 80 murals and frescoes on the route, taking in a range of city neighbourhoods.
For the Heritage Days, we will be visiting around 20. While obviously reflecting a character and an author, they convey much more than that: a historical, economic and cultural context, a style of architecture, an artistic vision, and so on.
Who knows – maybe one day our comic-strip murals will be looked at in the same way that we view the Lascaux cave paintings in France?