On the border between Ixelles and Uccle, the Berkendael district unfolds as a carefully composed interwar ensemble, where urban planning, architecture and everyday use reinforce one another. Broad avenues, squares and sightlines — from Avenue Brugmann to Place Brugmann — were designed to combine comfort, elegance and mobility. The philanthropist Georges Brugmann thus helped shape a living environment where aesthetics and functionality were deliberately conceived together.
The walk reveals a rich range of 20th-century architecture. Architects such as Jean-Baptiste Dewin, Henry van de Velde and Paul Amaury Michel designed homes and public buildings here in varied styles that nevertheless form a coherent streetscape. Materials, colours and volumes alternate without disturbing the balance, giving the district its refined character.
Today, Berkendael can still be read as a landscape that works as intended: a place where architectural ambition, green space and everyday life meet. The diversity of forms and functions shows how the district has adapted over time while retaining its original quality and cohesion.