标签比利时下的文章

红球项目艺术装置，安特卫普中央车站, 比利时 The RedBall Project art installation, Centraal Station, Antwerp, Belgium (© Brit Worgan/Getty Images)

激发创造力 Bouncing into creativity

世界艺术日

“艺术是所有科学的女王，将知识传达给世界上的每一代人。”让我们在4月15日世界艺术日，也就是这位文艺复兴时期著名艺术家的生日，思考一下达的这些鼓舞人心的话。从他标志性的蒙娜丽莎画作到他详细的飞行机器草图，莱昂纳多在广泛的领域突破了知识和才华的界限。今天的主页展示了比利时安特卫普中央车站的红球项目。这个巡回公共艺术装置由美国艺术家Kurt Perschke创作，被认为是世界上运行时间最长的街头艺术作品。自2001年以来，这个15英尺高的充气红球已经被楔入从澳大利亚到英国的数十个国家的地标。

World Art Day

'Art is the queen of all sciences communicating knowledge to all the generations of the world.' Let’s ponder these inspirational words by Leonardo da Vinci on World Art Day, April 15, which was also the birthday of the renowned Renaissance artist. From his iconic painting of the Mona Lisa to his detailed sketches of flying machines, Leonardo pushed the boundaries of knowledge and talent in a wide range of fields. Today's homepage shows the RedBall Project at Centraal Station in Antwerp, Belgium. Created by the American artist Kurt Perschke, this traveling public art installation is considered to be the world's longest-running street artwork. Since 2001, the 15-foot inflated red ball has been wedged into dozens of landmarks in countries from Australia to England.

Zaha Hadid Architects设计的港口大楼, 安特卫普, 比利时 Port House designed by Zaha Hadid Architects, Antwerp, Belgium (© Dmitry Rukhlenko/Alamy)

建立在过去之上的未来 A future built on the past

世界建筑日

安特卫普港口管理局大楼（又名港口大楼）是一座闪闪发光的方尖碑，矗立在数百年前的建筑之上。这座引人注目的建筑是扎哈·哈迪德（Zaha Hadid）与她的团队在扎哈·海迪德建筑师事务所（Zaha-Hadid Architects）创造的愿景，该事务所在2009年赢得了围绕历史消防站修建新建筑的竞赛。工程于2016年竣工，同年这位著名建筑师去世。扩建计划类似于一艘帆船的船体，突出的船头闪烁着钻石，让人想起安特卫普长期以来的宝石贸易。

今天，我们庆祝世界建筑日及其2022年的主题“建筑造福人类”通过将历史建筑与现代建筑相结合来保护历史建筑的建筑正变得越来越普遍，因为城市在创造新的现代空间和前所未有的建筑的同时，也在寻求保留其早期化身的精神。这种风格的一些著名例子包括纽约市的布鲁克林博物馆、德国德累斯顿的军事历史博物馆，以及另一个哈迪德设计，英国牛津的圣安东尼学院。

World Architecture Day

Antwerp's Port Authority Building (aka Port House) is a gleaming obelisk perched above a building from centuries past. This striking structure was the vision Zaha Hadid created with her team at Zaha Hadid Architects, which won a 2009 competition to build a new building around a historic firehouse. Work completed in 2016, the same year the famed architect died. The expansion is intended to resemble the hull of a sailing ship, with a protruding bow glimmering with diamonds, recalling Antwerp's longtime trade in precious stones.

Today we celebrate World Architecture Day and its 2022 theme of 'Architecture for wellbeing.' Architecture that preserves historic buildings by combining them with modern structures is becoming more prevalent as cities seek to retain the spirit of their earlier incarnations while creating new, modern spaces and never-before-seen constructions. Some famous examples of this style include the Brooklyn Museum in New York City, the Museum of Military History in Dresden, Germany, and another Hadid design, St. Antony's College in Oxford, England.

覆盖了Hallerbos森林地面的蓝铃花，比利时佛兰德 Bluebell flowers carpet the Hallerbos forest floor, Flanders, Belgium (© Jason Langley/plainpicture)

A glimpse of the 'Blue Forest'

What color do you normally associate with a forest? Well, in the Hallerbos forest of Belgium, that would be blue, for reasons you can clearly see here. For about 10 days every year, usually in late April or early May, this very old forest floor is transformed as bluebell hyacinths wake up from their winter slumber and carpet the forest floor in blue.

Even though it's a bit early for the fleeting blooms, today would be a good day to visit the 'Blue Forest,' for this is the day that the United Nations recognizes the International Day of Forests. The theme of this year's observance is reforestation, another thing that Hallerbos is known for. Large swaths of the ancient forest were destroyed by occupying forces during World War I, which prompted the Belgian government to roll out an extensive reforestation project starting in the 1930s. Within 20 years, Hallerbos was well on its way to being a healthy forest again, as the depleted native beech and oak trees were restocked.

“蓝色森林”一瞥

你通常认为森林是什么颜色的？好吧，在比利时的哈勒博斯森林，那将是蓝色的，因为你可以清楚地看到这里的原因。每年大约有10天，通常是在4月底或5月初，当风信子从冬眠中醒来，用蓝色地毯铺在森林地板上时，这片古老的森林地板就发生了变化。

尽管现在花开得有点早，但今天是参观“蓝林”的好日子，因为今天是联合国承认国际森林日的日子。今年纪念活动的主题是植树造林，这是哈勒博斯另一个著名的活动。在第一次世界大战期间，大片的古老森林被占领军摧毁，这促使比利时政府从20世纪30年代开始实施大规模的重新造林项目。20年内，随着耗尽的本地山毛榉和橡树重新进货，哈勒波斯又一次成为一片健康的森林。

Belgium celebrates its independence

On July 21, Belgium celebrates its independence from the Netherlands and the anniversary of the establishment of the Kingdom of Belgium in 1831. The holiday brings us to the banks of the River Meuse across from the Collegiate Church of Notre Dame de Dinant, the best-known landmark in the Belgian town of Dinant in Namur province. For such a small city (population about 14,000), Dinant has a rich history. It's the birthplace of Adolphe Sax, inventor of the saxophone, and has a museum dedicated to his life and instruments. The Charles de Gaulle Bridge, which crosses the Meuse, is lined with 28 saxophone sculptures, each one representing a different country in the European Union. Namur province is also the birthplace of Leffe beer, which was brewed by monks in the abbey of Leffe starting in 1240.

Of course, you can celebrate Belgium today with classics like Belgian waffles, fries, or chocolates. But if you're in Dinant, you might also crack open a Leffe and listen to your favorite saxophone player.

银装素裹的Luzulo-Fagetum山毛榉林，比利时阿登 Luzulo-Fagetum beech forest covered with frost and snow, Ardennes, Belgium (© Philippe Moes/Alamy)

The Battle of the Bulge 75 years later

Seventy-five years ago this week, the Battle of the Bulge began in the forests of the Ardennes in Belgium. On the morning of December 16, 1944, the beleaguered German army threw its best remaining troops and armor against a lightly defended section of the American and Allied line. Bad weather neutralized Allied air superiority and over the first few days, the Nazi offensive produced a 'bulge' in its offensive west into Belgium. Desperate to hold the line, US General Eisenhower sent the 101st Airborne to hold the strategically important crossroads in Bastogne. The town was surrounded for nearly 10 days by German forces, but the Airborne held out. In fact, a German demand for Allied surrender was rejected with a single word: “NUTS” (a bit of 1940s American slang that needed to be explained to the Nazi officers). This weekend, the town of Bastogne has been celebrating NUTS Weekend, an annual tribute to the soldiers who defended the town in 1944.

Festivities include a military parade, a walk around the perimeter, and even the 'Jet de Noix' (throwing of the nuts).

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