The Atomium
The Atomium, for the uninitiated, is Brussels’ answer to the Eiffel tower. It’s a large steel structure made to mimic the structure of an atom, with the metal balls representing the nucleus, electrons, protons and neutrons. It was originally constructed back in the 50s, which is pretty impressive considering the engineering and construction work involved. It's located in a large, picaresque park in the north of Brussels, near Brupark and Mini-Europe, two other big tourist attractions.
I first went to the Atomium back in January, but it was closed during the off-peak winter period for some much needed restoration. This principally involved polishing the balls and making them gleam, which is no mean feat for a 103-metre tall structure. It reopened back in February, and I made the trek again when a friend was visiting a few weeks ago.
The initial reaction to the structure is one of awe. It is incredibly large, with few pictures doing justice to its scale. After queuing for quite some time on a busy Sunday, we finally got inside and were ushered straight to the lift, which climbs, at a speed quick enough to make your ears pop, the 100-odd feet to the highest sphere. The views from the top are amazing, both of the immediate area and further away in Brussels centre.
You then head back down the lift and are left to your own devices to explore the other balls. This is where the centre falls on its face. Each sphere is supposed to house separate exhibitions of some kind. Some are very informative (the history of the structure, details of the recent renovations), some are simply services (a cafe, a dormitory for visiting schoolchildren), others, however, are simply baffling: a whole room given over to one rather small abstract piece of art and a room with a big telly are just two of the things on offer here. Think of the Louvre in Paris. It serves two functions: firstly, it’s an art gallery which houses some of the most famous pieces of art in the world; secondly, it’s an important historical monument in its own right. I have the feeling that the Atomium could be used in a similar way, and feel that there is a lot of wasted space and wasted potential.
Still, focussing on what it is rather than what it could be, it’s certainly a fun day out, even if I wanted to actually climb the thing and they’d so kindly provided a lift and escalators.
I first went to the Atomium back in January, but it was closed during the off-peak winter period for some much needed restoration. This principally involved polishing the balls and making them gleam, which is no mean feat for a 103-metre tall structure. It reopened back in February, and I made the trek again when a friend was visiting a few weeks ago.
The initial reaction to the structure is one of awe. It is incredibly large, with few pictures doing justice to its scale. After queuing for quite some time on a busy Sunday, we finally got inside and were ushered straight to the lift, which climbs, at a speed quick enough to make your ears pop, the 100-odd feet to the highest sphere. The views from the top are amazing, both of the immediate area and further away in Brussels centre.
You then head back down the lift and are left to your own devices to explore the other balls. This is where the centre falls on its face. Each sphere is supposed to house separate exhibitions of some kind. Some are very informative (the history of the structure, details of the recent renovations), some are simply services (a cafe, a dormitory for visiting schoolchildren), others, however, are simply baffling: a whole room given over to one rather small abstract piece of art and a room with a big telly are just two of the things on offer here. Think of the Louvre in Paris. It serves two functions: firstly, it’s an art gallery which houses some of the most famous pieces of art in the world; secondly, it’s an important historical monument in its own right. I have the feeling that the Atomium could be used in a similar way, and feel that there is a lot of wasted space and wasted potential.
Still, focussing on what it is rather than what it could be, it’s certainly a fun day out, even if I wanted to actually climb the thing and they’d so kindly provided a lift and escalators.
posted by Ryan Stephens at 10:49 AM
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