Mike Powell

One of favorite things about walking around in the old area of Brussels near the Grand-Place is that you can unexpectedly come across giant murals on the sides of buildings illustrating scenes from the Adventures of Tintin.  This series of comic books was created by Belgian artist Georges Remi (who wrote under the pen name of Hergé) and was one of the most popular European comic series in the 20th century.

Although I am fortunate to make trips to Brussels a couple of times a year, my trips are short in duration and I never get to know the city very well. As a result, it’s a real joy to rediscover a Tintin mural when I am wandering through the winding streets of Brussels, as I did yesterday, when I stumbled onto one of my favorite murals, depicting two boys walking together.

CORRECTION: It turns out that there are a lot of different comic book artists have works depicted in murals throughout Brussels and this mural from a series by Frank Pé with a main character called Broussaille, not from the Tintin series. Broussaille is the blond character on the right and his girlfriend Catherine is on the left. The mural was painted in 1991 and then repainted in 1999 to make Catherine appear more feminine—many believed the mural depicted a gay couple, given the proximity of the mural to Brussel’s gay district.

You also can see some interesting signs in the streets of Brussels, like this one, which seems to be advertising a beer by using a baby.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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