Tasty Leuven - culinary events
Hapje-Tapje
Saturday 4th August 2012 – City Center – Culinary Routes
Sunday 5th August 2012 – Grote Markt – Stella Artois Cooking
The ultimate event for gastronomes and lovers of life! Leuven's restaurateurs will be preparing the most delicious snacks.
On Sunday, for next to nothing, you can taste the offerings at the many stalls on the culinary route in the city center. On the Biermarkt (beermarket) you can discover the rich Belgian beer tradition, the city's best bar staff take each other on in a spectacular bar staff race and the city will be brimming with entertainment and music.
On the preceding Saturday, you can watch top chefs at work during a stunning cooking and beer-pairing demonstration during the Stella Artois Cooking show on the Grote Markt. It promises to be a truly colourful spectacle for which Sol LeWitt will provide the necessary inspiration.
http://www.hapje-tapje.be/
Picnic in the Park
Sunday 5th August 2012 – 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. – Sint-Donatuspark
A fairy-tale picnic for young and old in an enchanting temporary setting, with the emphasis on spending quality time together and getting to know one another.
The city offers a charmingly decorated city park where free tea and coffee, fruit juice and picnic blankets will be provided. Participants bring their own picnic baskets, which might even end up winning a prize.
http://picknickinhetparkleuven.wordpress.com/
Piknik Music
Sunday 8th July 2012 – Van Waeyenberghpark
Sunday 29Th July 2012 – Provinciaal Domein
Sunday 26th August 2012 – Lambertuspark Heverlee
Blissfully barefoot on the tickly grass in a Leuven park, a picnic basket to hand, plenty of great company, sun, a game of pétanque and Leuven's DJs to set the tone.
A simple yet sublime concept. Bring your own picnic or indulge in the delights on offer from a number of Leuven caterers.
http://www.piknikmusik.be/
GUZZ
Saturday 28th July 2012 – Provinciaal Domein
GUZZ stands for GREEN URBAN JAZZ, a new concept from the makers of Piknik Musik and Café Congé.
The musical agenda features a number of excellent bands that are happy to balance on the border between jazz, hip hop, world music and funky beats.
The guest location for this new event is the green arena in the Provinciaal Domein.
GUZZ is free of charge and child-proof. Check!
http://www.piknikmusik.be/
Music galore! – Festivals and concerts
M-idzomer
2nd to 5th of August – M-Museum Leuven
Sensational concerts, spirited stand-up comedy, performances, dance, spoken word and the visual arts.
During the first week of August, the contemporary festival M-idzomer will make itself at home in the M Museum building and its atmospheric interior gardens.
Performers include: CocoRosie, Absynthe Minded, Amatorski, Xander De Rycke, José James, Spinvis, Intergalactic Lovers, Otto-Jan Ham & Stijn Van de Voorde and many more. And after the performances you can take in one of the M exhibitions!'.
http://www.m-idzomer.be/
Beleuvenissen
Every Friday in July – City Center
Are you looking for a complete live music experience? If so, you can indulge your passion every Friday evening in July during the Beleuvenissen. Stroll from square to square and from stage to stage and experience how well-known groups and new talent alike magically transform the city centre into a large but still-intimate music festival. It's completely free of charge. Each Friday will be bathed in its own unique atmosphere: music from the Low Countries, authentic folk, sultry tropical and a special flamboyant evening.
http://www.leuven.be/beleuvenissen
Marktrock
From 11th to 12th August 2012 – City Center – Free
Mid-August, all the terrace tables and chairs are moved aside because that's when the Oude Markt becomes the epicentre of the coolest and most amazing city festival in our country.
The whole city centre is filled with powerful rock, catchy pop, dance, DJ beats and other music spread over the various stages in the historical city centre. Belgian through and through and completely free of charge! This year will be the thirtieth edition of Marktrock, so don't forget to keep the dates free for this unforgettable music festival.
http://www.marktrock.com/
Summer of Saint Peter
From 3rd July to 31st August 2012 (Excluding 7th to 10th August)
The Summer of Saint Peter treats you to awe-inspiring music every lunchtime throughout the summer during a series of lunchtime concerts in the pleasantly cool Sint-Pieterskerk and the veiled intimacy of the 30CC/Schouwburg.
Each day you will discover another surprising repertoire, like a musical rainbow that spans the centuries and transcends borders, filled with diversity, discoveries, encounters and surprises. Two concerts are entirely inspired by Sol LeWitt.
http://www.zomer-van-sint-pieter.be/
Ladeuze Bells / Begijnhofbells
4th, 11th, 18th, and 25th August – 9 p.m. to 10 p.m. – Mgr. Ladeuzeplein
4th, 11th, 18th, and 25th August – 4 p.m. – Groot Begijnhof
Every Saturday evening in August, the carillon bells of the university library will treat the whole city centre to a resounding hour-long carillon concert. These are no dull church tower melodies, but lively music: a pure delight that you can enjoy from a lounger on the large Mgr. Ladeuzeplein or a sunny café terrace.
Or do you prefer a more intimate carillon festival? On the same Saturdays between 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. the carillon rings out over the herb garden of the Groot Begijnhof.
http://www.ladeuzebells.be/
Cycling and walking
All summer long
You can wander aimlessly through the city and admire the historical buildings or take a walking guide or a city guide. You can also explore Leuven and the surrounding area by bicycle. Hire a bicycle at the Fietspunt and follow the romantic ILUVLEUVEN route or cycle to the four abbey sites in and around the city. All these walks are available from Tourism Leuven.
Conceptual art – Sol LeWitt, Colors
Sol Lewitt, Colors
From 21st June to 14th October 2012 – M-Museum
Come face to face with this impressive play on colour by Sol LeWitt, one of the most influential artists from the world of conceptual art.
His Wall Drawings are monumental murals in which colour, form, lines and spaces create a playful whole. A selection of twenty-five colour murals span LeWitt's entire career from his first drawings in fine pencil lines to his later works in acrylic paint.
This exhibition represents the largest collection of murals by LeWitt that has ever been seen in Belgium.
http://www.mleuven.be/en/contemporary-art/sol-lewitt/index.jsp
Framework, Gijs Van Vaerenbergh
From 14th July to 14th October – Artoisplein
The Artoisplein, close to the Vaartkom, features an impressive work of art inspired by a 'structure' by LeWitt.
The young architects Pieterjan Gijs and Arnout Van Vaerenberg - who together make up Gijs Van Vaerenbergh - designed a monumental geometric sculpture. The piece, entitled "Framework", is constructed entirely from tower crane components. With its unusual use of traditional construction site equipment, the work refers to the urban transformation of Leuven in general and of the Vaartkom in particular.
