{"id":8750,"date":"1977-01-24T19:18:33","date_gmt":"1977-01-24T18:18:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fondationvandenhove.be\/collection\/hotel-torrentius\/"},"modified":"2026-09-16T08:40:38","modified_gmt":"2026-09-16T06:40:38","slug":"hotel-torrentius","status":"publish","type":"collection","link":"https:\/\/fondationvandenhove.be\/en\/collection\/hotel-torrentius\/","title":{"rendered":"H\u00f4tel Torrentius"},"content":{"rendered":"

Attributed to the Li\u00e8ge architect Lambert Lombard, the H\u00f4tel Torrentius was built in the second half of the 16thth<\/sup> century and, alongside the H\u00f4tel Deso\u00ebr de Soli\u00e8res and the H\u00f4tel de Bocholtz, stands as one of the finest examples of Renaissance architecture in Li\u00e8ge. However, like others, it nearly disappeared under the blows of the pickaxes that, in the 1960s and 1970s, destroyed most of the Cadran district, near Place Saint-Lambert. Listed as a monument in 1969, the building was occupied by a police station, sold to the Banque de Paris et des Pays-Bas, and then left to fall into disrepair until Charles Vandenhove acquired it in 1978.<\/p>\n

The architect began by removing the additions made to the building in the 19th<\/sup> century. The demolition of various rooms and the large garage at the rear of the property created a lovely courtyard whilst revealing the south fa\u00e7ade. The next phase of the project saw the architect call upon Ren\u00e9 Greisch, who designed a concrete slab for the second floor to ensure the building\u2019s stability. The restoration of the building dominated the early stages of the work, involving the repair of the roofs and masonry and the demolition of various internal partitions. This work inside the building led to the discovery of archaeological finds of great significance, such as the wall fresco attributed to Lambert Lombard, bearing the inscription \u2018Cum finierit tunc incipiet\u2019 (When man thinks he has finished, he is only just beginning).<\/p>\n

The demolition of various partition walls has enabled the architect to create his studio on the ground floor, his private flat on the first floor, and a flat and a studio in the attic. Charles Vandenhove\u2019s work on this building of significant heritage value is not, however, limited to a faithful restoration; and, as with the project in Hors-Ch\u00e2teau, the architect proposes contemporary interventions that serve the building\u2019s new function. In the centre of the building, the grand Louis XIV staircase was purchased and dismantled by the City of Li\u00e8ge, thereby freeing up space on the ground floor and allowing the first-floor premises to be reconfigured. Vandenhove employed a design he favours: two spiral staircases, one leading to the crypt in the basement and another in the corner tower leading to the upper floors. The entrance porch, which had previously served as a passageway for cars, was completely reconfigured beneath a barrel vault, featuring an intervention by Daniel Buren. Collaboration with visual artists \u2013 a fundamental aspect of Vandenhove\u2019s work \u2013 is further highlighted by the interventions of L\u00e9on Wuidar and Olivier Debr\u00e9 on the walls and ceilings, which, without any sense of discord, lend a new luminosity to the interior spaces. The architect\u2019s contemporary design is also marked by the influence of Carlo Scarpa\u2019s work, which he rediscovered during a trip to Italy with Geert Bekaert and Francis Strauven. With his bronze columns, which notably mark the intersections of the windows, his oculi, and his fireplaces and joinery featuring ziggurat-shaped mouldings, Torrentius presents a new, almost universal language, which is also evident in the Hors-Ch\u00e2teau project, the design of which is contemporary.<\/p>\n

Guest artists: Daniel Buren, Olivier Debr\u00e9, L\u00e9on Wuidar.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":619,"template":"","collection_type":[31],"class_list":["post-8750","collection","type-collection","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","collection_type-archives-en"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nH\u00f4tel Torrentius - Fondation Jeanne Charles Vandenhove<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/fondationvandenhove.be\/en\/collection\/hotel-torrentius\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"H\u00f4tel Torrentius - Fondation Jeanne Charles Vandenhove\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Attributed to the Li\u00e8ge architect Lambert Lombard, the H\u00f4tel Torrentius was built in the second half of the 16thth century and, alongside the H\u00f4tel Deso\u00ebr de Soli\u00e8res and the H\u00f4tel […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/fondationvandenhove.be\/en\/collection\/hotel-torrentius\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Fondation Jeanne Charles Vandenhove\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-09-16T06:40:38+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/fondationvandenhove.be\/wp-content\/uploads\/1977\/01\/1.-Cour-Torrentius_web.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"599\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"599\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fondationvandenhove.be\\\/en\\\/collection\\\/hotel-torrentius\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/fondationvandenhove.be\\\/en\\\/collection\\\/hotel-torrentius\\\/\",\"name\":\"H\u00f4tel Torrentius - 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