Following two successful editions, MAD Parcours – Downtown Edition returns to Brussels city centre this autumn. For three days, MAD Brussels will put the diversity of Brussels’ fashion and design scene in the spotlight. Visitors are invited to explore the city centre through shops, studios, galleries, showrooms and surprising locations. This year, AFC-Collection is also joining the programme as guest curator and will take over two former retail spaces in the Dansaert district. Around the themes of ‘atelier, digital and showroom’, it will create a temporary parcours bringing together design, craftsmanship and innovation.
With a map in hand – available at MAD Brussels and at the participating locations – visitors can discover various Brussels-based designers at 41 creative locations. Each space offers its own insight into Brussels’ creative sector and invites visitors to meet the people behind the brands. This year, visitors can choose between two thematic routes: design and fashion. Those who want to focus on one discipline can follow a single route, while both routes can easily be combined into a personalized parcours through the heart of Brussels.
MAD Parcours is more than a walking route through fashion and design. The event brings together emerging talents, established names, local businesses and the wider public. It encourages new encounters and unexpected collaborations, showing how closely Brussels’ creative scene is intertwined with the city.
On the fashion route, visitors can discover brands such as Sofie D’Hoore at Stijl, Baud Atelier and Cousons Cousine at Dansaert Athletics, Paule Josephe in its own boutique, and Bea Mombaers at Kat en Muis x The Girls. On the design route, the parcours takes visitors to The Dominican Hotel, among other places, where work by ÆTHER/MASS and Hélène del Marmol can be seen, as well as Essentiel Antwerp, which is collaborating for the occasion with textile designer Shishi San.
A particular feature of MAD Parcours is this cross-pollination between disciplines: design in a fashion boutique, textiles in a hotel, or floral art finding its place in a café. By taking creations out of their usual context, unexpected perspectives emerge and visitors have the opportunity to experience fashion and design from a new perspective.
Gallery Dansaert Dries Van Noten, for example, presents an installation by textile artist Adeline Halot, known for her poetic woven sculptures. A little further on, at fashion boutique Stijl Men, visitors can discover the work of her brother and furniture designer Maxime Halot. Bakery Charli enters into dialogue with ceramic artist Marta Rachlewicz, while KØGE Design takes over the window at Diito with a scenographic installation in which design is taken out of its usual context.
Another highlight is the work of fashion designer Kenza Taleb Vandeput (Kasbah Cosmic) for the Théâtre National. In collaboration with the theatre’s costume workshop, she designed a vest for the reception staff, inspired by workwear and upcycling, bringing together cultural influences, recycled textiles and personal stories. As part of MAD Parcours, the Théâtre National is also exceptionally opening its backstage areas to the public. From 12 to 14 November, from 5pm to 6pm each day, visitors will be able to discover the costume workshop, costume storage, and backstage spaces of the theatre, which are normally inaccessible to the public. A unique behind-the-scenes experience, offering a glimpse into the craftsmanship and spaces that contribute to the creation of the performances. MAD Parcours offers a glimpse not only of the end result, but also of the people, spaces and expertise behind its creation.
AFC-Collection breathes new life into two vacant retail spaces
For MAD Parcours 2026, AFC-Collection, guest curator of this edition, will temporarily take over two former retail spaces on Antoine Dansaertstraat. From 12 to 30 November 2026, the spaces will be brought back to life as one coherent parcours centred around three worlds: the atelier, the digital world and the showroom.
The first location brings together atelier and showroom, with a focus on materials, craftsmanship and a selection of Brussels-based designers and different approaches within the contemporary design scene. The second location focuses on the digital world and explores new ways of visualising and sharing an interior project using contemporary tools and technologies. Together, the two locations offer a complementary perspective on the different ways in which design takes shape and becomes part of our living environment.
One of the highlights is The ASSEMBLE Sofa, designed in 2020 by Linde Freya Tangelder, founder of Destroyers/Builders, originally for valerie_objects. AFC-Collection brings the designer and brand together once again, giving the design a new chapter.
With this temporary intervention, AFC-Collection aims not only to bring together design, craftsmanship and innovation, but also to reactivate Antoine Dansaertstraat. The former retail spaces will become temporary places for encounters, demonstrations and exchange, where Brussels creativity and new ideas come together.
Practical information
MAD Parcours is free and open to everyone. MAD Brussels will remain open throughout the event as an information point.
- Thursday 12 November (opening night & late-night shopping event): 12:00–21:00
- Friday 13 November: 12:00–18:00
- Saturday 14 November: 12:00–18:00
The initiative is supported by the Brussels Alderman for Economy and Employment, as well as Entreprendre Bruxelles and Local Guide.
For more information and the digital map with all locations and participating designers, please visit the MAD Brussels website. A printed version of the map is available at MAD Brussels (Nieuwe Graanmarkt 10, 1000 Brussels) and at the participating locations. www.mad.brussels
