Lhoist art collection

Founded in the late 19th century, Lhoist is a world leader in the production and supply of mineral solutions for a wide range of applications. As a family-owned business based in Belgium, where it began, Lhoist has grown into a global company, motivated by the values, passed on from generation to generation, of entrepreneurship, technical innovation and careful stewardship of natural resources.      

"Connect industrial life with cultural life,
bring a very old industry to think anew,
open up to the future and to other worlds,
such is our ambition."

Baron Berghmans, Chairman

The Lhoist Art Collection embodies these values. Built over the past three decades, it reflects the company’s commitment to the wellbeing and creativity of people and its deep knowledge of materials and technology. It brings the artistic avant-garde to its employees and guests, offering them the opportunity to look at the world through different eyes and connecting to other imaginaries.

The Collection’s more than 2000 works, by over 400 artists, spark debate and shared passions that encourage questioning and the development of new perspectives. They impart to the company a shared identity by strengthening ties between its teams.

The Collection’s outstanding quality and international scope make it one of the premiere corporate contemporary art collections in Europe, with a strong emphasis on art from the 1990s and 2000s.

From the start, the Collection chose to focus on contemporary photographic works. As the distinguished curator Pierre Apraxine wrote about the Collection, which he advised early on, “the photographic image is particularly well suited today to deal with such abstract notions as truth and illusion, authenticity and reproduction, memory and fact.”

Over the years, under the guidance of Jacqueline d’Amécourt, Lhoist has commissioned renowned artists such as Bernd & Hilla Becher, Elliott Erwitt, Rodney Graham and Josef Koudelka to produce new bodies of photographic work related to the company’s ethos and activities.

Besides its special attention to the photographic medium, the Collection also includes many significant examples of paintings, sculptures and videos by some of the most prominent artists of the 20th and 21st centuries.

A characteristic of the Collection is its concentration on certain artists, represented through multiple works from different periods. The Collection thus features extensive holdings by Louise Bourgeois, Tony Cragg, William Eggelston, Louise Lawler, Kiki Smith and Hiroshi Sugimoto.

Displayed throughout Lhoist’s headquarters in Limelette and in offices around the world, the Collection offers staff and guests aesthetic pleasure, intellectual stimulation and moments of respite. It acts as a reminder that, like art, a successful enterprise depends on its ability to combine technical expertise with intuition, tradition with innovation.

The idea of acquiring art emerged with the inauguration in 1989 of the Lhoist headquarters, designed by architects Marc Corbiau and François Céria. The idea of using art to decorate the building’s interior rapidly turned into the ambition of constituting a world-class art Collection that would inspire and motivate Lhoist staff and visitors.

Today, art is visible in every corner of the company’s headquarters, from offices and meeting rooms to the canteen and the picturesque surroundings. Major artists have produced installations for the site, including Pierre Alechinsky, Anish Kapoor, Richard Long, Ulrich Rückriem and James Turrell. The result is a perfectly integrated experience between natural beauty, architectural elegance and finely curated contemporary art.

Through regular rehangings by Lhoist curator Mélanie Berghmans and guest curators, the Lhoist Art Collection provides opportunities for endless combinations and interpretations.

Every two years, Lhoist invites an influential voice in contemporary art to curate a Collection display for the Limelette campus. Most recent guest curators include Bernard Blistène (2023), Harry Gruyaert (2021), Maria de Corral (2019), Ralph Rugoff (2017) and Dirk Snauwaert (2014).

Andrea Bellini, director of the Centre d’art contemporain Genève, is the guest curator of the 2025-2027 Collection display. After Blistène’s choice of ‘nature’ as a theme, and Gruyaert’s exhibition around ‘humour’, Bellini’s exhibition will center on ‘Metamorphoses’ as a guiding thread.

Bellini has invited Lhoist staff to select pieces from the Collection for their offices in relation to his curatorial theme. The idea has proven highly successful in encouraging Lhoist staff to engage with the display.

The Lhoist Art Collection is primarily intended for staff and guests and is therefore not accessible to the public.

For additional information, please contact Mélanie Berghmans,
Director: melanie.berghmans@lhoist.com

Member of IACCCA (www.iaccca.com) 

Partnerships and cultural sponsorship: 

• Musée de la photographie, Charleroi

• Musée des enfants, Brussels

• BOZAR, Brussels

• Flagey, Brussels

• WIELS - Centre d’Art Contemporain, Brussels

• Vocatio, Belgium

• Grupo Corpo, Brasil

• Bienal de São Paolo, Brasil

The Lhoist Art Collection is a founding member of the International Association of Corporate Collections of Contemporary Art (www.iaccca.com).