Two weeks ago I was invited by Visit Brussels to explore a few interesting buildings taking part in Banad Festival that focuses on the Art Nouveau and Art Deco heritage of Brussels.

You'll be surprised (as well as I was!) to discover how many Art Noveau and Art Deco buildings can be found in Brussels - some of them are hotels and public venues, while others are private properties and can be visited only during the festival.

This year the festival runs from the 11th to the 26th March so if you are in Brussels there are still a few days left to get involved.

Of course, no visit to Brussels is complete without an obligatory shot of the Grand Place.

One of my favourite places I first discovered this time was Galeries Royales Saint-Hubert, a glazed shopping arcade that preceded other famous 19th-century shopping arcades like the one in Milan. The gallery consists of two major sections each 100 meters long called KIng's Gallery nad Queen's Gallery, and a smaller side gallery called Gallery of the Princes.

The pictures below are from Flagey House. This townhouse is one of the pair of semi-detached houses designed by the architect Ernest Blérot in 1904. The interior includes an ramazing stairwell, topped with a stained-glass skylight. The hall floor is decorated in mosaic.

Below is a photo of a former Radio House of Belgium, established in 1930 under the name of National Institute of Broadcasting (INR). The building is compared to a steamer with its bridges and long corridors. The interior has retained its original Art Deco style furnishings. After renovation in 2002, it has regained its original function with the creation of a musical space with recording studios, concert halls and cinema.

Gustave Strauven excelled in the design and building of narrow houses on irregularly shaped plots of land in Art Nouveau style. In 1902, he built the below house (facade with green details and red stairwell) for himself on a banana-shaped plot barely 375cm wide!