It’s nice to see Antwerp and Brussels collaborate on an artistic partnership. This September a landmark exhibition opens at MoMu Fashion Museum to celebrate the 180 years of Belgium’s most prestigious luggage maker. Delvaux 1829-2009: 180 years of Belgian Luxury is a tribute to a national institution that has remained the beacon of elegance and innovation. The recent appointment of fashion designer Veronique Branquinho as artistic director could well be a turning point for Delvaux!

MoMu Fashion Museum Nationalestraat 28. 17 September 2009 – 21 February 2010.

ps: don’t forget to stop at Copyright, the bookstore on the ground floor.

Enough about fashion, Maria – of Frituur Number One fame – has 5,313 friends on Facebook (well 5,314 now). That’s more than all of us at Turnleft, especially since our creative consultant committed Facebook suicide.

As you know, we love our post-clubbing grub and only Maria’s fierce attitude can match our 4am mood swings. Maria tells it like it is but a huge portion of chips fixes us up after too many De Konincks. We all have our preferred sauces: Ben our art director is a fan of Saus Andalous and – paging model agency – skinny models don’t seem to mind the high sugar content of Saus Brazil… I’ve just discovered the delights of mixing Saus Tartare and Saus Banzai!

Flemish Lesson no.1 – this is how the conversation goes: “2 kleintjes me mayonnaise , nen bicky , 2 potjes stoofvleessaus, ne kipcorn, nen gebakken boulet me kouw curry, ne gebakke cervela special me curry ketchup, das dan 17 euro aub”…

If that’s not couture enough for you, Haute Frituur is in Zuid: great chips, homemade tartare and… Kartell chairs.

Frituur Number One Hoogstraat 1 – Haute Frituur Vlaamsekaai 66

A fixture of the Antwerp art scene: every sixth Thursday most galleries stay open until 9pm and this becomes the opportunity to hop between bars and art spaces. The event has become very popular – it’s not unsual to make the trip from Brussels or from the Netherlands for the occasion. Galleries participating are listed on the Antwerp Art website – they include many venues previously reviewed by Turnleft: FiftyOne, Pocketroom, Tim Van Laere, Zeno X (which represents Luc Tuymans) etc…

Speaking of which, the next edition is on Thursday 10 September and amongst all the events that night, we can only recommend Park 3, held in a massive hangar at Park Spoor Noord (a brand new park north of Antwerp – since its opening it has become a summer hotspot). Park 3 is a group show featuring 16 artists, installations, visual artworks, performances and music. The first 10 days of September will be spent assembling the show. As it happens the previous edition of Park (Park2) took place at Kloosterstraat 13 – which will soon become RA. Small place.

Starts 7pm, finishes 10pm, Park Spoor Noord (eds: stop for a Mojito at Cargo Zomerbar)

Fashion Protocol probably dictates that this blog should have started with a post on Walter Van Beirendonck. It is difficult to overestimate Walter’s influence on the city, and this goes way beyond his Antwerp 6 status: besides collections presented in Paris (below – Fall Winter 09/10) and W & LT (Wild and Lethal Trash) – an experimental line with strong sexual undertones that has sealed Walter’s reputation as the enfant terrible of Antwerp fashion – he’s also the Director of the prestigious Fashion Department at the Royal Academy. If our stay in Antwerp is anything to go by “Walter” is by far the most pronounced word in the Antwerp lexicon…

A few streets away from the Academy (located in the Modenatie building), Walter’s flagship store provides a vital space for young fashion and product designers. A must see. Modenatie Nationalestraat 28 – WALTER Sint-Anthoniusstraat 12

Designer Andrea Cammarosano’s response to an interview request left us in stitches and I made the mental note that every trip to Antwerp should include a drink or two with him as Andrea seems to be living up to his partying reputation… He graduated from the Academy in 2008 and he has worked with Walter Van Beirendonck since, as well as presenting his own collections (below, Bury Me Standing – So I Can Better See, Fall Winter 09/10).

Turnleft: How long have you been in Antwerp?
Andrea: Almost 5 years now.

T: A perfect day?

T: And at night?

A: a little visit to the Sinksenfoor (eds: the funfair in Zuid). The Hall of Mirrors is funny and you can be touched by mysterious hands on the Spooky Train! After that, Que Pasa definitely. The lovely drag-queen (I think) owner Quentina will serve you her famous rum cola – all rum and no cola. You can dance on the tables but she will spank you with her diamond shoes. Otherwise there’s Fancy Fun Karaoke. The best party to dance is Blast Your Ghetto, once a month, with sounds from Fanklub DJ’s. The afterparty is at the market, with the village people.

T: A message to Londoners?

A: Come as you are!

Biologische Dynamische Bakkerij Volkstraat 17 - Blast Your Ghetto @ Cafe Capital Rubenslei 37 - Fancy Fun Karaoke Oude Koornmarkt 42 - Lucy Chang Marnixplaats 16 - Mokamore Schrijnwerkersstraat 3 - Que Pasa Lange Koepoortstraat 1

We got hold of a few images of the new Port Authority HQ, designed by British-Iraqi architect Zaha Hadid and scheduled for completion in 2013. The glass & aluminium structure, a tribute to Antwerp’s links to the diamond trade (and already nicknamed the Rough Diamond) will sit on top of a disused fire station and seal the status of ‘t Eilandje as Antwerp’s happening hub. The project is not just a vain cave-in to starchitecture: harbour logistics are increasingly sophisticated and by consolidating all operations under one roof, local and regional authorities seek to sustain Antwerp’s status as a world trade powerhouse.

Cycling around ‘t Eilandje is the best way to witness the refurbishment of crumbling warehouses, new architectural developments (Westkaai Towers by British architect David Chipperfield) and the emergence of a new residential district in Antwerp.

Antwerp’s love affair with concept stores is never ending – we’ve reviewed Walter, Clinic, Hospital and Fish&Chips in our guides. We are very excited at the prospectof RA, opening October 17 on Kloosterstraat, a street usually dedicated to antiques stores. At the risk of sounding dithyrambic, RA could well become one of the most exciting spots in European fashionland and it certainly reinvents the (now) dusty concept store formula. Set on 800sqm the space – which defines itself as a platform + store – will feature a fashion floor dedicated to young Academy graduates and up-and-coming labels (Belgian and international), a vintage section, art exhibitions and installations, a bookstore, a music corner and a social food space. Founders Romain Brau and Anna Kúshnerova, two recent Academy graduates, are determined to go grassroots and to build the concept around a series of collaborations. If Romain is anything to go by, RA won’t lack humour either – his assessment of the fashion scene is filled with self-deprecating modesty: “it’s so boring, I respect my parents for coming every year to watch my shows”.

The site is in construction and RA is determined to blend its physical space with an online presence. This will include RA Tidings, a monthly publication edited by Dan Thawley – of Dan the Scout fame (an excellent blog). Hopefully we will come back with a full update later in this blog, maybe an interview – RA Tidings is due this September. In the mean time you can follow progress on their Twitter @RA_13 and we’ve got a sneak preview of the premises (the cashier area is by French designer Mathieu Lehanneur).

The whole team can usually be found sipping coffee at Caffenation or at Berlin. Lucy Chang is their favourite restaurant. Erik Vanberghen, RA’s music director, often DJ’s at glam bar Mogador.

Berlin Kleine Markt 2 – Caffenation Hopland 64 - Lucy Chang Marnixplaats 16 - Mogador Graaf van Egmontstraat 57

Sips is probably one of the best cocktail bars I’ve ever been to – and I mean it. Chief bartender Manuel Wouters trained on the QE2 and Lazy Red Cheeks was first imagined there in 2005.This cocktail is amazing – vodka, crushed raspberries, violet syrup, cane sugar and a dash of lime juice… They should bottle this stuff and sell it at Selfridges!

We don’t know your plans for Friday 11 September but we can only recommend Los Ninos. We made a similar post in our Brussels blog but this time the Los Ninos team leaves Brussels to invade Café Capital in the middle of Antwerp’s Stadspark. Café Capital is the city’s favourite venue for independent club nights. This is where Blast Your Ghetto is held once a month. Los Ninos promises an organic barbecue on the terrace followed by various DJ sets – Plum, The Michael, ShitDisco and Aguila – some of them in Antwerp for the first time. Belgian artist Dominique Masullo will be presenting his new video. As usual, organic drinks, etc… Starts 8pm, finishes 6am.