Hidden modernity: reinforced concrete trusses in Brussels parish churches (1935-40)

In the 1920s, modernist and Art Deco architects experimented enthusiastically with new materials, designs and ornaments. In the Brussels Capital Region several modernist churches were built entirely in reinforced concrete and decorated with abstract forms. In the following decade, however, because of the economic crisis and the stagnation of the construction sector, traditional design and styles took over again. New technologies and reinforced concrete were still used, but they were hidden. This paper focuses on the less studied churches from the late 1930s, which turned their back to modernism and combined Romanesque forms and regional characters. Based on fieldwork, archive and literature study, this paper contributes to understanding the technical use and esthetical context of reinforced concrete in church construction in the late inter-war period.