Brussels unveils giant flower carpet inspired by Hokusai masterpiece

Volunteers worked through the morning of Thursday, 13 August, placing the flowers by hand on a numbered carpet to gradually reveal the design inspired by the famous woodblock print by Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai. Visitors gathered around the square to watch the work take shape and photograph the finished sections. Japanese Ambassador to Belgium Takeshi Osuga also joined the volunteers, placing flowers on the carpet as Japanese sponsors supported the event.

The design is part of the 24th edition of the biennial Flower Carpet, a once‑in‑a‑decade celebration in Brussels that marks the 160th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Belgium and Japan. It brings together Belgian and Japanese cultural traditions, with the pattern created by Japanese artist Hiro Sugiyama and his collective Enlightenment, who describe the work as “Neo‑Hokusai”, a modern reinterpretation of Hokusai’s masterpiece.

Volunteers worked from a small reference image, with each colour assigned a number to ensure the pattern was reproduced accurately. The finished carpet, measuring 70 metres long by 24 metres wide, will give visitors a new way to see one of Japan’s best‑known artworks, framed by the historic buildings of Brussels’ Grand Place. The installation will remain on display until Sunday, 16 August, with a nightly sound and light show from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m.