After several years of running a gallery in the southern part of the city, supporting a range of Belgian and international artists, Marion De Cannière recently relocated to the city centre’s Leopoldplaats to open a non-profit art space in October 2015. Her centrally-located space – housed in the same distinctive building as gallery Geukens & De Vil – welcomes independent curators with the aim of showcasing both established and emerging artists, with recent exhibitions including artists such as Christoph Fink, Emilia Ukkonen, Erik Van Lieshout and Kader Attia.

What would you say is Antwerp’s main appeal for creatives? What gives the city its edge?

Antwerp has a good art academy and more particularly has a leading fashion institute which produced well-known fashion designers. The well-known Ballet of Flanders also has its seat in Antwerp. All this contributes to making creatives feel welcome here.

To you, what is the best way to spend a weekend in Antwerp? If you had to take out-of-towners to one place that truly symbolises the city, what would it be?

I would take them to the Zurenborg area with its beautiful Jugendstil and Art Deco houses.