Dansaert, a legacy to beautify

This basketball court carries decades of history — a place where generations of players came together, competed, and built a community. When local authorities considered demolishing it due to neighborhood complaints, we saw a different path forward.

Rather than erase its legacy, we chose to honour it. We transformed the court into a vibrant urban landmark — through a bold mural, an electrifying streetball event, and a documentary that captures its soul. Beyond the court itself, we reimagined the entire surrounding square, proposing a comprehensive redesign tied to the planned pedestrianisation of the area. We called this vision "Dansaert in the sky".

Browse the before & after photos below to see the transformation for yourself. Want to dive deeper? Explore the links for highlights from the main event, the documentary, and the story behind our "Dansaert in the sky" project.

The basketball court location is: nouveau marché aux grains square. 1000 Brussels (Belgium)

Pedestrianized zone

The Nouveau Marché aux Grains square is set to be fully transformed into a pedestrian zone within the coming years. Our proposal to public authorities, stakeholders and local residents envisions this spot as a one-of-a-kind, 24/7 open sports destination — featuring a running track, a padel court, a street workout zone, a pétanque court, chess and checkers tables, and of course, our basketball court — all brought to life through public art. The photo below show the square as it stood in 2020.

Gentrification process

The ongoing gentrification of the Dansaert neighbourhood is a real concern. Our project aims to support residents from lower-income and migrant backgrounds, while fostering meaningful connections across different social groups. By reinforcing the square's sporting vocation, we create natural meeting points where longtime residents and newcomers can interact — brought together by sport

Method & observations

Drawing on an ethnographic approach, this project pursues multiple objectives: documenting the area's legacy, gathering input from all stakeholders, and analysing Brussels' trajectory within the broader context of major city dynamics. Given the number of schools in the vicinity, we observed a high volume of students using the square for physical activity — teachers regularly asked students to run around the basketball court. However, the current surface is poorly suited for this: hard, uneven, and abrasive. This led us to design an athletics track with a rubberised floor.

Materials, sport courts and potential effects

We propose using ecological rubber for the flooring — a material with numerous advantages. It reduces noise pollution, limits sports injuries by absorbing the impact on joints and balls, and minimises skin abrasions in case of falls. The rubber used is sourced from recycled waste from other industries (e.g. tyres). Our goal is to offer the local population free access to a wide range of sports facilities — from a padel court to a street workout area — breaking down economic barriers to sport. The padel court in particular, often seen as a sport for higher-income groups, will be open to anyone curious to try it.

This 3D video showcases two key features: the illumination of the court's lines at night, and the streets transformed by public art. Together, they create a visual experience with strong potential to draw attention — both on-site and online. The vision is to establish a coherent artistic identity across the entire zone, stretching from Dansaert all the way to the Grand-Place, Brussels' most iconic historical square.

In short, this project aims to:

Attract a diverse audience — local residents, national and international tourists, artists, and potential customers for nearby businesses;
Position Brussels as a global hub for creativity at the intersection of sport and art;
Give inhabitants a real sense of pride in their neighbourhood.

As shown at the end of the video, the project also includes an underground car park beneath the Nouveau Marché aux Grains square, along with a broader traffic and mobility plan for the surrounding area. This responds to a genuine need: several key stakeholders on the square — including the De Mot-Couvreur institute, a local brewery, and the police station — require reliable access for suppliers and staff. Furthermore, municipal authorities require a minimum of approximately 70 parking spaces beneath the square to serve local residents.

Gallery

Same place, plenty of angles

The team involved in this project is composed by

Dr Mehdi Ould Kherroubi Hacine-Bey, bball in the sky founder

Mehdi Hattabi, 3D Designer - Visual Archs