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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The house of Rémy Cogghe, located at 22 rue des Fleurs (now Rue Rémy-Cogghe) in Roubaix, was built between 1893 and 1897 by architect Paul Destombes. This Belgian painter, installed in the region since his childhood, designed a space both home and workshop, reflecting his artistic universe. The building, eclectic in style, is distinguished by its red brick facade adorned with bas-reliefs ofangelots, allegorical symbols related to painting.

Inside, the living room preserves decors painted by Cogghe: a ceiling representing angelots on a blue background, as well as marouflage canvases above the fireplace and doors. These works, atypical in its usually realistic and social production, testify to a more dreamlike aesthetic research. The studio below the attic, where the artist made many of his paintings, completes this preserved ensemble.

Rémy Cogghe (1854–1935), trained in the Fine Arts of Paris and Brussels, was a visual chronicler of working life and Flemish traditions. Her home, listed as a Historic Monument in 1998, embodies both her local anchor and her artistic influence. Protected elements include the façade, roof, decorated living room and workshop, highlighting the heritage importance of this place.

The painter, known for his scenes of cock fighting, ball games or popular parties, drew his inspiration from the Roubaisian daily. His work, between naturalism and verism, accurately documents the customs and landscapes of industrial Flanders. The house, today a symbol of this heritage, perpetuates the memory of a major artist from the region.

The protection of the monument in 1998 specifically covers the street façade, the roof, the living room with its painted decorations, and the attic workshop. These provisions preserve a unique testimony of art and architecture of the Belle Époque in the North, while honoring the heritage of a painter engaged in the representation of his time.

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