Renard, Bruno

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Renard, Bruno (1781–1861). Belgian architect, trained in Paris under Percier and Fontaine. He designed the Grand Hornu, near Mons (1820–32), a huge industrial estate with housing (really a Company town) much influenced by Durand and Ledoux. His gardens by the Hôtel de Ville (1822–4) and Salle des Concerts (1820–8), both in Tournai, deserve note: the latter building had a covered market on the ground floor with the auditorium above, so was a departure from the usual single-purpose hall. Renard&s Tournai abattoirs (1833–5—destroyed 1982) were influenced by French exemplars of this building-type. He published numerous papers and manuals, and through his teachings informed the next generation of architects. A founder-member of the Belgian Commission Royale des Monuments (1835), he was active in the preservation and conservation of the country's historic fabric. He restored Tournai Cathedral (1840–5), and wrote an account of the work (published 1852).

Bibliography

Jane Turner (1996)