Postcard from Brussels Back to the Future with the Atomium
In the age of Sputnik and the space race, a cluster of nine silver balls linked by glistening tubes, towering more than 102 meters high (300 feet), must have seemed like the height of modernity. Today it feels more like retro hip. Engineer Andre Waterkeyn fashioned the Atomium -- a model of the molecular structure, magnified 165 billion times -- out of aluminium and steel for the Brussels World Expo of 1958 in Belgium.
But this sculpture/monument/kitsch classic has long outlived its original lifespan of just six months. Forty million people visited the structure in its first year, and the popular Atomium was spared obliteration. Soon people around the world could instantly recognize it as the symbol of Europe's capital city.
But over the years, the Atomium fell into a state of rust and decay. In October 2004, it was closed for a two-year, €27.5 million renovation with weatherproof stainless steel replacing rusting layers of peeling aluminium. The cost was partly raised by selling bits from the rusting exterior to nostalgiy Belgians for €1,000 a piece.
In an international city that plays host to NATO and the headquarters of the European Union, as well the tawdry but cute Mannequin Pis, the Atomium has remained the local favorite. Even in its sagging middle age, the kitschy cluster welcomed 400,000 people a year. Restorers are hoping to double that figure with the new, improved structure, which opened in mid-February. One globe now holds a exposition space for artists, another holds a hotel for school children, and there's also a new restaurant at the top. Unfortunately, though, due to local fire codes, the region's most famous delicacy won't be served -- Belgian Fries.
