Seen: A giant harmonica honors Toots Thielemans

A giant harmonica has been installed by STIB near Lemonnier metro station. This artwork is a tribute to Toots Thielemans, who would have celebrated his 100th birthday in 2022.

The height of the harmonica is seven meters, and its weight is not less than 400 kilograms. Initially, the plan was to connect the construction to the facade of the building at Zuidlaan 63, but the city of Brussels and the region did not agree to this. According to them, the harmonica was too large and the facade construction was too dangerous. For this reason, STIB reconsidered the installation process and chose to install the tool on the ground floor.

One of the five entrances to Toots Thielemans MRT station, on the future Line 3, will soon be located in the spot where the harmonica landed.

Meeting place

Although the harmonica is already in place, the artwork is not completely finished yet, says Anne van Ham, STIB spokesperson. “The benches and floodlights still need to be installed. It should be fine next week.”

STIB hopes the artwork will develop into a new meeting place for locals and passers-by, just a stone’s throw from South Station.