Why is photography banned in the Horta House ?
The Horta Museum (built between 1898 and 1901) started life as a private home intended for six people. Nowadays, the house receives tens of thousands of visitors every year. These ceaseless comings and goings put a considerable strain on the building, which requires constant restoration and maintenance work.
Despite this, visitors are free to move around in the museum’s various rooms ; there are no cordons or barriers to prevent them from circulating just as if they were Victor Horta’s guests. This privilege, seldom possible in small house museums, entails certain constraints, such as the banning of photography on the premises.
The reason for this? When taking a photo, people are less attentive to their surroundings; as they step back, they may knock against another visitor or a piece of furniture. The stairway, which is the central feature of the House, is particularly fragile and is unable to withstand an excessively heavy concentration of visitors. If an individual stops there to take photos, the resulting bottleneck could potentially lead to disastrous consequences.
Of course, most of our visitors respect this rule. Unfortunately however, there are some who choose to ignore it. Therefore, in order to avoid any tension, we must ask you to kindly leave your smartphones in the lockers provided. If you are expecting an urgent call, the staff will offer you a replacement.
Indeed, we see this ban as an opportunity. Once you are completely disconnected from your phone, you can simply allow yourself to be carried away by Victor Horta’s architecture, with no other aim to distract you. Your eyes and mind will be more open, ready to be enchanted by all the elegant features that the Horta House has to offer…
We wish you a most enjoyable visit.
If you would like to see unpublished photographs of the museum's interior, visit this page or join us on Instagram and Facebook
On the last Friday of each month, you can come and take photographs in the museum by appointment and in the morning. These photographs must not have a commercial purpose. Please contact info@hortamuseum.be to know the modalities.