Modemuseum Hasselt

About the museum

In 1986 Hasselt chose a tourist image as a fashion city. This fitted the city's long textile tradition, which in the late Middle Ages was known for its woollen cloth, and the growth of shopping culture in the 20th century. In 1988 the Stedelijk Modemuseum Hasselt (Hasselt Municipal Fashion Museum) opened, the first and only independent fashion museum in the Low Countries.

The museum is housed in the Oud Gasthuis (Old Hospital), a building from 1664 that originally served as a convent for the Grey Sisters and for centuries as a hospital. After the last patients left in 1968, the building was home to the Jenevermuseum and the City Museum, among others. It was restored between 1993 and 1995 under architect Luc Vanroye; Vittorio Simoni updated the interior, including a glass canopy.

The collection comprises about 19,000 garments and accessories and tells the history of Western fashion from 1750 to today, with names such as Worth, Poiret, Chanel, Dior and Yves Saint Laurent. Contemporary designers with roots in Limburg, such as Martin Margiela and Raf Simons, hold a special place. The museum has no permanent exhibition: every year there are two new exhibitions in which the collection enters into dialogue with loaned items.

Highlights

• Collection of about 19,000 garments and accessories, from 1750 to today
• Work by Chanel, Dior, Yves Saint Laurent and Comme des Garçons
• Contemporary designers with Limburg roots, such as Martin Margiela and Raf Simons
• Two new exhibitions per year
• Seventeenth-century Oud Gasthuis from 1664 as a setting

Founded

1988

Operated by

Stad Hasselt (Musea Hasselt)

Admission & discounts

Special guided tours, lectures, themed evenings and workshops have different rates. Free admission applies to, among others, Hasselt residents with a UiTPAS Regio Hasselt, ICOM and ICOM Flanders members, holders of the museumPASSmusées, the Klasse teacher card or the HasPas, and Friends of the Modemuseum Hasselt. Tickets can be booked online, but you do not need to buy them in advance.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

The entrance is accessible to wheelchair users and all floors can be reached by lift. There are small and large level differences, but staff will help. A wheelchair can be borrowed, there are portable seats and rest benches, and there is one adapted toilet. Assistance and guide dogs are welcome; other dogs are not. A basket of sensory-friendly items is available for visitors sensitive to stimuli.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Activity booklet, scavenger hunt or kids’ audio guide
• Baby changing facilities
• Kids’ birthday parties

Each exhibition has a children's trail with interactive tasks and child-friendly info panels, aimed at children aged 6 to 12. There is a baby changing table in the ground-floor toilets. Children's birthday parties for 6- to 12-year-olds take place on Wednesday and Sunday afternoons.

Getting there & parking

The museum is on the Gasthuisstraat, in the heart of Hasselt, close to the small ring road (kleine ring).

Amenities & dining

• Coat check
• Lockers

Coats and personal belongings can be left in the cloakroom; large bags and rucksacks are not allowed in the exhibition rooms. There are free lockers on the ground floor.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit