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Chocoloco

Chocoloco is the name of a temporary exhibition in Train World that will be held from October 20, 2020 until 8 april 2021.

In the 19th century, the fame of Belgian chocolate spread far beyond the Belgium borders, just as the country became the second largest railway power in the world. Train World combines these two worlds in to the exhibition Chocoloco.

The exhibition presents twenty original chocolate sculptures made especially for this occasion. François Schuiten, comic strip author and scenographer at Train World, designed the sculptures. Chocolate artists Peter Teerlinck and Bart Steegmans of Sculpture Events took care of the execution of the sculptures.

Bart Steegmans
Peter Teerlinck

For example, they portrayed the Brussels South station, the “L'Eléphant” locomotive, the type 12 locomotive, the winged wheel, the NMBS wind rose, a stylised Thalys, the bust of a train driver and much more.

All sculptures were handmade by the artists. The sculptures were all formed by hand down to the smallest details, by studying for hours the sketches and photographs supplied, or in some cases the scale models, and then imitating them in chocolate in detail.

The chocolate used for the sculptures is suitable for consumption and is therefore edible, but it remains to be seen whether it would really be tasty. The chocolate was not selected on the basis of taste.

In theory, the sculptures in this form can be preserved for decades. However, in order to prevent the chocolate from turning white, it is important to store them under the right conditions. The right temperature and humidity are of the utmost importance here.

Pierre Marcolini and Dominique Persoone, two great Belgian chocolatiers who are joining forces for the first time, are the sponsors of this exhibition. The two artists developed a unique chocolate tablet especially for this exhibition. For this they used high-quality Criollo cocoa beans, an extremely rare white bean that is highly sought after by chocolate makers. These are grown in a sustainable and eco-ethical way in the domain of Mathieu Brees, a Belgian grower living in Mexico.

All photos by Train World. Sketches by François Schuiten.

Activities

During the exhibition the museum organises several special events from a lecture on chocolate, chocolate tastings till guided tours and activities for families.

TRAIN WORLD
Princess Elisabeth Square 5 B-1030 Schaerbeek

OPENING HOURS TRAIN WORLD AND MUSEUM SHOP
10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (last admission at 3.30 p.m.)
Closed: every Monday, 25 December and 1 January