2 Sep '17

Antwerp’s new diamond museum to open next spring

Summary

Europe’s centre of the diamond industry is dedicating an experience centre worthy of the subject, with Diva set to open in May 2018

 

Diamonds are forever

Diva: Antwerp Home of Diamonds is set to open on the Suikerrui and Gildekamersstraat, which both feed onto Grote Markt over two phases starting this year. The museum and related shops will be located in the buildings that formerly housed the Museum of Folk Art and Ethnography.

Diva is being presented as an experience centre and will open in two phases. On 7 December, the museum shop and a jewelry shop will open and spaces for activities will be available to rent. That building is on Suikerrui. In May, the full museum will open with a special weekend-long grand opening in the building on Gildekamersstraat.

Interior designers and scriptwriters are at work now creating a space that will come across as luxurious as its subject. An audio tour will immerse visitors into different scenarios, such as diamond crafsmanship, trade and purchasing habits. Each theme will have its own little world, created through soundscapes and interactive, multimedia elements.

Until then, the diamond collection is on view in Antwerp's MAS museum on the waterfront.

Related articles