01
Language & Italian culture
Italian language and culture programmes for different levels, combining language learning with cultural discovery.
LAI / Lingua e Arti d’Italia
Brussels, Belgium
Where
cultures
meet and create
A cultural space open to the world, in the heart of Brussels.
Languages, arts, cinema and encounters creating new dialogues between cultures, identities and imaginations.
Discover BRENFF
From Italy
to the world
LAI - Lingua e Arti d'Italia is a living space for encounter and dialogue around languages, arts and cultural identities.
Italy, its language and its artistic heritage become a bridge towards other cultures, experiences and ways of imagining the world.
Our storyWhat we do
Culture as encounter
We create projects where people, languages, ideas and artistic practices meet.
02
Learning & co-creation
Projects based on exchanging knowledge, experience and creative practice.
03
Books & authors
Literary encounters, readings and conversations with Italian and international authors.
04
Visual arts
Exhibitions and projects bringing together artists from different cultural backgrounds.
05
Music & performance
Concerts, performances and collaborations exploring contemporary artistic expression across cultures.
06
Cinema
BRENFF - Brussels Encounters Global Film Festival. Much more than a film festival.
First edition - in development
BRENFF
- Brussels
- Encounters
- Global
- Film Festival
An international film festival conceived as a space for cultural encounter, dialogue and co-creation.
Through cinema, conversations and international collaborations, BRENFF explores some of the defining questions of our time - intercultural dialogue, environmental responsibility, human rights, social cohesion, identity and community.
Cinema becomes not only something to watch, but something around which people can meet, question and imagine together.
First edition - 2026 / Dates & venue to be announced
Values
What we believe in
Cultural diversity
A heritage to preserve, and a force for exploring what is new and still unknown.
Participation
Culture is made with people, not delivered to them.
Inclusion
Reducing the economic, linguistic and social barriers that keep culture at a distance.
Creativity
Artistic practice as a way of thinking, questioning and imagining.
Collaboration
Projects built together with institutions, artists and communities.
International exchange
Brussels as a meeting point between Europe and the wider world.
Cultural diversity is a heritage to preserve, but also a force for exploring what is new and still unknown.
Culture should be inclusive and participatory, capable of creating communities.
Our vision
LAI aims to become a reference point in Brussels and internationally for intercultural dialogue.
A space for encounter, reflection and action where people and communities can discover new forms of collaboration and creativity.
- Collaborative
- Creative
- Inclusive
People
The people behind LAI
DC
Donatella Cannova
Co-founder & President
For more than twenty years, Donatella has worked to promote Italian culture internationally, including through leadership roles at the Italian Cultural Institutes in Córdoba, Sydney and Buenos Aires.
With LAI, she continues this work through an intercultural perspective, fostering dialogue between different geographical and cultural worlds through language, cinema and the arts.
EP
Elina Patané
Co-founder
A literary translator and language and literature educator, Elina has more than thirty years of experience in schools, universities and cultural institutions in Italy, Belgium, Colombia and Mexico, including the Italian Cultural Institute in Brussels.
Today she works in educational coordination while developing LAI projects that connect language, learning and cultural creation.
OAO
Olanrewaju Adisa Ogundiji
Co-founder & fashion designer
Waju is a fashion designer whose creative work explores the dialogue between African heritage and Western influences. His international journey across Africa, Europe, Australia and Latin America - particularly Argentina - has shaped a distinctive vision rooted in cultural exchange and contemporary design.
Passionate about creativity, movement and sharing knowledge, Waju is also a sport and fitness trainer and swimming instructor.
Partner with us
Culture grows
through connection
We develop projects together with cultural institutions, festivals, universities, associations, artists and local communities.
Our collaborations can take many forms - from hosting a film festival or cultural programme to co-producing workshops, screenings, conversations and interdisciplinary projects.