The Grand Hornu remained active until 1954. Industrial exploitation stopped and the site was abandoned. At the end of the sixties a handful of heritage enthusiasts fight to save the site from planned destruction, when the complex is nothing but the shadow of itself, devastated by time and vandalism. In addition, in 1969 a royal decree of demolition aimed at its total leveling.
In 1971, the architect Henri Guchez ensures its rescue by buying the place back. He starts a first renovation phase and installs his offices on the premises. In 1989, the Province of Hainaut started the second phase of the renovation work by buying the site at the initiative of Claude Durieux, a Permanent Representative at the time.
As early as 1984, the provincial non-profit association Grand-Hornu Images had set up its offices there and continued its triple mission: heritage, tourism and culture. It places Grand-Hornu in a good position in the major international heritage associations and develops a cultural program on the site in order to breathe new life into it and place it in a new light.
The exhibitions presented by the association explore the field of relations between art and industry. Design, industrial creation and applied arts hold a privileged place, very close to the spirit of the place and in resonance with the history of the region.