Canal Swimmer's Club / Atelier Bow-Wow +
Architectuuratelier Dertien 12
Expanding on a tradition of Triennals for contemporary Belgian art
Swimmer’s Club, a new multifunctional public space for meeting,
in 1968,1971 & 1974, the city of Bruges decided to organize and
relaxing, sunbathing and even swimming in the canals of Bruges.
start again a Triennale for contemporary art and architecture in
Bruges this year ( 2015 ).
When I visited Bruges for the first time, I walked with the project
manager to visit some spots in the city on hearing the history
As a main theme they proposed the challenging question ‘what
and story about Bruges. When we crossed “Carmersbrug”, he
if the medieval ‘egg’ ofBruges, were suddenly transformed into a
explained that this part of canal will be open for swimming for
metropolis?’ – What if the 5 million tourists, that visit every year
public in summer 2015 after 40 years of prohibition due to bad
the city of Bruges, all decided to stay ?’
water quality. I am interested in this relationship between people
Among eighteen international artists, the collaborating team of
Atelier Bow-Wow & Architectuuratelier Dertien12 were asked to
work on this idea. They worked together on the project Canal
26 Landscape & Urban Design Issue 16
and water. It is both people who damage the water quality and
who enjoy the water in the city. I found there is huge potential to
create new public space from the relationship between people’s
behavior and water’s behavior.