G.O.D.

In the beginning of the 19th century, this former Bruges residence (‘refuge’) of Saint Bavo’s Abbey, Ghent, and later a part of the Saint Trudo Abbey, was transformed into an almshouse for needy service personnel and the elderly. Nowadays, the almshouse is located very near the tourist centre of the city and is still home to people between 60 and 80 years of age. The typical Bruges houses in the city centre are linked together by two picturesque inner courtyards and by the silence of this isolated spot. The Ruimteveldwerk collective involves the residents and visitors in its participative project titled G.O.D. by linking this exceptional setting to an experimental trajectory. This interdisciplinary collective is thus working on an offline zone where, via spatial instruments, the sacred notion of silence is linked to the need for quiet in today’s the digital technological rat race.