Every year, five million tourists visit Bruges. What if they all decided to stay? What if a small, preserved, historic city should suddenly become a megapolis?
This scenario opens up a plethora of possibilities and challenges. Would a small city be capable of coping with the dynamics of a metropolis? And conversely : could a city on a human scale contribute to a new, better form of urbanism? That was the premise of Bruges Triennial 2015.
Eighteen international artists went to work on this idea. They created new works that could be viewed on an art trail through the centre of Bruges. The artists posed questions and reflected on the future and potential of the city, of urbanisation, citizenship, lifestyle, community, economics, energy, space, sound and the values that guide us. Three indoor exhibitions illustrated the concept of 'city' – in visions, dreams and real-life images – as a living, growing and evolving organism.
Curators: Till-Holger Borchert (b. 1967, Hamburg, DE), Michel Dewilde (b. 1963, Ghent, BE)