Watwerway

Art along Ghent’s waterways

Water has shaped the city of Ghent for centuries. With Waterway, the rivers Leie and Scheldt were temporarily used as a framework for contemporary art. Realised within the Inner City neighbourhood budget, the project explored how art can engage with water, infrastructure and public space without dominating its surroundings.

An open call resulted in 58 submissions. Based on artistic quality and feasibility, ten works were selected. Each piece was produced in a fixed format of 1 × 1 metre and installed in a custom-designed metal frame, with careful attention to safety, heritage and reversibility. This constraint created a clear visual coherence, while allowing each work to retain its own identity.

Rather than a traditional exhibition, the ten works form a route along the water, primarily between the Patershol and De Krook. They can be discovered while walking along the quays or from the water itself. Modest in scale, the interventions invite viewers to slow down, pause and look more closely.

As a semi-permanent intervention, Waterway allows room for change. The artworks are temporary, but the experience endures. The project reflects an ongoing exploration of how artistic quality, context and feasibility can reinforce one another, and invites visitors to follow the city along its waterways — and see Ghent differently along the way.

Many thanks to all participating artists: Bram De Laet, Leda Vaes, Magnus Mori, Kiuw, Marge Architecten, Sam Timmerman, Edouard Schneider, Lucie Kaisala and Stijn De Pourcq.