Brugge Triennale Pavilion

This swimming installation was made for a triennial art event. Commissioned by the city and floating in one of its canals, it serves as a platform for bathing and swimming, giving new access to the water, and as a meeting place for the neighbours. It was designed by a Spanish practice.

It is a structure of steel rods covered in a pink-orange fluorescent vinyl, a material never used before in a building. Structure and skin are one and inseparable, both shaped on site entirely by hand, welding and stretching as needed to reach the final form.

The waterproof canopy continues into a yellow timber floating platform for jumping into the canal. Light passing through the skin creates a playful glow that changes the familiar view of the old town.