Genk – Gijs Van Vaerengerh – a collective of young Belgian architects and artists – completed its latest project, aptly named Labyrinth, for the tenth anniversary of the C-mine arts centre in Genk, Belgium. The collective plays with preconceptions of architectural typologies, creating installations that defy traditional structures and perspectives. Designed with a series of voids, the installation breaks 'down the logic of the labyrinth and creates new spaces and unexpected perspectives'.
Large fundamental shapes, such as spheres, cylinders and cones, cut through the installation’s 1-km-long and 5-m-tall steel wall. These voids break the monotonous sequence of high corridors, confronting the viewer 'with openings that reveal what is on the other side of the walls,' explain the architects. By reinterpreting the conventional labyrinthine layout, the architects empower visitors to generate a 'variety of spaces and visual perspectives'. The maze can also be viewed from above by ascending an old mine shaft. Here, visitors witness an overview of the C-mine’s context while experiencing 'a point of view that is generally reserved for the creator of a labyrinth'.
Photos courtesy of Filip Dujardin.
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