The Common Thread is an immersive passage crafted from three-dimensional knitted fabric that connects a previously inaccessible 19th-century monastery courtyard in Bruges with the city beyond. Drawing inspiration from the medieval tradition of urban lace making, this installation employs innovative woven textiles to create intricate spatial experiences within its undulating tunnels.
Visitors are invited to enter a sunlit courtyard and embark on an accidental journey through history, craftsmanship, and technology. The renovated garden unfolds multiple worlds, bridging past and future, form and matter, memory and space, all set against the monastery’s rich historical surroundings.
The ‘Common Line’ winds gracefully through the lush, secluded courtyard of the 19th-century monastery, revealing a hidden space to visitors via immersive textile installations.
This sinuous, wave-shaped structure breathes new life into the historic space, linking it to the streets of modern Bruges and forming an urban passage between neighborhoods. A discreet entrance invites visitors to wander through a playful spiral tunnel, leading them into a bright courtyard before guiding them onward.
Once a secluded healing garden, the monastery now serves as a vibrant space for encounters and discovery.
Inspired by Bruges’ rich textile heritage, this installation honors the centuries-old lace craftsmanship and the knowledge passed down through generations of local women. The city’s shops and the historic Béguinage preserve the celebrated tradition of shuttle core lace, inspiring us to reinterpret this complex craft on multiple scales using modern technology.
We collaborated with Dr. Mariana Popescu and her assistant Anass Kariouh from Delft University of Technology, utilizing a programmable 3D knitting machine to explore the geometric possibilities enabled by innovative weaving techniques.
The final fabric is woven in varying proportions, with the combination and branching of threads creating surprising, ever-changing patterns reminiscent of the “giant waves” of Beizhai.
Our company’s history is deeply intertwined with Bruges’ artisanal traditions, culminating in this latest structural research achievement. We partnered with Summum Engineering Company to conduct computational simulations, evaluate material samples, develop guiding forms, and design structural frameworks.
Building on previous explorations, our dynamic design approach continues to seek bending, elasticity, resilience, and flexibility within standardized materials.
Through the timeless beauty of patterns, Common Thread connects past traditions with future possibilities. By scaling an ordinary craft into a unique architectural work, it transforms a complex process into a spatial and exploratory intersection of history, technology, and discovery.
Project Drawings
△ Axonometric Diagram
△ Plan View
△ Analysis Chart
Project Information
Architect: SO-IL
Area: 300 m²
Project Year: 2024
Photographer: Iwan Baan
Design Team: Jing Liu, Florian Idenburg, Fabian Puller
Film Design and Production: Dr. Mariana Popescu, Anass Kariouh
Engineers: Diederik Veenendaal, Alessio Vigorito, Anand Shah
Assembly: Nick Gereels, Valentin Lorenzen da Silva, Jade Verlinde, Frieder Ringel, Robin Oval
Location: Bruges, Belgium
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