An old part of the Ghent harbour will be redeveloped into a completely new city district by the waterfront. From 2011 to 2019, between the relocation of the last industrial activities and in anticipation of the first new development projects breaking ground, DOK transformed a former concrete plant and shipyard into a temporary free space. The former industrial site was used as a meeting place and a platform to experiment. Rules seemed to be absent. Individuals or collectives who had a clear idea involving a creative urban dynamic, (artistic) innovation, experiment and encounter would find a host in DOK. From may to september, residents could use the site’s facilities and experiment. To visitors, this felt like an oasis close to the city centre.
In its early beginnings, I got a cheap camera and started photographing the site. Never having studied photography, DOK’s mission as a place for experiment became very personal when I started documenting the place and learned photography by doing.