The Reflection of An Empty Room – Sensorial Consumption of Monastic Architectural Spaces

Abstract

The following research aims to explore architectural spaces, and the human presence therein, in a Benedictine monastic environment. The empirical material was collected during the spring and summer of 2023 over a period of twenty days during which I stayed as a guest in St. Benedictusberg Abbey in the south of the Netherlands, just a few kilometers away from the tripoint where the country borders with Germany and Belgium. The monastery is home to fourteen monks who live together under the Rule of St. Benedict. This research topic sprouts from my main area of interest within anthropology, which is material culture studies, and more specifically what we commonly perceive as Home; how this perception is often challenged by alternative lifestyles which may be shaped by socioeconomic conditions, by feeling drawn away from urban environments and towards natural landscapes or, indeed, by religious motives. My aim is to bridge material culture and sensorial anthropology to argue how enquiring on monastic architectural spaces can lend itself to a study of spirituality. I am therefore going to focus on the sensorial consumption of monastic architectural spaces, how they are perceived by the visitor and the monk, and how the daily routines are carried out within the walls of the Abbey. When discussing the importance of sensorial experiences, I will focus first and foremost on the visual and auditorial exploration of the monastery, and the role of perception in mapping the space.

As part of the thesis, the 30-minutes film “Oculus Silens” (Latin for “The Silent Eye”) will accompany the written part and offer an audio-visual representation of my experience in the Abbey. The film will lead the audience through the hallways and places of cult and portray the people therein with the help of the sounds that permeates the place.