Wandering the narrow, cobblestone streets of old Ghent, one can only be impressed by its classic Flemish architecture and wonder why it is less in the spotlight than the neighboring cities of Bruges and Brussels. Yet this shade provides the basis of greater authenticity for artists and travellers alike. With that, we arrive at the opening party of Dieprood, a shop born in the city’s essence.
Dieprood (pronounced ‘Deep-Road’), translates as ‘Deep Red’, in homage to Dario Argento’s horror masterpiece, Profondo Rosso. The name also hints to the spirit of the shopmaster couple, Rafel Delalande and Rachel Okna. Both spent the past decade in the hustle of London – Rafel doing horror-inspired blackwork tattoos at Seven Doors, Rachel working at Penguin Publishing, writing and reading tarot cards. They moved to Belgium on Christmas Day 2025, to build a vision for a multi-disciplinary realm in the dark arts.
The building, whose interior Rafel and Rachel renovated from scratch, is stunning in all its Flemish glory. A stone edifice erected in 1660, with a narrow wooden staircase winding through Dieprood’s many facets: library, gallery, tarot space and tattoo room. “We fashioned it in the spirit of our favorite Verlaine poem,” Rachel mentions, as she takes us through the spaces.
Comme la voix d’un mort qui chanterait Du fond de sa fosse, Maîtresse, entends monter vers ton retrait Ma voix aigre et fausse.
-Sérénade, by Paul Verlaine.
As the voice of a dead man might sing From the depths of his tomb, For you, Mistress, my tuneless voice rings False in my heart’s catacomb.
“The city has a romantic melancholy, which is conducive to creating dark, sad things,” Rachel says. This has been felt through Dieprood’s visitors from its inception. Amenra frontman (and Ghent local), Colin van Eeckhout, has visited. The antique seller down the block has stopped by occasionally to offer books and discuss the occult. A surprise visit from Sepultura drummer, Igor Calavera, has even sparked a flame for a potential artistic project.
Tattoo-wise, Dieprood has hit the ground running, with a diverse set of guests working alongside Rafel since Day 1 – Mors, Duncan X, Water Street Phantom, MartinTat2 and many more. You’ll surely catch a visit from Jondix and other Seven Doors artists sooner or later.
For the opening party, an earthly bunch ascended on Dieprood to praise its macabre glory. The walls were adorned by the profound, sombre paintings of Paolo Girardi, who came from Italy for the occasion. On the night of its genesis, Ghent’s arcane walls have been painted Deep Red, and we hear Verlaine’s tuneless voice evermore.
Dieprood Meerseniersstraat 12 9000 Ghent Access by train: 30min from Brussels – 2h from Paris – 2h30 from Amsterdam – 3h from London.
www.instagram.com/rafeldelalande/
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photos by /www.instagram.com/collectorofskulls/
