pantheon// 2021 | out of order

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pantheon// biannual publication of d.b.s.g. stylos / issue 2 / volume 26

redro fo tuo

current (adj.) [ˈkʌr(ə)nt]

Belonging in the present time, in progress, customary, popular, circulating, running, flowing; (n.) A steady flow, mass of air, body of water, etc., that has a steady flow in a particular direction, velocity of a flow, electricity, general tendency or course of events or opinion.



order/DdBr/ (noun) A:7hewayinwhichpeopleorthingsare arranged,eitherinrelationtooneanotheror accordingtoaparticularcharacteristic B:Anauthoritativecommandorinstruction C:ArequesttomaNe,supply,ordeliverfoodor goods D:Asituationinwhicheverythingisarrangedin itscorrectplace A:Notfunctioningwell,notoperatingproperlyor atall D:Notfollowingtherulesorcustomaryprocedure B:Notinthecorrectsequence (expression) C:Unsuitable,inappropriate

out of order /aytB(v)‘D:dB/


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biannual publication of study association D.B.S.G. Stylos biannual publication of study Stylos TU Delft faculty of Architecture and the association Built Environment, faculty of Architecture, TU Delft The Delftsch Bouwkundig Studenten Gezelschap Stylos was founded in 1894 to look after the study and student interests at the Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment at the Delft University of Technology.

colophon volume 26, issue 2, September 2021 2.250 prints Stylos members and friends of the Stylos Foundation receive the pantheon//

lay out Charlotte Meijssen Floor van der Vliet Kati Hartman Max van der Waal

editorial office BG.midden.110 Julianalaan 132-134 2628 BL Delft pantheon@stylos.nl

advertisements 18 | Het Nieuwe Instituut 32 | Urban Climate Architects 36 | Kettner Makelaardij 36 | De Zwarte Hond 37 | DP6

QQ (qualitate qua) Leyla van der Waarde, Nick Coes editors Charlotte Meijssen David van der Peijl Eveline Scheffel Floor van der Vliet Kati Hartman

Liz LizHoogeveen Hoogeveen Max Maxvan vander derWaal Waal Nikita NikitaHam Ham Valdemarr Valdemarrvan vanStaveren Staveren

publisher Quantes, Den Haag cover The pantheon// committee type of paper FSC certified paper complied vegetable ink

chairman: secretary: treasurer: education bachelor: education master: external affairs: events and initiatives:

board 127 Nick Coes Emma Tulp Floris Pals Nynke Stam Leyla van der Waarde Sophie Verheugd Jules van der Meijs

contact D.B.S.G. Stylos Julianalaan 132-134 2628 BL Delft info@stylos.nl +31 (0)15 2783697 www.stylos.nl

OUT OF ORDER// 04

CHAIRMAN’S NOTE

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DAVID VAN DER PEIJL

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@FOKKEMA & CEPEZED

CHARLOTTE MEIJSSEN & FLOOR VAN DER VLIET

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GET INSPIRED

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I WAS JUST WONDERING POEM

JUST WHO IS OUT OF ORDER? MAX VAN DER WAAL

FLOOR VAN DER VLIET

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THE BOUWKO IN DELFT NIKITA HAM

KATI HARTMAN & CHARLOTTE MEIJSSEN

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INTERVENTIONS IN NATURE

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KATI HARTMAN

ARCHITECTURE ON HUMAN BEHAVIOUR OPINION DAVID VAN DER PEIJL

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HOW TO: PHOTOGRAPHY EVELINE SCHEFFEL

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ARCHITECTURE AS A POLITICAL WEAPON OPINION NIKITA HAM

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MINIATURE MODELS OF ORDINARY ITEMS CHARLOTTE MEIJSSEN

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UNIQUENESS DAVID VAN DER PEIJL

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LEGO IN THE REAL WORLD EVELINE SCHEFFEL

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THE (UN)HIDDEN BEAUTY OF OUT OF ORDER ARCHITECTURE LIZ HOOGEVEEN

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SORRY, THIS CITY IS OUT OF ORDER VALDEMARR VAN STAVEREN

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BREAKING THE RULES FLOOR VAN DER VLIET

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POST HUMAN ARCHITECTURE CHEPOS

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PIECE OF ART CHARLOTTE MEIJSSEN

CRAZY FACTS LIZ HOOGEVEEN

LIANNE WILLEKERS

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HUMANS OF BK KATI HARTMAN & DAVID VAN DER PEIJL

WANT TO FEATURE IN THE NEXT PANTHEON//? ARE YOU AN ASPIRING WRITER, MAD LAY-OUTER OR JUST IN NEED OF A CREATIVE OUTLET, COME BY THE STYLOS OFFICE OR MAIL US AT PANTHEON@STYLOS.NL


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COMMITTEE

membership Stylos €10,- per year account number 296475

2020/2021

Stylos Foundation pantheon// is funded by the Stylos Fund. The Stylos Fund fulfills a flywheel function to stimulate student initiatives at the Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment at the Delft University of Technology. The Stylos Fund offers financial and substantive support to these projects. As a supporter and friend of the Stylos Fund you will be informed on these projects by receiving the B-nieuws every month and two publications of pantheon// every year. We ask a donation of €45 or €250,- per year. More information about becoming a supporter or how to submit an application can be found on www.stylos.nl/fund.

NIKITA HAM CHAIRMAN

LIZ HOOGEVEEN EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

account number 1673413 disclaimer All photos are (c) the property of their respective owners. We are a non-profit organisation and we thank you for the use of these pictures.

EDITORIAL

VALDEMARR VAN STAVEREN EDITOR

BY LIZ HOOGEVEEN It was one of my first days at our faculty. My very first assignment. It consisted of designing a bridge, which was to comply with three requirements. They followed the Vitruvian principles of strength, utility and beauty. However, there was another restriction that we had to keep in mind: we were given a certain amount of cardboard to build the bridge model with. Excited as all the students were, we rushed to the “Maquettehal” and went ahead drawing. When I thought my sketches were good enough, I started cutting some blank paper to measure if I would not exceed the maximum amount of cardboard we could use. One of the staff members of the “Maquettehal” came over to me and almost yelled: “What on earth are you doing?”. I jumped and explained to him I was creating a test model to see if I had enough cardboard to use. He called me crazy and said: “You have heard of Francine Houben, right? She never followed any rules when she was studying here.”

DAVID VAN DER PEIJL EDITOR

That was the first thing I thought about when we were starting this edition on Out of Order. In life, and especially in architecture & the built environment, being out of order can be seen as something extremely positive. It means you are creating your own rules and that you have a style of designing which distinguishes you from others. On the other hand, something being out of order can also be seen negatively. Think of an elevator that does not work anymore, or a completely abandoned city. In this issue, we will explore those two sides of the spectrum. We hope to shock you, uoy esufnoc and find you dazzled by all the beauty that out of order architecture can bring. Dare to be out of order, even if you are just designing a bridge model out of cardboard.//

EVELINE SCHEFFEL EDITOR

FLOOR VAN DER VLIET CHIEF LAY-OUT

CHARLOTTE MEIJSSEN LAY-OUT

KATI HARTMAN LAY-OUT

MAX VAN DER WAAL LAY-OUT

LEYLA VAN DER WAARDE QQ

Due to corona pandamic the pantheon// committee has decided to send this addittion to your home as well. Next time you can choose to pick up your edition at the faculty, to read it online or to have it delivered to your home! Scan the QR code and give up your preference.

NICK COES QQ


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OUT OF ORDER OTU OF OREDR TUO FO RODER CHAIRMAN’S NOTE A year full of peaks and valleys, order and chaos and then, finally, the horizon can be seen. After a few setbacks in the past months, we are now entering a new academic year, one with more physical lessons and meetings. It is something we have been dreaming of for a long time. With long lines, separate days at the faculty, a fourth wave of corona cases, restrictions, and access testing however, it all seems pretty out of order still.

I wish you all a great new year full of study, new opportunities and new experiences. In the coming period, (hopefully) more and more things will open up and we will get to see each other more often. Who's to say when out of order turns into order? Tomorrow? Next week? Or when you finish this edition?//

Is that so bad? As can be read in this edition, opinions are rather divided on this. Some claim that more order has come into their lives during the corona crisis, while others have been given an out-of-order life because of the lack of order from university and work. Due to the lack of mandatory physical moments, there was little grip for some, while for others this offered an opportunity for self-discipline. A new year also brings new opportunities. The freshmen will discover a whole new world while the sophomores can enjoy the physical classes to get to know even more people. And, of course, the rest can also find each other in the wonderful world of the built environment.

David van der Peijl Chairman Board 128 of D.B.S.G. Stylos

We hope you enjoy!


DAVID VAN DER PEIJL | WORDS LIZ HOOGEVEEN & EVELINE SCHEFFEL | LAYOUT

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@FOKKEMA & PARTNERS When brainstorming ideas for an interview within the “Out of Order” theme, we came upon the idea to put two different kinds of designers next to each other. Designers who can often bump into each other in the field, but look at architecture through two different lenses. For this interview we spoke with interior designer and partner from Fokkema and Partners Rick Rijkse and with the owner architect from Cepezed: Jan Pesman.

How long have you been working as an interior designer? "I have been at Fokkema for over 10 years now, it was my first job. I went from rookie to partner. I like it very much here. When I studied architecture in Delft, there was always only a focus on architecture. I always went along with that flow and interior design was never discussed. I did notice that I liked creating things and that came out especially well in Form Study. For me, that was the start of my interest in interior design. And then at my graduation I chose Interiors, thinking it was about interior design. In the end it turned out the course wasn’t about interiors at all, but more about the philosophy of how you design from the inside out. At Fokkema & Partners, this philosphy of user centered design is at the cor of the design process and has become my second nature." Do you follow the same design process with interior design as you would with architectural design? "I think the design process varies per person. I personally enjoy making and creating things with my hands. Furthermore, I have an impatient nature, which makes me more at home in the interior design field because the lead time of projects is often shorter. The end result is tangible quite quickly. You don’t really experience such a process as we are going through during your study of Architecture. The gap between practice and your studies is quite large." When you are involved in a large construction project, how do you work together with the architects who are designing the building? "That is very diverse. Sometimes those things run seamlessly together. Five or six years ago we were involved in designing the most sustainable building in the world at the time. It is called The Edge and it is located on the Zuidas in Amsterdam. We designed the interior. We were given a seat at the table from

the very beginning. An architectural firm called PLP Architects was hired to design the exterior and they were a very nice party to coordinate with. They had a basic design and the client had a very large Program of Requirements for us of everything that needed to be in that building. Whenever they ran into a problem, we were there to think with them. Because we had so much knowledge of the shell of the building, we could then also flawlessly connect to it with the interior. Of course, there are also many examples of where the collaboration did not go as smoothly. Most of the time this is caused by the different ways of designing. In architecture, statements can be designed as an empty shell without a specific user in mind, while we, as interior designers, always design, for a client with specific demands. So it’s not surprising that these two different ways of designing clash sometimes." Do you take inspiration from the exterior of a building when designing the interior? "Yes, absolutely. Sometimes that is because we are working with an architect who wants certain principles reflected in the design. That could be a certain pattern, that could be a construction. We like to really understand the client, really get into their skin and rebuild


CHARLOTTE MEIJSSEN & KATI HARTMAN | WORDS & LAYOUT

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their identity or brand from there. Some brands are very outspoken in this. We also often come across clients who don’t have this, who just like our projects and want to take the next step for their company by using their interior to radiate their identity. You want an interior to really land in the location, you don’t want to design something that could just as well be in another city. The building is important because you want to avoid a huge contrast between exterior and interior." Despite the programme, do you still look for the edges when designing an interior? Or do you draw within the lines? "There is no progress without experimentation. There must always be growth and development in everything. Sometimes you catch yourself doing the same thing, and that is a sign that change is needed. Out of habit, as a firm, we are not doing anything other than encouraging progress. We have a materials team, who makes sure that everything that comes in here has a reason. There has to be development in it, it has to be new, it has to be exciting and it has to meet our standards. People know that about us, they know that we really enjoy discovering new concepts and ideas all the time." How is sustainability dealt with in interior design? "There are several labels that apply to different buildings. These days we’re very keen on Wellbeing, which is a sustainability label that focuses on the user. That means that there for example must be a lot of green in an office,

and materials you use must be of good origin. All the parties you approach to make the interior are made aware of the criteria of that label. In this way all involved parties base their choisens upon the well being of the user. So this label fits in perfectly with our philosophy." Have you ever felt like a design you made was really Out of Order? "For me, I think a design that was really ground-breaking goes back to Wellbeing. The label has all kinds of levels, platinum being the highest level. We were approached by a client who said: our ambition is to have the first Wellbeing Platinum interior in the world. Well, we succeeded, with both a lot of frustration and a lot of fun. We made the most sustainable office interior in the world. It was a project for Edge Technologies, their headquarters in Amsterdam. You could say that the office is full of craziness, but it actually just totally meets all the criteria that are out there right now. It has waterfalls and yoga rooms with nothing but greenery and there are parts of the floor plan where soothing natural sounds are played. It’s great to see that you don’t feel like you’re walking in a playground, but that you are in an environment that just works great. An environment that offers the user the choice of where they want to work and also how they want to work. And, of course, it looks good too. To be able to make something that is visually and architecturally almost perfect, while still being able to meet all the requirements of sustainability. That is the best challenge to take on."


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@CEPEZED How long have you been working as an architect? "When I started working, you could actually call yourself an architect from day one. I started studying in Delft in 1971 and in 1973 I founded Cepezed, during the second year of my study. When I started, the teachers and professors told us: if you want to become an architect, you better leave right away. In my time, people needed to be accommodated, so the focus was put on building as many buildings as possible, in the shortest time. Becoming an architect was elitist and that was not done. I sat down with two friends and we got a phone number and said: this is an architectural firm. It took about 10 years before things started to get going and our name became known. We’ve been around for 48 years now, which is a long time. From the beginning I figured that construction is a backward industry. Really in a medieval way, things are stuck together, chopped and greased. Sometimes you don’t even know if a building is being built or demolished. I thought: I’m not going to do that. Then I thought in a bright moment, the only place You have to build is in the factory and you have to assemble at the construction site. That’s something we’ve tried to adhere to as best as we can. It has led us to designing our own buildings in such a way that they can be prefabricated so we can contract them out to different suppliers. Our interior team also follows our motto of prefabrication, trying to make furniture out of interior elements. The verb ‘furnishing’ is a winged one here. This means that you can deliver, for example, a toilet block ready to use. Not as a pile of shelves, tiles and a few loose taps. No, these just arrive ready-made by an interior designer made somewhere under conditioned conditions. We try to unravel buildings into airframes and interiors." Have you ever worked with a party who will then design the interior? "Yes, we have worked with Fokkema on occasion, especially in the days when we didn’t have an interior department. That went great, they are pretty professional in the field of interiors. However, I find it more pleasant to have interior designers within our firm. In our basement we have a lot of samples to make mood boards and impressions, and we sit together with each other.


CHARLOTTE MEIJSSEN & KATI HARTMAN | WORDS & LAYOUT

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And vice versa, the interior designers also look at, for example, the kind of facade you are going to choose and the colour of the main structure. We try to integrate these kinds of things as well as possible and also force them to prefabricate." Is dismountable construction also something you see as your style? "No, it’s not a style, it’s a philosophy. It’s really a certainty that you have to build like that if you want to be futureoriented. That style can be anything." Can the interior of the building be the opposite of the exterior? "Yes it can, finding harmony in contrast. That is certainly possible. We often do that with transformations. With a richly decorated building in particular, it is nice to put something next to it that is the opposite, because then it strengthens both sides. So through the simplicity of the addition, the apparent simplicity, the existing building gains in quality and vice versa." In what situation do you feel completely free as an architect? "When I design my own house, although my wife has started to interfere. You are never completely free, you always have rules about the location for example. That is why I like to participate in competitions. We often take part and we win quite a lot of them, more than half of them actually. That’s because we think about an answer to a question that hasn’t been asked. When you have found it, the assessors often think: ‘Oh, we haven’t thought about that at all’. That’s also feeling free in thinking, beyond the question. Sometimes it is not fun to be completely free. On the contrary, it is fun to make something with quite a few limitations that does not read those limitations." Have you ever had the feeling that one of your designs was really out of order? "I once designed a pavilion in Hoek van Holland, 25 years ago. It was a present from Rotterdam to the sub

municipality, Hoek van Holland. It was meant to house an exhibition for three months about the radar guidance system of the port of Rotterdam. They told me: ”Do something Jan, with three containers or something”. I did something completely different. I then made a pavilion that is a large thermal bridge. That is not possible at all, it is not allowed, but because it was temporary, I was granted to do it. I had put up a steel skeleton and directly pasted glass onto it, something that is normally never done. And you know what, the building is still there. Everything is made up of single glass, except on the strokes where you look out, which is double glass. The funny thing is, I was presented with an award there, it rained that day and everyone came in with wet jackets. The whole building was fogged up on the inside, except for those strips of double glass. That turned out to be a great success in the end, but it was not possible according to the rules at all." Do you always look for the edges in your designs? "Well, I always have a reoccurring motto. There has to be a challenge in every design, otherwise you won’t get any further. It may well be rubbing off now and again, always trying and testing new materials and techniques. My goal is to think differently, to think prefab." //


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During a Whitsun weekend Rally, 18 Stylos members drove through the Netherlands in nine cars. The Rally was a huge success and that is why we want to share the route they took and the places they visited with you. Maybe you will get inspired to drive along the same route and find some beautiful places.

1. Valkenburg

Valkenburg is a small city in the south of Limburg, located along the river Geul. The city is known for old castle ruins, marlstone and the old city centre. Marlstone is a sedimentary rock and was mined in a quarry and in coves in Valkenburg for many years. The local marlstone has been used on a large scale for buildings in the city. It led to the self chosen name for the city: Valkenburg Mergelstad.

2. Sint-Pietersberg

Saint Peters Mountain (Sint-Pietersberg) is located south of Maastricht. Actually, it is not a mountain but a hill and nowadays it is more of a hole, since it is used as a marl quarry. On top of the hill stands Fort Sint Pieter (1701), which had a military function as part of the fortification of Maastricht. The hill is covered with beautiful natural vegetation and a great place for walks. From Limburg the Rally continued to the Hoge Veluwe and to Groningen.

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3. Jachthuis St. Hubertus

Jachthuis St. Hubertus, named after the patron of the hunt, is located in the north part of Nationaal Park Hoge Veluwe. This former villa was designed by Berlage (1915-1920) for the Kröller-Müller couple. Berlage did not only design the outside of the building, but did the complete interior, many utensils and the direct surroundings as well. This Gesamtkunstwerk is definitely worth a visit when you are in the Veluwe. 4. Park Paviljoen

This multifunctional public building is located at the heart of Nationaal Park Hoge Veluwe. The building was designed by De Zwarte Hond and Monadnock (2012-2019). The timber construction enhances the rural atmosphere. The Park Paviljoen comprises a restaurant, a shop, reception halls and an information centre.

5. Radio Kootwijk

Another remarkable building in the Hoge Veluwe is this former radio station. The symbolistic and expressionistic building is entirely made of (reinforced) concrete and is a bit shaped like a church. Radio Kootwijk was designed in the 20’s for the purpose of the radio and telegraph connection between the Netherlands and former Dutch East Indies.

6. Park Meerstad

Park Meerstad is the largest-scale (10 hectares!) public land art project in the Netherlands. It was designed by artist Jeroen Doorenweerd and LAOS Landschapsarchitectuur as a place for nature, art and recreation. You can experience the park by foot or by bike on different kinds of paths. Some follow the movement of the landscape, but you can also go straight through the hills, which makes the experience of the landscape very diverse and interesting. 7. Groninger Museum

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The Groninger Museum exhibits the work of contemporary artists and designers in a remarkable post-modern building. The building was designed by the architect Alessandro Mendini (1990-1994). It consists of different ‘islands’ that are divided into several pavilions, designed by different designers. The building is a shebang of colours and materials, making it stand out from its surroundings.

SOURCES

Wikipedia-bijdragers. (2021, June 20). Valkenburg (Limburg). Retrieved 6 June 2021, from https:n / l.wikipedia.org Natuurmonumenten. (n.d.).Platform groeve met publiek. Retrieved 3 May 2021, from https:/w ww.natuurmonumenten.nl De w Z arte Hond. (n.d.). Park Paviljoen Het Nationale Park De Hoge Veluwe. Retrieved 2 May 2021, from https:d / ez wartehond.nl 4 Rijksmonumenten.nl. (n.d.).Radiozendstation Kootwijk. Retrieved 3 May 2021, from https:r/ ijksmonumenten.nl 5 Meerstad. (2020).Doe mij Meerstad - Kunst is mijn natuur. Retrieved 6 June 2021, from https:/w ww.parkmeerstad.nl 6 Groninger Museum. (2021, March 3).Museum. Retrieved 3 May 2021, from https:/w ww.groningermuseum.nl/museum 1

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TO DRIVE

The Rally started in the province of Limburg in the south of the Netherlands.


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To get you further off the grid of online life, we want to inspire you with the following exhibitions, events, books and magazines.

TO VISIT

Trade Winds in the Age of Underwater Currents in A Tale of a Tub (29 May to 8 August 2021) A Tale of a Tub is located in the former bathhouse of the Justus van Effen complex in Rotterdam. It is a space for contemporary art and culture. This summers’ exposition shows the solo exhibitions of three artists about deep-sea mining, coastal ecology and underwater cable networks. They want to spread awareness about the bad consequences of these phenomena and how they put the underwater and coastal ecosystems out of order. For more information you can visit the website: www.a-tub.org.

FLOOR VAN DER VLIET | WORDS & LAYOUT

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La Biennale Architettura in Venice (22 May to 21 November 2021)

The Biennale Architettura is a biannual event that is being held during the even years. Therefore it should have been held last year, but because of COVID-19 the International Exhibition was postponed to this year. This year’s theme is How will we live together? and is curated by Hashim Sarkis, architect and Dean of the School of Architecture and Planning at MIT. The 112 participants from 46 countries try to answer the question of the theme, considering climate change, the role of public space, new construction techniques, collectiveness and education. For more information you can visit the website: www.labiennale.org/architecture/2021. If you are going to visit the Biennale, we recommend you to visit The Forbidden Garden of Europe. This artwork exhibits 35 invasive exotic plant species that are forbidden in Europe. The plants are metaphorical for political issues like inclusiveness. You can visit this artwork by Studio Wild from August 27 at Spazio Punch in Giudecca. For more information you can visit the website of Het Nieuwe Instituut: https://whoiswe.hetnieuweinstituut.nl/activiteiten/ forbidden-garden-europe.

Mevr. De Architect (2021) - Merel Pit (A.ZINE)

Mevr. De Architect is the first publication from the online architecture magazine A.ZINE. The magazine consists of nineteen interviews with female architects. It gives an overview of relatively known and unknown, but definitely inspiring role models. By giving a diverse look on the topic of women in the world of architecture, you are triggered to think about this topic differently.

This book, created by Billie and Maarten Slagboom, contains beautiful pictures of out of order architecture. Father and daughter portray buildings that have been left behind by everything and everyone and that have partly been taken over by nature. The pictures show the temporality of our existence. Maybe you can look for deserted gems yourself? For a sneak preview and interview about this extraordinary project, see The (un) hidden beauty of out of order architecture (p. 26-29).

FOR MORE BOOKS (ABOUT ARCHITECTURE) YOU CAN VISIT THESE BOOKSHOPS: Architectura & Natura - Nieuwe Doelenstraat 10 Amsterdam (https://www.architectura.nl) Mendo Flagship Store - Leliegracht 22 Amsterdam (https://www.mendo.nl) Het Nieuwe Instituut - Museumpark 25 Rotterdam (https://hetnieuweinstituut.nl/)//

TO READ

Hier woont alleen de tijd (2021) - Billie and Maarten Slagboom



KATI HARTMAN | WORDS & LAYOUT

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I WAS JUST

WONDERING I was just wondering How fast do your days pass by Are they filled with a daily rhythm Or maybe a weekly one I was just wondering When you cross the street Is it only the white tiles you step on Or the spaces in between Oh and tell me When the day starts Is it first your left Or right foot that touches the floor Is it normal for you To have a cosy room Or is it a struggle To organize your stuff Breathing in and out

Is it mostly your nose or mouth Or both Without knowing I was just wondering Do you make to do lists And actually do the tasks Or just leave them unattended I was just wondering Would you like the world to stop Just for one tiny moment So that you can catch up Oh and tell me Do you realise Your feet touching the ground When walking through the halls

To move your fingers And wiggle your legs Do you stare And really see Where are your thoughts In the moment or miles away I was just wondering Are we all the same? Doing the same things in Seattle, nine hours earlier as in Hanoi, five hours later But still Following the same steps just like me Or maybe

Can you sit still Or is there always a tendency

I was just wondering Am I completely out of order?//


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How to:

PHOTOGRAPHY

You are deep in the woods, photographing a moving object. You want your shutter speed as high as possible to be able to capture the movement. However it is late in the evening and dark outside and your photo is too dark to even see the moving object. What can you do? All the settings of your camera and lens are working together and are depending on each other for a clear photo. The settings all have their own function, but also work together to regulate the light of your photo. You have probably heard about these functions, but how do they actually work? Here is an overview to help you to take perfect pictures, including a few tricks every photographer should know.


SETTINGS ISO The ISO is the sensitivity for light of your camera and lens and has an effect on the brightness of your photos. The ISO is regulated by the sensor in your camera and is dependent on the amount of light that falls onto the sensor. In general this means that if more light falls onto your sensor, your photos will be lighter and when less light falls onto the sensor, your photos will be darker. Most of the time you will not want to change your ISO, because the higher your ISO, not only the brighter your photo, but also the more noise and colour blur there will be in your photo.

ISO: 160 f/4,0 1/800 sesc

Shutter speed The shutter speed is the time your lens and your sensor are open for light to come in. The longer your shutter speed, the more time there is between the registration on the sensor and the actual “printing” and therefore the more light comes in. However, due to the extra time, movement will be blurred. So, when photographing a moving object, the first thing you will need to do is adjust your shutter speed to capture the movement. Although your photo may be completely black at the moment, this can be fixed with the other settings. The tricky thing about shutter speed is the annotation of it on your camera. The shutter speed is annotated in seconds. This means that 1/100 stands for one second divided by a hundred, so 0,01 second and “10 means ten seconds.

EVELINE SCHEFFEL | WORDS & LAYOUT

ISO: 800 f/5,6 1/800 sesc

Aperture The aperture is equal to the opening of your diagram and is annotated as the Fstop (f/number). The Fstop works in a similar way as the annotation of the shutter speed. The lower the number, the bigger the opening of your diagram will be. Besides the changes in the amount of light that can fall through the lens due to the changing opening, the aperture also changes the angle of your photo. With a low Fstop (f/high number) the opening will be very small and therefore the angle will be small too. Due to the small angle both your foreground and background will be sharp. The other way around, with a high Fstop, your foreground or subject will be sharp, but your background will be blurry.

ISO: 800 f/4,5 1/2500 sec

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TIPS

Do not be afraid to shoot upwards or downwards! Shooting from different angles will give different perspectives to your subject and can be a real eye opener. Learn to work with Lightroom or Photoshop! The composition and light of your photo are the most important parts to focus on while taking photos. All the other aspects, like colour correction, white balance and brightness, can easily be optimised in Lightroom or Photoshop.

Shoot in manual mode! This can be hard at first, but you will have more control over your photos and over the way they turn out in the end. If full manual mode is a bit too hard at the moment, start with the semi manual modes in which you can change one of the settings by hand and the other two will be done by the camera automatically.

TRICKS

Shoot in raw! This will take up a bit more space on your SD card, but it is worth your while when you are planning on editing, printing and/or enlarging them. The RAW image will contain every single pixel your camera shoots and it contains all the data of light, colours and so much more. The JPG image, however, is a compressed version in which your camera will combine a lot of pixels. The more pixels you have at the end of shooting, the better and precise you can edit and the larger you can expand your photo. Shoot a little underexposed! When shooting, rather shoot a little underexposed instead of overexposed. Your camera is better at containing the details in the shadows than it is in containing the details in the highlights. Experiment with different autofocus settings! While shooting manually, you may think you also have to manually focus, this is not the case. With difficult compositions, like animals in a grass field, it may be easier to manually focus, but with most compositions the autofocus works just fine. The autofocus has developed a great deal and manual focus is hard to learn in comparison. Therefore it is better to start with manually doing the ISO, shutter speed and aperture.

ISO: 160 f/4,0 1/200 sec

And most importantly, do not be afraid to shoot photos! Take as many as you need and then take some more just to be safe. Taking photos is the only way you will learn and the only way you will improve.

ISO: 64 f/16 1/60 sec

ISO: 80 f/4,0 1/100 s


EVELINE SCHEFFEL | WORDS & LAYOUT

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There are slight differences between the different camera brands. Which one is the best is totally a personal preference and depends on what you are shooting. However, one thing that is no personal preference is the difference in annotation of the camera models of the different camera brands. Most of these settings are located on the main wheel, a turning wheel on top of your camera. These functions are there to make shooting easier. Although I encourage you to shoot in manual, beginning with one of the other settings is a good start for understanding the different settings that are explained in this article and the different tips and tricks.//

ISO: 800 f/4,0 1/320 sec

Settings

Canon

Nikon and Sony

Automatic depth of field

ADAP

Not on main wheel

Manual

M

M

Shutter priority (Shooting automatic except the shutter speed, this can be changed manually)

AV

S

Aperture priority (Shooting automatic except the aperture, this can be changed manually)

TV

A

Programme (Shooting automatic except the ISO, this can be changed manually)

P

P

[camera icon]

AUTO

Full automatic


Model from the MVRDV archive in Het Nieuwe Instituut. Photo: Petra van der Ree

Het Nieuwe Instituut for Architecture, Design and Digital Culture Discover the unique architecture collection, explore an exhibition about Nelly and Theo van Doesburg, and enjoy a coffee on the sunny terrace.

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FLOOR VAN DER VLIET | LAYOUT ADVERTORIAL

Het Nieuwe Instituut caters for design professionals in the Netherlands and for audiences interested in architecture, design and digital culture. The institute manages and provides access to cultural heritage, including the National Collection for Dutch Architecture and Urban Planning, stimulates research, and programmes exhibitions, lectures and debates at home and abroad. In the foyer, NAi Booksellers offers the latest titles alongside design classics. Het Nieuwe Café has a sunny terrace with a great view of the new Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen by MVRDV.

The Temporary Home From Home

Take a new look at the domestic interior. Themes include (lack of ) home safety, accommodation for homeless people, the dream home, and even the haunted house. Atelier Nelly and Theo van Doesburg

A fresh view of the work of Nelly and Theo van Doesburg, made possible by the recent restoration of their shared archive. The Architecture of a Wonderful World

National Collection for Dutch Architecture and Urban Planning

Het Nieuwe Instituut manages the National Collection for Dutch Architecture and Urban Planning: 1.4 million drawings, 300,000 photos, 2,500 models and 70,000 books and magazines from the archives and collections of Dutch architects and urban planners. The collection ranges from rare folios from the 18th and 19th centuries to the digital archive of MVRDV. There’s a focus on the period 1900-1940, with archives from Berlage, De Bazel, Oud, Dudok, Brinkman and Van de Vlugt, and Van Doesburg, among others. The ever-growing digitised element of the collection can be accessed via the search portal: portalsearch.hetnieuweinstituut.nl.

How Walt Disney and his fantasy world have influenced the way we see the built environment – and ourselves and others. Thursday Night Live!

In this weekly programme, thinkers, designers and makers from the Netherlands and abroad discuss urgent issues, innovative research and critical reflection related to architecture, design and digital culture.//

For current and upcoming events, see: hetnieuweinstituut.nl/agenda Student rates:

Research Centre

In the Research Centre, students, researchers and enthusiasts can meet, catch up and work. Visitors have access to the library collection and can consult original drawings, photos and other documents from the archives. For more information about visiting the Research Centre, see: research-centre.hetnieuweinstituut.nl.

Museum €7 (including Sonneveld House) Thursday Night Live! €3.50 Entry to the foyer, with the café and bookshop as well as various mini exhibitions, is free of charge. Follow the National Collection on Instagram @ collection_nieuweinstituut or sign up for the newsletter: hetnieuweinstituut.nl/nieuwsbrief

Autumn 2021 Highlights

MVRDVHNI: The Living Archive of a Studio The exhibition invites you to actively explore the MVRDV archive and work with the materials.

Het Nieuwe Instituut Museum Park 25 Rotterdam


NIKITA HAM | WORDS FLOOR VAN DER VLIET | LAYOUT

ARCHITECTURE AS A POLITICAL WEAPON

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As architecture students we learn and experience that architectural design has an enormous impact on the health, emotion and behaviour of the users. If you want to give people a certain feeling, thought or reaction, you have to make the right design choices. Politicians know about this power too and have been using architecture as a tool for their own purposes since time immemorial. For interfering with the street scene, two intentions can be found.

The strong need to show off power was also the case for Adolf Hitler. He was obsessed with the idea of building the largest dome in the world in Berlin. When he learned that in Russia an even larger building was under construction, he was furious for he felt “cheated of the glory of building the tallest monumental structure in the world.” (Gordillo, 2014). Not much later he ordered the invasion of the Soviet Union. Coincidence?

Firstly, architecture can be used to show power. It can be intimidating, threatening or belittling if you have enough people and the right tools (read: money). In our history we know a lot of famous constructions of leaders who wanted to show how big a deal they were. Think of the Egyptian pyramids, the palace of Versailles, the powerful Church with all its incredible cathedrals scattered over the world and of course the Pantheon in Rome. All these buildings are huge and impressive for the modern tourist, but it is hard to imagine what enormous impact they would have had on people during the period in which they were built.

Still, influence through architecture can go even further. It can impact the way you look at the world. Winston Churchill had the words to describe this in his plea in May 1943 to rebuild the bombed House of Commons exactly as before: "We shape our buildings, thereafter they shape us." Imagine you live in a city where all apartment buildings look exactly the same, with facades in which you cannot make out your own windows. There is nothing unique or personal about your living environment, so why would you feel special? This is the foundation of communist architecture: it makes everyone equal.

By using the street plan pattern, a work can even get more emphasis. An example for this is Napoleon's Arc de Triomphe, with 12 streets running directly to his masterpiece. In the modern day you can see this power play still in buildings which push the physical and technical boundaries. The Middle East puts itself on the map with their skyscrapers as weapons of capitalism, the Burj Khalifa being by far the tallest of the world: 828 meter of evidence that Dubai has the money and power to realise great things.

There have been lots of politicians with strong opinions about which direction architecture should go and which movement to follow. Coming back to Hitler, he knew exactly how he wanted the architecture in his Reich. He was convinced that monumental buildings were powerful weapons to dazzle and intimidate multitudes, impeding them to act critically and assertively. Together with his chief architect Albert Speer he spent a lot of time developing plans for his land.

"We shape our buildings, thereafter they shape us." - Winston Churchill


NIKITA HAM | WORDS FLOOR VAN DER VLIET | LAYOUT

POLITICS POLITICS POLITICS POLITICS POLITICS POLITICS POLITICS POLITICS

Adolf Hitler and his party architect Albert Speer. Image Belga

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NIKITA HAM | WORDS FLOOR VAN DER VLIET | LAYOUT

"Koolhaas is in my opinion the biggest criminal against humanity"

- Thierry Baudet

In the Netherlands, Thiery Baudet of Forum voor Democratie also has his ideas of what our country should look like. And what it should absolutely not look like. He once called Rem Koolhaas "the biggest criminal against humanity" (Beek & Liukku, 2017). According to him, we should go back to a more traditional style of building. He is a fan of architect Léon Krier, who is a prominent critic of the modernist movement and advocate of the New Traditional Architecture. This is completely in line with Baudet’s take on political viewpoints, no surprise that these would reinforce each other.

Pyongyang's Monument to Party Founding. Image Bianchi & Drapic

And as a last example of political leaders interfering with the design of their city: North Korea. Everyone knows of the mysterious country where everything is being controlled by the government, as is of course the architecture. The book The Model City Pyongchang (Bianchi, 2019) gives a rare look into the capital city of the country. It shows that since 2012, when Kim Yong Un assumed leadership, Pyongyang has gone through a massive transformation shaped by Un's personal architectural vision. The new buildings look futuristic and “toy-like” (Bianchi, 2019), delivering us a message: North Korea is preparing for the future. With all the above cases in mind, it could be interesting to look at our own country. Freedom is one of our most important values. However, the street planning and programming is done by the government. It is now clear that all architecture has a political dimension, in the sense that it expresses a set of values. So, do their choices have an influence on how we look at the world? Is Dutch architecture a cause, an effect or a projection of the norms and values we have? Are Dutch architects free to design whatever they want? Or is the politician actually the architect?// SOURCES Teerds, H. (2019, April 9). Leve de moderne architectuur, maar Baudet heeft wel een punt. Trouw. Retrieved from https://www.trouw.nl 2 Cutieru, A. (2020, August 16). The Political Dimension of Architecture Activism through Design. Archdaily. Retrieved from https://www.archdaily.com 3 Gordillo, G. (2014, February 2). Nazi Architecture as affective Weapon. World Architecture. Retrieved from https://worldarchitecture.org 4 Weessies, R. (2019, March 22). Video: Thierry Baudet over architectuur. Architectenweb. 5 Beek, M & Liukku, A. (2017, September 30). Thierry Baudet: Een groot deel van Rotterdam is lelijk. AD. Retrieved from https://www.ad.nl 6 Bianchi, C (2019). Model City Pyongchang. 1


EVELINE SCHEFFEL | WORDS EVELINE SCHEFFEL | WORDS MAX VAN DER WAAL | LAYOUT MAX VAN DER WAAL | LAYOUT

LEGO in the real world

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LEGO in the real world One of the things I always wanted to have as a kid were the LEGO city sets, so I would be able to design and build my own house. Apparently, this was not only part of my youth, but also of the youth of many others. When walking through the faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment there would probably only be a handful of people who did not play with LEGO as a child. However, the funny thing is that LEGO may not only be a part of your past, but can also be a part of your future. One of the newest techniques in the building

sector, that is totally out of order, are the insulation foam blocks made by Gablok. These blocks are made out of different insulation materials and a thin layer of wood. And, as you may have guessed, these blocks can be stacked just like LEGO blocks can. The idea of these blocks is that people would be able to design and build their own house using these blocks. This would be a fast and easy way to assemble a building without drying time or enormous secondary constructions. Traditional building techniques are eliminated and replaced by newer techniques such as prefabrication. This means that there will not be any excess waste. Furthermore, because of the clicking system of these blocks there are no extra materials needed for the assembling.

For starters, architects will not be needed anymore. Or at least to a lesser extent, due to the self-design option with these blocks. Besides the architect’s job, the whole building sector could be at risk. When building on your own becomes the standard for the building industry, large construction businesses, contractors and construction workers will be out of business. Besides that, no one can assure you your house is safe to live in and is built according to the correct guidelines and rules. Without a certified expert to look over the plans, there is no guarantee the building will not collapse during the first windstorm. In addition, the blocks are made of isolation material and a thin layer of wood. This results in a light structure that may not be strong enough to hold up a house containing more than one floor. These “LEGO” blocks for adults are meant to make the building industry easier and more accessible. However, by building your own house a lot of complications may come along, such as safety issues and a loss in jobs for the construction and building industry. So, this innovation has pros and cons. I am really curious about the further developments in this new technique and I am curious to see what these techniques will do to the set order in the building sector.//

What will the future be like if innovations such as these LEGO like blocks will take over the building industry?

Different available building blocks 1

Standard wall block 1


EVELINE SCHEFFEL | WORDS MAX VAN DER WAAL | LAYOUT

Wall being built with standard wall blocks 1

Wall being built with standard wall blocks 1

SOURCES

Lakatos, G. (2021, 12 juli). About Gablok - Timber-frame selfbuild company. Gablok. 2 Selfie, S. (2021, 17 januari). Build your own house with Gablok insulated blocks. Startup Selfie. 3 Thakur, M. (2021, 11 mei). Gablok Insulated Blocks Let You SelfBuild a House. HomeCrux. 1

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| WORDS | LAYOUT

The un hidden BEAUTY of out of order

ARCHITECTURE Interview with Billie & Maarten Slagboom

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LIZ HOOGEVEEN | WORDS KATI HARTMAN | LAYOUT

We are climbing up the stairs, happy that we already made it to the third floor. We are dazzled by the Escher-like stairs that seem to never end. Suddenly, an alarm goes off. Our minds go spinning as we try to think where we entered the building. Hopefully, we took a picture that depicts it all…* And yes, they got that picture (p. 28, picture at the top). In fact, it got chosen out of an innumerable amount of pictures to get published in ‘Hier woont alleen de tijd’ (translated as ‘Only time lives here’), a book created by Billie and Maarten Slagboom. Together, daughter and father travelled all around the world to discover the hidden beauty behind buildings that are out of order. Now they share it in their book, and in this edition of pantheon//, to let people think about the temporality of our existence. “It all started in 2016, when I was just fifteen years old and bored at secondary school”, Billie tells. She already had been photographing for a while and made a list of places where she would like to travel to. “In my list, the Taj Mahal stood next to abandoned buildings. I did not really make a distinction between them, because they all looked beautiful to me.” Her father Maarten, who has loads of experience in photography, perceived that Billie wanted to go on an adventure. He read an article about the industrial city Charleroi, which had been acclaimed as ‘the most unattractive city in the world’. "My immediate thought was: why unattractive? We jumped in the car and decided to search for the hidden beauty.” This led to an unstoppable fascination for buildings that were abandoned and partly taken over by nature. They started with photographing factories, but soon the fascination expanded to more intimate spaces like classrooms and residences. Maarten says the following about this intimacy: “You often see pictures of abandoned castles or cathedrals. However, we think those are less personal. You cannot picture yourself living in such a building, while you can when you are looking at a kitchen. We want to appeal to one’s imagination.” That is also the reason that there is no text to be found in their book. “We do not tell you what you are looking at exactly. We want you to interpret it in your own way, so your life can be reflected in it”, Billie explains. Neither are the photos separated by chapters. Maarten elaborates: “We hope it works as one ‘Zone’. It does not matter which function a building has, or where it is located, because they are similar in a certain way. As time passes, all buildings grow towards each other. They smell the same and you hear the same sounds”.

We left the building. There are countless things racing through our minds. We feel calm and happy. We feel void, in the best way possible. We are conscious about time and our temporality. We get into the car and for a moment, there is perfect silence. Then, we turn up the music and feel cheerful. A celebration of life. Even though the pictures are not only about the buildings, architecture does play an important role in their book. They did some research and discovered architects who have the same fascination for ruins. Maarten brings up architect John Soane, who designed the Bank of England during the 19th century. “While designing, he fantasized about what it would look like when it became a ruin”, Maarten explains. Soane even let someone paint what the bank would look like as a ruin. “And he is not the only one,” Billie continues, “nazi-architect Albert Speer thought about designing buildings that would look beautiful as ruins as well, which he called ‘ruin value’”. So, thinking about the long-term future, do Billie and Maarten have any future plans? “At the moment, we are searching for new places to photograph. We are also still imagining how certain buildings would look if they were out of order. But it is hard to tell which ones we can photograph, because many of them are being torn down or renovated,” Billie tells, “even some of the buildings that are pictured in the book, are gone now”. While singing along with the music, we think about what we have seen. The building we visited felt like a person to us. She talked to us and she told us stories about everything she had been through. We listened, breathlessly. We wrote it down and took it home. Now it is your turn to read her story.// *The text in bold is fictional, written by the writer but in the spirit of Billie’s and Maarten’s story.

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Post Human Architecture It is safe to assume that humans can be considered as the center of architecture, or even as the center of most (if not all) design. We create architecture so that we, and other people, can experience it. But what if humans were taken out of the equation? Clearly, architecture would not exist without humans, but what if we weren’t around to experience it anymore? Some agree that humans eventually will go extinct; to them, it is just a matter of when, not if. Then the question arises, what happens to our creations when we are no longer around to enjoy it? This is the existential-crisislike question that the concept of post-human architecture attempts to answer.

The idea of post-human architecture assumes that the human race will indeed go extinct, and that our structures will be all that we leave behind. It theorizes about what is going to happen, and what should happen, to structures after the time of humans. Now, this all sounds very morbid and depressing, but it stems from a slightly more upbeat and positive idea. This idea is that we should include more species besides just humans in our designs. Nature is full of a wide variety of species, but we only ever focus on one. Paying more attention to others instead of just to ourselves could help us create architecture that works and serves a purpose beyond the human experience. This could be taken as a sign that we should learn from nature and incorporate what we learn in our buildings. After all, nature is the basis of everything and structures that we see in ecology could be used on a larger scale in the human built environment and urbanism. Another way to interpret this is that we should prepare for after a building is no longer of use to humans. This is where the extinction part comes in, because extinction means we can be sure that no building is serving their original purpose anymore. Humans are gone, so what is next? Assuming we do not take animals down with us, they are next in line to make use of our structures. An animal cannot do much with a solid concrete wall, but if this wildlife of the future is taken into account in the original design of the building, we can prepare for it. This also holds true for abandoned buildings that we see nowadays. Even without human extinction, there are many structures all around the world that are no longer in use. The only ones that really use these abandoned buildings nowadays are maybe urban explorers, and nature. Overgrown abandoned buildings may become home to wildlife in the area anyway, therefore what if, these buildings were optimized to be used that way after their original purpose has been fulfilled?

This is the idea that Ariane Lourie Harrison, an architect and professor at Yale School of Architecture, had in mind when she developed a façade that is perfectly usable for wildlife. The work called The Birds and The Bees is an art installation that brings small wildlife and humans together. It is a collection of wall panels that can serve as the façade of a building in which small pollinators can make their home. Firstly, cavities in the wall panels have been made the right size for small bird species to nest in. It is argued that common bird houses are very much insufficient for birds to make their home in. They are often modeled after houses for humans and the pointed roof is a perfect place for predators to wait for baby birds to come out. The cavities were made the perfect size for small birds native to North-America and the fact that they are literally just holes in the façade means that there is no place for predators to lay in wait. Secondly, small holes in the façade are perfect for bees to make their nests in. This is purely meant for solitary bees that are not part of a beehive and are known to be less aggressive than their honey-making counterparts, because they do not need to protect a queen. Therefore, these bees do not exhibit dangerous behavior towards humans and are friendly animals to live around. Furthermore, declining bee populations all around the globe are a threat to flora and fauna as we know it, so providing a safe place for bees to live is beneficial to the overall climate in cities. By making space for wildlife in our constructions, we shift the focus away from humans and towards animals. The Birds and The Bees installation makes it clear that even small interventions, like making small holes in a building’s façade, can contribute greatly to healthy wildlife in and around our buildings. While most of this stems from the idea that humans are bound to go extinct in the future, it is also worth noting that this can be beneficial while we are still around as well. After all, bringing more greenery into the city has always been viewed as a valid option to combat climate change. Bringing in more wildlife just takes this concept to the next step. The whole idea of post-human architecture is about human extinction, possibly due to climate change, but it is evident that it can also be used to combat the thing that is expected to become our downfall. In the process of combating global warming, we can create cities that are simply nicer to live in. Just imagine a city where humans and wildlife live side by side and climate change is no longer an issue in the back of our minds.// 2 1 3

Images: 1. Impression of The Birds and Bees Installation (source: Harrison Atelier) 2. The Birds (source: Harrison Atelier, 2016) 3. The Bees (source: Harrison Atelier, 2016) Sources: 1. Timur Zolotoev. “Posthuman Architecture: Rem Koolhaas, Benjamin Bratton, and Janna Bystrykh on scale and system.” July 5, 2017. Strelkamag.com 2. Ariane Lourie Harrison. “Posthuman architecture.” Pca-stream.com 3. Ariane Lourie Harrison. “The Birds and The Bees Installation.” 2016. Harrisonatelier.com


LIANNE WILLEKERS | WORDS JOEP DIRX | LAYOUT

The idea of post-human architecture assumes that the human race will indeed go extinct, and that our structures will be all that we leave behind

The Bees installation makes it clear that even small interventions, like making small holes in a building’s façade, can contribute greatly to healthy wildlife in and around our buildings

chepos Chepos is the independent architecture magazine of study association Chepos of the Technical University Eindhoven. For every edition, Chepos and pantheon// publish one of each other’s articles.

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Urban Climate Architects Spoorsingel 23, Delft 085-2735411 www.ucarchitects.com info@ucarchitects.com

Urban Climate Architects stands for a future where everyone can live, work and play healthily and safely together. We create a stage where young, old, rich and poor (and everyone in between) can build, develop and grow a quality life.

applying natural biomass materials instead of concrete and steel to try and reduce the environmental impact of the latter. Wood is renewable, functions as carbon dioxide storage and can be reused easily. It is also lightweight and quick and simple to assemble.

URBAN To achieve this, we give shape to urbanization, in a responsible way. We intensify the city and thereby relieve the burden on nature. In this way we leave nature alone in its element and create opportunities within the existing city limits. We have devoted ourselves to the principles of a circular and inclusive society. This does not only concern materials and products we make use of, but also applies to our world view that level playing fields must be created.

ARCHITECTS Quality is timeless and will outlive trends. It adds tranquility to otherwise complex situations. Quality is always the starting point from which we design. It is our way to add an extra dimension to sustainability. Highquality designed products have a long life-span and will therefore get to be used longer. This, combined with a feeling for human scale and proportions and having an eye for detail, leads to a social and soft kind of sustainability that surpasses numbers and graphs. This sustainability is reflected by perceiving the world through our senses, by the way we view cities, by sensing how a wall that is made of wood feels, by being sensitive to the sound of autumn leaves rustling in the wind.

CLIMATE The climate is an undeniable force which must be recognized and understood, and for us, this is done so through sustainability. Energy is generated locally as much as possible. When feasible, we are in favour of

Redevelopment and extension Thureborg, Dordrecht


ADVERTORIAL | URBAN CLIMATE ARCHITECTS CHARLOTTE MEIJSSEN | LAYOUT

DESIGNING AND BUILDING SUSTAINABLY IN SOLID WOOD Even though building in solid wood is definitely in the spotlight, in practice we see a different situation. In the Netherlands, buildings are still rarely realized in solid wood. This is in contrast to countries around us like Belgium, Great Britain and Scandinavia that have been building with cross laminated timber (CLT) on a large scale for years. What will it take to make steps in that direction in the Netherlands? During the last years, Urban Climate Architects has specialized in this field and has become leader in designing and building sustainably in solid wood. Building in wood is not a new development. Urban Climate Architects has worked on many projects in wood for some years now, starting with wood frame constructions, and moving to CLT since 2019. Urban Climate Architects focusses on building in existing cities. This involves the redevelopment of complex areas, extensions/conversions of existing buildings like, for example building living spaces on top of existing shops. Building light-weight is preferable to avoid having to make expensive adjustments to the foundations, and therefore these buildings are mainly designed in wood. For our first CLT project we realized 12 apartments in the centre of Delft. We wanted the aesthetic quality of CLT to be felt inside while making very sure we met the fire and acoustic requirements. The most significant optimization here was reducing the construction to a single-bladed system while still meeting the fire and acoustic requirements. Working together with CLT builder JM Concepten, their wood adviser and DGMR, we reached a solution that involved placing an acoustic plate on one side of the wall separating the flats. It meant that one wall was finished off while the other three walls and the ceiling retained wood. We can appreciate the advantages CLT shows, both on a sustainable and an aesthetic level. Smart designing using the properties of the material sees to it that we build in line with the prevailing market and that building time can be shortened to half the time it would take to build a traditional structure. Given these advantages, the next step for our office is to scale up. We are currently working on numerous CLT projects while searching for optimilizations to be able to build higher structures in CLT. All images are projects built in wood that were designed by Urban Climate Architects. Curious about wood? Please contact us. //

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BREAKTHEORDERTEARTHEORDERCRUS CHARLOTTE MEIJSSEN | WORDS & LAYOUT

The image on the left follows the perfect order of the rainbow. Everything in the image makes sense and is soothing for the eyes. We challenge you, as a designer, to break that perfect order. Tear out the left page, rip it up and create something new with the pieces in the blank space below. Be creative, be bold, be out of order! Tag @d.b.s.g.stylos on Instagram to show us your piece of art!//

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Any plans for september? join our team! internships in Rotterdam, Groningen or Cologne. see www.dezwartehond.nl or mail: jobs@dezwartehond.nl


FLOOR VAN DER VLIET | LAYOUT ADS

JOIN US

pantheon// and pantheon// online are always looking for new creative ideas or subjects! Do you want to write or layout something? You can contact us at pantheon@stylos.nl or at stylos.nl

The essential idea in the architecture of DP6 is that the space around you influences your feelings, your psyche. The deliberate focus on sensory experience inspires a sense of wonder.

www.dp6.nl

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Interventions in Nature More and more of the natural environment in the world is disappearing. In the Netherlands almost every bit of nature you can see is designed and is not even ‘real nature’ anymore. Therefore the preservation of the natural environment is more important than ever. This got us thinking about the way building in nature constitutes a contradiction as well. On one hand, nature creates scenery by itself. On the other hand, buildings are built by human beings. How can these two be integrated in a design? How can we cope the best with nature while designing? How can we build as naturally as possible? We will explore the relationship between the built and the natural by showing some projects where nature is a considerable part of the design.

Treehotel - The Mirrorcube (2010) in Harrards, Sweden - by Tham & Videgard Architekter

Moses Bridge (1)

Moses Bridge (2011) in Bergen op Zoom - by RO&AD Architecten To get access to Fort de Roovere in Bergen op Zoom, visitors have to cross the water. RO&AD Architecten have designed a special bridge to get over the water. The bridge lies in the moat like a trench, which makes it invisible for visitors from a distance. The Moses Bridge disappears in the contours of the landscape, which makes the intervention very soft and almost unnoticeable. Of course not every architectural intervention can be hidden, but this design is a great example and shows that it can make the intervention much more subtle. Since the bridge is made like a trench through the water, the walking level is lowered, causing the experience of the surroundings to be totally different. By lowering the perspective, the feeling of connectedness to nature may be stronger, which makes people appreciate the natural environment more.

Hidden between the trees in a forest in the far North of Sweden is a treehouse located, called the Mirrorcube. The mirrored exterior of the cube gives the illusion of nothingness. All you experience while walking around the cube are the surrounding trees. The Mirrorcube is designed by Tham & Videgård Arkitekter, a Swedish architecture firm. With this design they tried to create a structure that is camouflaged within the context, but at the same time has a shape that deviates from its surroundings. The interior of the Mirrorcube is simple and can comfortably fit two people. It can be accessed from the ground with a rope bridge. The structure of the cube consists of lightweight aluminium mounted to the trunk of a pine tree. The entire 4x4x4 meter cube is covered with reflective glass plates, which reflect the surrounding trees and the sky. The plates are laminated with a transparent ultraviolet colour that is only visible for birds to prevent any collisions. The interior of the cube is mostly built out of plywood and there are windows in all directions, giving the visitor a 360 degrees view of the outside. The Mirrorcube allows the surrounding nature to keep its worth and the structure only causes minor interventions in the surrounding nature. We might even be able to say that the Mirrorcube gives the forest more meaning, by focussing the viewer’s attention on the trees instead of on the building itself. Pro’s and cons: + The design reflects the surroundings nature + Small structure - minor interventions + Plywood interior - natural product made from renewable resources + Allows just a few people to visit + Not a danger to birds – Aluminium construction – Attached to a pine tree trunk – Plywood consist of glue, which is not biodegradable

Pro’s and cons: + Not very noticeable, thus more subtle. + Made out of wood + Experience from another perspective and more connected to nature – Preserved wood, thus not fully biodegradable – Hiding a structure is not a solution for everything

Mirrorcube by Tham & Videgård Arkitekter ()


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Path of Perspectives or Perspektivenweg (2018) in Innsbruck, Austria - by Snøhetta On mountain peak Seegrube in Innsbruck, Austria, a panorama trail is located. Norwegian architectural firm Snøhetta has designed a series of ten architectural elements on this trail to experience the landscape from different perspectives. The elements create subtle interventions in the landscape, while marking unique meeting points. Every element offers the trail’s visitors a different interesting viewpoint in the landscape, making the visitors more aware of their surroundings. One of the most prominent elements of the trail is the viewing platform that appears to be growing out of the mountain. Other elements of the trail are smaller in size, but still all offer a different way of experiencing the surrounding nature. The elements of the trail are made from Corten steel and larch wood. These choices of materials were inspired by the context and the existing structures in the landscape, like the avalanche barriers. Even though these trail elements are a great example of how interventions in nature can be beneficial, there are still some challenges that come with projects like this. Firstly, the added elements of the trail encourage more people to visit the trail, allowing more human interference into the landscape. The second disadvantage has to do with the choice of materials. While wood is a natural material, Corten steel is not biodegradable, making the use of it more harmful for the environment.

A World Made of Steel and Stone and... Green Conscience (4)

Pro’s and cons: + Natural materials (wood) + Subtle + Blends in with the landscape + Makes visitors more aware of nature + Multiple small interventions instead of one large intervention – Encourages tourism – Not biodegradable (corten steel)

Path of Perspectives - ‘Perspektivenweg’ (5)

The three projects we highlighted in this article all form an intervention in nature. All the projects have their own advantages and disadvantages. It would be best if all designs were biodegradable, like designs from Neri Oxman, who works with silkworms, or Studio Bark, which has designed a fully biodegradable and recyclable cork building. But the designs we highlighted in this article showed that a design can also really become a part of nature because of the design. When you are intervening in nature it is important to have the next things in mind: try to be subtle; to use natural materials; to make something that complements the natural environment; to make something that makes people appreciate the surrounding natural environment; to think about the impact of your creation and how it will affect the future; to have the least impact on the natural environment and the ecosystem; to think about how to have the smallest impact on the natural environment and ecosystem with the construction process. Building is not natural, which makes building in natural environments a great paradox. But with these tips, you might be able to make the least impact on the environment and to make the intervention as natural as possible.// SOURCES RO-AD Architecten. (n.d.). Moses Bridge. Retrieved 6 July 2021, from https://www.ro-ad.org/projecten/moses-bridge De Winter, P. (2018, April 25). Mozesbrug nooit bedoeld als icoon. Retrieved 6 July 2021, from https://www.architectuur.nl Etherington, R. (2021, May 25). Mirrorcube by Tham & Videgård Arkitekter. Retrieved 6 July 2021, from https://www.dezeen.com 4 Tham & Videgård Architekter. (n.d.). Treehotel – Tham & Videgård. Retrieved 6 July 2021, from https://www.thamvidegard.se 5 Norden, E. (2020, August 7). A World Made of Steel and Stone and... Green Conscience. Retrieved 6 July 2021, from https://arterritory.com 6 Snøhetta. (n.d.). Path of Perspectives - ‘Perspektivenweg’. Retrieved 6 July 2021, from https://snohetta.com 1 2 3


The

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Bouwko in Delft

Our Architecture faculty has been part of the TU Delft since day one. However, architecture students, also known as “bouwko’s”, are still seen as a different breed compared to other students. Because of this, it has been questioned if Architecture should stay in the TU Delft. Yes of course, was the answer of the university, but it is still a discussion point around our kitchen tables. To dive into this debate, I spoke to three completely different students in three interviews. We talked about how you can recognize a “bouwko” from the inside and outside, about similarities and differences between studies. It turned out we are not that ‘out of order’ at all in this city of technology.

“The TU Delft is a fitting place to study Architecture. It is technical but has another angle of approach, which is an essential addition to the range of studies. I understand that people think it is not as technical as other studies, but that is not entirely true. Looking at the diversity in masters you can do after our bachelor, you can see the range of technological aspects we learn about. We are heading towards a more and more technological future, also within the architecture field. For that reason I think that it is smart to have Architecture in Delft, because we need to learn about and experiment with these new technologies to improve the built environment. You can recognize this shift in our curriculum. There are for instance lectures about the influence of big data on our discipline. Physically, you can recognize us as architecture students from our style of clothing. This is typically a black turtleneck of course. Within the faculty there is a big range of styles, but everyone is conscious of their outfits. There are also personal traits that we share. Architecture students are conscious about the world. We can be activists, feminists or politically active.

Nienke Kloosterman (22) fourth years architecture student

We are open to the world and other people. We learn that everything is possible and nothing is weird. It is not per se something we learn by studying, but rather from the people around us. Although we are different from other students in this city, when I go to another student city like Groningen I feel very ‘Delfts’. I see we like logic and think in a practical way. In Delft, I do not notice that on a daily basis because here, everyone is like that. For some of our courses it is more complicated to get objectively marked. I know someone who did not pass a design course the first time because the teacher thought she could personally do better. On the other hand, there are students that do not have a talent for architecture but their presentations fit all the boxes. What do you do with someone like that? Architecture is not difficult, but it is a lot of work. If you compare it on technological challenge, it is easier than most studies here. But studying Architecture is hard work, if you are not passionate you are never going to get through the bachelors.” Nienke (22)

“Although we are different from other students in this city, when I go to another student city like Groningen I feel very ‘Delfts’.”


NIKITA HAM | WORDS MAX VAN DER WAAL | LAYOUT

“I know quite some Architecture students from Stylos, Plankenkoorts (a student surf association) and residents from my flat. Our studies are often placed in the same category. I always get angry when people say Industrial Design Engineering or Architecture do not belong in Delft. When you look at the Dreamteams in Delft, which are the pride of the university, students from our studies are wellrepresented. That says a lot. People are just jealous of our creative approach. We have technical aspects, but not everything has to revolve around them. However, I feel like at Industrial Design we focus a little more on technical courses than you do at Architecture. Architecture is not a difficult study in the sense that you do not have to break your head so much, but you need perseverance and discipline to put all this time into your projects and to make a story that aligns with all the aspects of the building. That is what is difficult at Industrial Design and at Architecture, according to me. You have a lot of projects, where other studies have considerably more exams. The values of the two different things are incomparable. A project is a lot more specific. Most of the time it is not wrong or right but subjective. Some students find it annoying that you get another grade with another coach, but I understand that aspect. You are designing for your coach so you should see him or her as your client.

Mickey Lenskens (23)

fifth years industrial design engineering student

“You can recognize this creativity in your appearance. Architecture students have quite a unique style in clothing. Maybe a fleece sweater with a vintage pattern, wide leg jeans and shoes no one knows yet, that sort of stuff. Different from what you would see people wearing at my faculty. A typical Mechanical Engineering student would wear a hoodie, blue jeans and white sneakers. You are also more progressive. I myself am not a typical MBE student by looks, I think I have my own style.

“People are just jealous of our creative approach.”

On average, Architecture students have more social skills than most other students in Delft. In my faculty, students can be social as well but sometimes they need a little push. At Architecture you have a lot of deadlines and presentations during a period, it’s an intense

Industrial Design Engineering students are known to be hipsters. In comparison to your faculty, some people stand out with their architect looks: Dr. Martens, skinny jeans, long coat, turtleneck. Those clichés. Some skaters, some architects. But on average they are mostly typically dressed ‘Delfts’. I noticed that when I went to the Bouwpub with a skateboard and a nineties jacket, people would look at me like: what are you wearing? At ID Kafee I don’t have that at all. I heard from friends that you have a course in your first year where it does not matter what you design, as long as you can tell a good story to sell it. There is no other study where the selling story for a product is as important as for you. This might be because it is harder to test the design on how well it works, because it will always remain this, a story.” Mickey (22)

program. It feels like you always have something to do. I can do nothing for the first six weeks and then start opening my book. But by that time I have managed to build myself a deadly pile of work I have to do in the last four weeks. When we have a project, during the process I might think I am working on something unique. However, it is actually not uncommon that three different groups end up with almost the same product. That is alright as long as it functions well. I feel that in architecture projects every person has a different solution, depending on the personal preferences of the designer. One can prefer curves in their designs while another rather uses abstract forms. For us it does not matter if the robot looks sleek as long as it works. I like bugging my Architecture student roommate by saying all she does all day is colouring pictures, but the truth is that you could all do just the same as me if you opened my book.” Martijn (20)//

“ ...the truth is that you could all do just the same as me if you opened my book.”

Martijn Wolfs (20)

second years mechanical engineering student

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In this edition of pantheon// we are tackling numerous out-of-order subjects, whether in architecture, art, education or society. One of the most confronting topics came up in a conversation I had with Berit Ann Roos. She is the director of the Academy of Architecture at the Hanzehogeschool in Groningen, has an extensive background in architecture and is currently working on her PhD research. In her research she explores the contribution of architecture to the quality of life of intellectually impaired individuals showing challenging behaviour and possibly autism. She built several buildings for these individuals. Amongst them an extensive area of day-care/work units in the dunes of Noordwijk and a very intensive care facility for a health care institution on a health park in Ermelo. The latter being one of the case studies of her research with the aim of creating a living environment that was as comfortable and safe as possible for both the residents and the employees of the institution.

ABOUT THE EXPLORATORY TALKS WITH RESIDENTS AND EXPERTS A successful project is usually preceded by extensive preparation involving discussions with stakeholders. Although that always takes up a lot of time and energy, it was certainly a major challenge in this particular case. The immediate residents and users of the new design are intellectually impaired individuals showing challenging behaviour and autism and many have a mental age of 2 to 4 years. Communicating their wishes and translating those wishes into concrete design concepts can prove to be quite a task. By talking extensively not only to the residents, but also to parents, staff, care providers and experts in the field of autism, Berit Ann was able to draw up an extensive program of values to include in the design. In addition, she visited similar very intensive care units and lived with them several times in order to experience individuals showing challenging behaviour, their needs and wishes first hand . One of the striking things Berit Ann told me was the conversation she had in the University of Leiden with a professor on autism. She explained to her that autistic people generally show difficulties coping with unpredictability and the unknown. When they do not know what is around the corner they can experience stress. With that in mind, one can only imagine how scary doors and corridors can feel to these people. In addition, Berit Ann was able to tell me that autistic people experience their surroundings in a totally different way than we do. They often see all the details and take in every aspect of the room, but because of this fragmented impression of spaces the overall picture gets lost and an overdose of stimuli might occur. To the experts, these were perfectly logical characteristics for autistic people, but they were not reflected in the architecture for these individuals. The available literature on the influence of architecture on autism was lacking at that time. General practical knowledge was certainly available, but the bridge between research and architecture on this topic still

needs improving. And perhaps not only here. There is a lack of good communication between the various sciences and disciplines. It is this part that is really out of order.

ABOUT THE DESIGN BRIEF AND ITS CONCEPTS The design brief given to Berit Ann for the day-care/work units by the care institution in 2009 was for a building containing all the different functions for the residents and carers. There had to be room for a greenery, an animal farm, a horse farm including stables, a dog shelter, office space, dining rooms and so on. In addition, the complex had to invite contact with outsiders and passers-by since the institution should not be a closed facility hiding somewhere in the dunes. In the conversation I had with Berit Ann, she told me that there was a major contradiction in the task itself: the client tried to place all the functions under one roof, but at the same time wanted to encourage interaction with passers-by. For her, this did not go together, so instead of one building, she decided to give the various functions their own building and arranged them along a bicycle path around small courts. This way, users and passers-by move along the paths between the buildings, which provides a natural interaction between users. In addition, this clear distinction of functions is of course much easier to grasp for the autistic residents and users. They especially benefit from structure and logic. Each building is different and distinguishes itself from the other buildings and is therefore recognizable for the autistic users. ABOUT THE DESIGN FOR BRANDON’S ACCOMMODATION Berit Ann told me the story of Brandon, one of the residents of the care facility in Ermelo. Brandon suffered from a severe form of challenging behaviour in which certain triggers can make him very aggressive.


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His living conditions were very extreme at that point because of his aggressive behaviour, which left the healthcare institution helpless since they were focussed on containing the risks of his aggression towards himself, others and his surroundings. Also the risk of him breaking out and by that possibly hurting people had to be minimalized. He had absolutely no choice concerning his living environments: he was not able to open his windows, flush his toilets or use proper cutlery. His bed was fixed to the floor, the toilet bowl was made of stainless steel, and the wallpaper (which he would tear off in an aggressive fit) had been replaced with featureless linoleum that he would not be able to get off the wall by force. Also, he was chained to the wall while other individuals were present in his room. His living conditions resembled a prison instead of a home. Although the care institution only tried to protect the caregiver and Brandon from himself with these interventions, this is dehumanizing. Especially for those individuals who cannot express themselves or have a choice concerning their living environment, it must be ensured that their living environment feels comfortable and attractive. In the end, Berit Ann submitted a design for Brandon's new home (and the other residents). This resulted in a design which was based on a new treatment method that supports the residents in their development. The safety consists of the connection between the care providers and the residents and therefore has an open floorplan. It is a homey, light place with, among other things, as few doors as possible. Because, every threshold, whether physical or programmatic, poses a challenge to the residents. For example, it can be difficult for a resident to make the transition from lying in bed to getting dressed, or to switch to brushing their teeth after breakfast. So, it is beneficial to lower the physical thresholds and leaving out unnecessary doors, maybe even place the sink in the bedroom instead of the bathroom.   In addition, the corridors throughout the complex are spacious, wide and light. By making the spaces open and airy, the residents and the care providers feel more comfortable and, above all, safer. (For the caregivers too, it is simply a scare when one of the residents acts aggressively towards you). By avoiding blind corners and dark rooms as much as possible, you immediately create a much nicer environment for everyone. All these aspects make the residents' lives a lot more pleasant and safe. And all that without an extra security camera, locks and loot-proof materials. So you could say that good architecture is a powerful tool,

while moderate to bad architecture only reinforces the negative impulses of the residents. ABOUT HER PHD RESEARCH Meanwhile, Berit Ann Roos is working on her PhD research. She is doing research on the contribution of architecture on the quality of life of intellectually impaired individuals showing challenging behaviour and possibly autism. There is still a lot to discover in this field and she does this by means of her own designs. During her design assignment for 's Heeren Loo, Berit Ann found out the hard way how little information and knowledge is available or shared in order for an architect to make a contribution to the living conditions of individuals showing challenging behaviour and possibly autism. With her research she hopes to expand this knowledge and of course make it available to future designers for this target group. But the knowledge she gains is not only useful for people showing challenging behaviour or autism, care providers, their family, and architects building for them. This knowledge can also be of great value to every architect, Berit Ann tells me. Individuals showing challenging behaviour or autism are much more sensitive to the things around them than we are. You could say that their senses are much more finely tuned than ours, so they can experience things much more intensely. Since they appear to be finely tuned instruments, much can be learned from their experience of space. Some research even shows that spaces, specifically designed for autistic individuals, are even more beneficial for neurotypical individuals. By using these experiences and the research on this topic the basis can be laid for defining the aspects and characteristics of spaces that create a pleasant and agreeable atmosphere for everyone. In this way, it is possible for us as future architects to design more pleasant living environments not only for ourselves, but also for those who perhaps need it most. TO CONCLUDE To conclude, I would like to thank Berit Ann Roos for her cooperation on this article and the inspiring conversation I had the opportunity to have with her. I would also recommend everyone to keep an eye on the results of her research. This can be done via the following website: https://www.linkedin.com/in/berit-ann-roos-3278b56/ www.beritannroos.nl //

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A R CH I T E C TU R E ON H UMA N B E HA V I O U R


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ALTERNATION // PROGRESSION//TRA We all know the feeling: you walk through a building and suddenly you walk into a stunning space. You are in awe of the architecture that is surrounding you. The space around you is changing your emotions, but did you ever stop to realize that maybe the building was designed to evoke this kind of behaviour? It changed your normal routine and created a space of wonder. It changed your behaviour through emotion. But how often does this happen? Can it change the way people experience spaces or even improve their quality of life?

The fact that architecture changes people's behaviour is not unknown. It was applied numerous times throughout the centuries in various ways, big and small. The Catholic Church used to make big and tall structures to impose itself upon the working class, whilst also creating big and open spaces to be close to the ‘heavenly light’ and to God. These structures still give the same sensation when visiting them today. A more modern take on this subject is the application of Frank Lloyd Wright, who used very small corridors to lead people in a specific way so that when they entered an open space the openness and light would enhance their experience. Nowadays, such methods of leading people through a building can be seen throughout society. IKEA is well known for this tactic to keep people in their stores for longer. As if in a kind of maze, customers have to make twists and turns through the store in order to get to their designation. All the while, customers see new stuff and new things they desire. The longer a customer is in a store, the bigger the chances are that he is going to buy something. However, this tactic is not only used for capitalistic gain. In areas such as museums, it can be used to redirect someone into a designated direction, showing, for example, the passage of time in art or an artist's life. Using those clues in the architecture can create a sense of natural flow.

Another way of changing behaviour is through the materialization of spaces. Giving spaces specific colours can influence the emotions people have in those spaces. Research shows that people link certain emotions with colours. Red can be angry, yellow is happy and blue is calm. Giving certain rooms certain colours can therefore change the mood of the inhabitants. In hospitals, for example, blues and greens are used in order to calm the patient. Changing the way people experience a material can influence and even draw attention to certain behaviour. Creating bumps on the road to slow people down is a great example of this. Making people comfortable or uncomfortable can influence people’s behaviour in the room. If you sit in a comfortable chair in a nice, thoughtfully designed room, you are more likely to stay longer than if you sit in a stiff chair in a badly designed room. That our behaviour can be influenced is not exclusive to interior design. The way a building looks can change the perception of people around it. When walking past glass and steel buildings, people tend to walk faster, as if to run away from a blind spot. When walking past more active sections of a city such as cafés, restaurants and shops, people tend to slow down and enjoy the surroundings. Unsurprisingly, people attending the study felt more “lively and engaged” in these spaces according to a study by Sussman and Hollander (2015). What exactly is considered pretty and beautiful? And how do we make that change the experience people get? According to Natalie Ricci it all comes down to patterns and evolution: “One principle reason why we perceive these buildings as beautiful is that our brains process the sensory information it receives and correlates it with patterns that had previously proven to be evolutionarily beneficial in nature. The human brain has used pattern recognition as a form of survival for so long, it has become something we do subconsciously and also when we look at buildings and architecture.”


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ANSITION//ALTERNATION//PROGRESSION// Rhythm and pattern in architecture is often referred to as order. It is what causes the eye to flow from one focal point to the next - for example from one part of a room, or house, to the next. Four types of order can be distinguished in the architectural world: Alternation, the repetition of a contrasting pair, Progression, either increasing or decreasing the size of the element in the pattern, Repetition, continuously repeating a single element and Transition, the use of a line that the eye is able to continuously follow from one point to the next. Repetition is one of the patterns that we as humans recognize and use to tell if a building is good looking. However, too much repetition can be bad for the perception of buildings. Monochromatic colours, poorly placed repetition of windows, an absence of architectural detail and repetitive styles produce a unique form of sensory deprivation. These aspects can be found in brutalist and modern architecture. This can result in a lack of intellectual stimulation, effectively removing the human aspect of the building and creating an environment unknown and unwelcome to the human mind. This shows that not all forms of repetition can improve human behaviour. These monotone types of repetition and patterns can have an opposite effect on the human mind. Instead of comforting the mind like it can do with more natural repetition, this monotone kind can actually activate stress regions and make people uncomfortable. Even worse for the mind are poorly maintained, broken and battered houses and neighbourhoods. Studies have shown that these types of buildings make us feel unsafe and create a sense of fear and anxiety. Long-term exposure to these buildings can even create long-term stress problems.

How do we create spaces that have repetition but not too much in order to keep it positive on the human mind and behaviour? Sussman and Hollander (2015) argue that humans are generally happier and healthier when their environment contains a variety of shops, unique spaces and buildings rather than generic, cement buildings and repetitive storefronts. This was also evident in the experiment with stores providing comfort in city centres earlier in this essay. Adding green spaces to cities also gives people a connection with nature and studies have shown that people can have a multitude of positive reactions to greenery in and around buildings. It can reduce stress, increase concentration and even improve sick people's healing process. As mentioned before, repetition in nature is what stimulates the mind and makes something look good. So to include real nature in the urban fabric is a way to stimulate the mind and create a safe, good-looking space where people come to relax and enjoy the sights. There are many ways to influence behaviour, most of them quite small but having great effects on the long term. Creating spaces for humans that are aesthetically pleasing and calming to the mind can actually enhance the overall mood of the visitor. Poorly maintained buildings, however, can have a negative effect, as they can increase stress and negatively affect the mental health of people living around them.// SOURCES

Natalie Ricci. The Psychological Impact of Architectural Design (2018). https://scholarship.claremont.edu/cgi/viewcontent. cgi?article=2850&context=cmc_theses 2 Sussman & Hollandern. Cognitive Architecture: Designing for How We Respond to the Built Environment (2014). https://www.researchgate. net/publication/330162516_Cognitive_Architecture_Designing_ for_How_We_Respond_to_the_Built_Environment 1

REPETITION//REPETITION//REPET


miniature

of ordinary items

MODELS

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As designers, we constantly need to adapt. We need to come up with new ideas and we need to be innovative. To inspire us in this quest of finding new ways of designing, we have thousands of years of architectural history to look back upon. But history is never new, it always shows us something that has been done before. For this article, I tried to find ordinary items around the house that, with a little bit of imagination, could be turned into buildings. It is a way of becoming inspired by our surroundings and turning them into something new. It makes you look at things in a different way, taking the order out of the ordinary.//


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UNIQ Many architecture students long to be the next starchitect, the next big artist: on top of the charts, buildings all over the world, loved and respected by many. It’s easier said than done. To start with: you have to be unique!

In the past, many artists tried to break through the mould of what was supposed to be good-looking, aesthetically pleasing, artistic and gorgeous and aimed to show what was not. By comparing what used to be normal and what was shocking or ground-breaking at a particular time, we can learn things from the past. You can even use these lessons to be unique yourself! A famous example of this contrast in the field of architecture is classicism versus modernism. At the end of the 19th century, many new materials and uses were invented and applied to the built environment. These new ways of building inspired a generation of architects at the time. These architects were notably famous for their rejection of ornamentation and for following the function of a building in a more straightforward way. Something that was, especially during the beginning of the 20th century, completely out of order. First and foremost by just getting rid of the ornaments at the façade, or as Adolf Loos called it “Getting rid of the enemy of the truth”. This created simpler buildings that put the emphasis on the interior instead of the more extravagant exterior. These first modernist buildings were the stepping stones to the modern architecture of the first half of the 20th century. The invention of stronger materials such as reinforced concrete played a big role in the creation of taller and sleeker buildings. Buildings that nowadays are quite normal in every city around the world. It was not only praise, however. Many people disliked this way of building and living. Some of the most famous architects for us, such as Adolf Loos, received quite a bit of criticism for their buildings. Adolf Loos’ building in Vienna at the Michaelerplatz had to be redesigned when the council of Vienna decided it did not have enough ornamentation. They compared it to a granary and halted the construction because of this. They wouldn’t resume until Loos decided to add flower beds to the windows. Still, as history tells us, for a long time modernism was the way of building. Cities all around the world are

stuffed with the products of this period. The new way of building was building high and in recent times we are beginning to see that this state of mind is not always the way to go. As we see more and more cities putting a stop to building skyscrapers, might the time be right for a new way of building? Might it be time to be unique and start a new trend in the built environment? In the 16th century, the Salon in Paris was born out of a wish to show the best art of the Academie des BeauxArts to the public. From the mid-17th century until the end of the 19th century, the Salon exhibition used to be one of the most influential events in the European art world. An enormous number of artists took part in this event and got to show their works in the world famous Salons. If you got a spot in the salon, you had a decent chance of becoming a great artist. Classical paintings and sculptures were the main part of the collection, also called “Academic Art”. It was part of the neoclassicistic and romantic movement. However, during the end of the 19th century, new artists with brave new ideas presented their new paintings. One of these artists was Seurat. This artist, who was one of the first to try out new painting styles, premiered the pointillism technique, which uses small dots of colour to create a larger picture. It was a far cry from the earlier photorealistic oil paintings that dominated the galleries and churches in the previous centuries. He exhibited in the Salon of 1883 but this was not with any of his famous paintings. Instead he exposed at the salon with a crayon drawing. A year later, he wanted to enter the Salon, but was rejected. Instead of giving up, he showed his art at the Salon des Artistes Indépendants in 1884. He was plagued with criticism, however, and was met with comments that described his work as chaos and scandalous. Luckily, a lot of peers did have praise for his works and a lot of people still do, as you can still find his works in museums all around the world. You can find works by Seurat in the Kröller-Müller Museum and, if the government allows it, in Musee d’ Orsay in Paris. In the beginning, being unique and standing out may be hard. But these great artists never stopped believing in themselves and showed that being unique and having a voice pays off, in the end.//


DAVID VAN DER PEIJL | WORDS KATI HARTMAN & FLOOR VAN DER VLIET | LAYOUT

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S O R R Y THIS CITY IS OUT OF ORDER Which ones are next? There’s a good chance that you, the reader, are located in a city right now. This is not very odd, considering that about 56.2% of the world population lives in an urban environment. With an increasing urbanisation rate, governments around the world need to rapidly synthesise plans on how to take in all the new city dwellers. Entirely new neighbourhoods with multiple-stories-high residential towers are being constructed in cities all around the world. If we all follow the urbanisation trend, it is evident that almost all major cities will have to expand rapidly in the coming years. However, why not build new cities? In this article, a few projects involving the construction of new cities will be highlighted, shedding a light on the reason why the governments involved decided to break away from the expansion trend and chose to build themselves new cities.

Cairo, known to everyone as the capital city of Egypt, was officially founded in 969 AD. Before this, it was known as the illustrious government city of Memphis in Ancient Egypt. The city has a rich history as an administrative and ruling centre, but that is all about to end. Since 2015, the Egyptian government has been busy planning for a new administrative capital in the desert just outside Cairo. Plans are that before medio 2022, parliament, presidential palaces, government ministries and foreign embassies will all have been transferred to this new capital, which is still without a formal name or logo. This seemingly unnecessary relocation raises many questions among the Egyptian people. Would it not be for the better if this multibillion-dollar investment was used differently, for instance for the development of new and existing residential areas. And what will become of Cairo when all of its former functions have been relocated? Will the city then be effectively put out of order?

Further east, the Indonesian government is also brewing on plans for a new capital city, albeit for a completely different reason. At this very moment, the current capital city, Jakarta, is sinking. Located at the coastal strip of the Indonesian island Java, the city finds itself at the frontline of the consequences arising from rising sea levels. In a desperate attempt to save entire neighbourhoods being flooded, a 20-kilometre seawall has been placed around the city. Jakarta isn’t the only big city in need of such measures. In New York, for instance, a multimillion project, led by architecture firm BIG, is developing a drywall around Manhattan island to protect it from rising sea levels. And there’s another problem facing Jakarta, making the seawall solution only temporarily effective. Its foundation is slowly sinking. With about 30 million inhabitants and a constant threat of flooding, it is clear that the capital of Indonesia has to be relocated to higher grounds to maintain its stability. The new capital will be built on the higher situated island of Borneo.


NEW

If you thought we were done with new supercities being built in deserts, you were wrong. In a couple of years, the Saudi Arabian desert will be decorated with its own mint new city. This Middle Eastern country, known for its oil money and sheiks, is working on a massive image transition, their slogan being ‘’We will be pioneers!’’. To achieve this transformation, their first measure is a hefty investment in the development and application of green energy. The Saudi government has promised that by 2030, more than 50% of its national energy consumption will come from renewable sources, a big step up from their 0.05% in 2018. To fully convince the world of their new ways, the Saudi government thinks a new metropolis is needed to embody this pioneering image and ‘’The Line’’ must become a blueprint of the cities of the future. The name is self-explanatory: the city plan will consist of one large strip of 197 kilometres, consisting of three vertical layers, the surface layer meant for pedestrians and two subterranean layers meant for infrastructure and transportation. Because of the morphology of the city, transportation by car becomes arbitrary, meaning public transportation will be the sole way to get around. Alongside this, the city promises to be 100% powered by renewable sources, which will be needed to achieve the goal of 50% nationally.

VALDEMARR VAN STAVEREN | WORDS VALDEMARR VAN STAVEREN & FLOOR VAN DER VLIET | LAYOUT

We can see new cities are still being constructed all around the globe, each with a different goal in mind. Whereas one serves as a political statement, the other looks to solve future disasters. With this in the back of our minds we need to ask ourselves if we can afford all these new cities. Cities like Jakarta are at their last breath because of rising sea levels, which in turn is a consequence of the enhanced greenhouse effect. However, this effect is to a large extent contributed to by the construction industry, which accounts for about 40% of the global CO2 emission. Can we accept that new cities are being built without a clear reason, like in Egypt, whilst other cities, like Jakarta, are suffering the consequences of global emissions? Maybe it is easier to accept if we try to compensate for our emissions with green energy like the Saudis do, but it might be better to just focus on the (re)development of the cities that are already in existence.// SOURCES

AFP. (2020, 7 april). Fallout. An aerial view of ongoing construction development at Egypt’s “New Administrative Capital” megaproject, some 45 kilometres east of Cairo. [Photo]. https://thearabweekly.com/ pandemic-postpones-move-new-egyptian-capital 2 Egypt Today staff. (2021, June 1). Egypt’s New Administrative Capital can be home to 6.5M citizens: official. EgyptToday.Com. 3 Kreijveld, M. (2018, October 26). MINDER CO2-UITSTOOT IN DE BOUWSECTOR. Oneworld.Nl. 4 Lo, J. (2021, March 31). Saudi Arabia aims for 50% renewable energy by 2030, backs huge tree planting initiative. Climatechangenews. Com. 5 Mei, M., Hidayat, R., & BBC. (2018, August 13). Jakarta, the fastestsinking city in the world. BBC.Com. 6 The Line. (z.d.). Saudi Arabian City to Include ‘Zero Cars, Zero Streets, Zero Carbon Emissions’ [Illustration]. https://www.environmentalleader.com/2021/01/saudi-arabian-city-to-include-zero-cars-zerostreets-zero-carbon-emissions/ 7 Van Lohuizen, K. (z.d.). Jakarta, december 2018 [Photo]. https://www. hetscheepvaartmuseum.com/node/1835 1

CITIES

Thus a true city of the future, where green energy and social equality are the focal points, will emerge. The question remains if this will be enough to rid the Saudis of their oil culture image?

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The construction site of Egypt's New Administrative Capital

The three layers of "The Line"

The seawalls surrounding Jakarta


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BR E AKING HE RULES THE


To give an example, during the Middle Ages there were certain rules that applied to building churches, and there were no exceptions to those rules. However, these rules evolved over time and that’s why Gothic churches differ from Roman churches. Nowadays you can see that these rules are still used for the typology of churches, but much more freely than in the Middle Ages.

Robert Venturi (1925-2018), together with his wife Denise Scott Brown (1931-present day), were among the first architects to question the modernist ideas. With his design of the Vanna Venturi House (1964), Venturi mocked those modernist ideas and rules. He played with scale and contradictions instead of with the ideas of functionalism and minimalism. Venturi and Scott Brown became incredibly influential in the world of architecture and the Vanna Venturi House has won multiple prizes and is now seen as a masterpiece.

Later, during the Renaissance and the Baroque periods, artists and architects revived the rules from the times of the Ancient Greek and Romans as these rules were found to be superior to those of the Middle Ages. For years, those rules formed the base of the world of art. Even years after the Renaissance and Baroque, the new movement that emerged, Neoclassicism, elaborated on those ancient times.In the beginning of the 20th century, modernist architects, like Sullivan, le Corbusier and Mies van der Rohe, finally made up new architectural rules. “Form follows function”, “Less is more”, “Light, air and space” and the separation of functions were typical rules or guidelines for this period. These new rules led to new creative ideas and innovative designs.

Breaking the rules can lead to something radical, groundbreaking and interesting, but it can also provoke a lot of criticism. At the start of a new art movement, there would never be a lack of scepticism. Look at Édouard Manet, the impressionist painter, for example. His paintings Le Déjeuner sur l’Herbe (1862) and Olympia (1863) caused great controversy at the Salon de Paris, because the paintings did not fit the ideals and rules from the Académie des Beaux-Arts at that time. However, those paintings became extremely popular and are among some of the most famous paintings nowadays. So, it proved quite worthwhile to break the rules in this case.

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However, after some time, a number of artists got bored by this functionalistic and minimalistic architecture. These postmodernists made fun of the modernist rules and mocked them by making new rules, like “Form follows fun” and “Less is a bore”. This new movement was all about breaking the rules. Postmodernist philosophy was all about the absence of truth, unlike modernist philosophy.

SOURCES

If we go back in time, you can notice that in history, during the various architectural movements, rules changed. It appears that a new movement starts when someone breaks the rules of a former movement and invents new rules. Every time period seems to have a different set of rules.

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We are living in a world of rules. Some rules are a part of nature, like gravity. Others are necessary, for safety reasons, for example. However, some rules are made up by someone without true necessity. Such rules define the world of art. Strangely these artistic rules are not invariable. They change. A famous quote from Picasso is: “Learn the rules like a pro so you can break them like an artist”, but how is it possible to “learn the rules” when they are constantly changing? What is the point of having rules when it is best to break them? In this article I will give an overview of rules in architecture, along with some tools to break them. It sounds contradictory to break rules, but Picasso tells us to do so, so let’s follow his advice (or shouldn’t we?).

Betsky, A. (2014, December 12). Different Rules and Regulations. Retrieved 20 June 2021, from https://w ww.architectmagazine.com Hernandez, I. (2018, October 14). It’s Okay To Break The Rules In Art. Retrieved 15 June 2021, from https://thehhub.com 3 HighSnobiety. (2015, October 26). A Complete Beginner’s Guide to Architectural Movements. Retrieved 30 June 2021, from https://w ww.highsnobiety.com 4 Smythe, B. W. (2014, December 12). Breaking the (Art) Rules. Retrieved 20 June 2021, from https://logosconcarne.com

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As students at the Faculty of Architecture, we learn a lot of rules and we learn to design in a specific way. However, sometimes, when you are stuck in a rut, you are in need of new perspectives. Breaking the rules can be a way to get out of the groove and get new creative ideas. But how can you do this? Maybe you can take a moment to make a list of informal and formal “rules” you follow yourself. Do you recognize certain things you do out of habit or out of a sense of obligation? If you are aware of these rules, you can choose to follow them as guidelines, but you can also choose to break them and open yourself up creatively. Just have some fun trying this! Here are some examples of ways to break the rules or to try and be out of order:

Take something out of its original context and place it in a completely new or different context. For example: Jeff Koons’ Balloon Dog (2000) art.

Present your design in your own way. It is your design, so show it the way you want to. You do not have to follow the exact presenting guidelines if you have a good reason not to. For example: Make a collage, a video or a sculpture. Use a material you have never used before for a specific use. For example: the use of mirrors for the facade of the Boijmans Depot (2021) in Rotterdam by MVRDV or the use of window frames for the Espresso Bar at the faculty of Architecture.

Make or do something that is totally inconvenient, but still interesting. For example: The Vanna Venturi House (1964) designed by Robert Venturi has a stair that leads to a wall, so to nothing, which makes the stair illogical. Are you playing with forms? Lift your mass up and turn it around. Maybe it looks better if it is upside down. For example: Maison d’Artiste (1923) by Theo van Doesburg and Cornelis van Eesteren.//


CRAZY FACTS CRA ZY FACT 58

A Chinese city called

Ordos was meant to be the ‘city of the future’, but now it is famous as a ghost town. You can find the most extraordinary buildings out there, completely out

AZY F ACT LEGO used to of order. make special bricks for ARCHITECTS

CRAZY FACT takes a look at architecture from a rather critical point of view.

Amsterdam, called Failed Architecture,

buildings that failed as well? A platform based in

Hadid and OMA, but shouldn’t we learn from

We all know the famous buildings of

Zaha

AZY FACTS

CRAZY FACT CRAZY FACTS Architecture once was an Olympic Games category.


TS CRAZY FA TS CRA ZY FA LIZ HOOGEVEEN | WORDS MAX VAN DER WAAL | LAY-OUT | LAYOUT

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Each year, 13.000 residences are being torn down in the Netherlands. Most of them are rental houses. The total surface of the residences equals approximately

F ACTS C The most expensive building in the world, called Abraj Al Bait, cost

$15.000.000.000 USD

to build. This is equal to the revenue of YouTube in 2019.

100 times the campus of the TU Delft.

TS CRAZY F CRA TS CRA TS CR The Cooper Union Foundation Building in NYC included an elevator shaft although the modern elevators hadn’t been invented yet.

SOURCES

21 surrealistische foto’s van China’s mislukte “stad van de toekomst”. (2017, 8 mei). Business Insider Nederland. https:// www.businessinsider. nl/surrealistische-fotosvan-chinas-mislukte-stadvan-de-toekomst/Alux. com. (2019, 7 juni). 15 Things You Didn’t Know About the Architecture Industry [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube. com/watch?v=dc2DnoHxKvQKlerx, F. (2016, 25 januari). Gebouw slopen. Sloopkenners. https://www. sloopkenners.nl/gebouw-slopen/ MetDaan Editorial Team. (2020, 21 juli). 13 Surprising And Weird Architecture Facts You Probably Didn’t Know. MetDaan. https://www.metdaan.com/13-weirdarchitecture-facts/Omzet YouTube voor het eerst bekend: 15 miljard dollar per jaar. (2020, 4 februari). RTL Nieuws. https://www.rtlnieuws. nl/tech/artikel/5009341/youtube-maaktomzetcijfers-bekend-15-miljard-dollar-jaarTU Delft. (2020). Onze campus. https://www. tudelft.nl/over-tu-delft/onze-campus/

C


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Experienced less order during COVID-19

8 11

We asked students who were sitting in the atelier of the Faculty of Architecture what their opinions were about the order or disorder they experienced during the quarantine period because of COVID-19.

HUMANS

We also asked people just to answer the question if they experienced more or less order because of quarantine and these are the statistics of 20. These two bars illustrate the ratio between the answers:

Experienced more order during COVID-19

BK OF

Jasmijn Smit & Elina Ortolo

Isa Heeling

"We are two Industrial Design girls who have come to study at the Faculty of Architecture, which for us is rather out of order. We are both first-year students. We miss having people around us, meeting up and easily talking to each other etcetera. There is more movement around you with people walking through the halls. Also, sparring and working together just doesn’t work via Zoom. You do not hear each other, and there are so many problems working together via Zoom. It is possible to get to know people, but it is very superficial, so you just do not and cannot really connect with other people via Zoom.

"The ability to concentrate is what I miss. At home, I work five times slower than at the faculty, so it’s really nice to work with others to get some motivation to keep working. I also really miss the social aspect of, for example, the coffee breaks I used to take every half an hour. And laughing with friends; the inside jokes you had as a group of friends at the studio and the crazy things everyone sometimes did.

Roll out of bed in your jogging trousers and go straight to Zoom. Eating your breakfast in peace and quiet in front of Zoom and it also helps to get some extra sleep. Concentration and rest are also aspects that are influenced by the situation. At home we are more concentrated, while here at university we are “studying”, but for a large part actually still talking and chatting. That is certainly nice after a long time of not being able to come here, but there is just less focus. We chose to study at the Faculty of Architecture today because we wanted to try something different for a change and we heard from other students that architecture has better study places than the other faculties have."

At home, there was real peace and quiet, and now it is the same at the studio, but later when it gets busy, that will be completely gone. However, I am prepared and have bought noise-cancelling earphones to prevent this. Also the free coffee at home is very nice. Now I spend far too much money on all the cups I drink during the day at the faculty. On the one hand, because of the curfew, I had a lot of rhythm because there was just nothing to do at night. Now there is more space again, so I have less of it. Also, the stress with architecture starts again so that also creates an irregular sleep rhythm."//


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