Archiprint6—Creating & Experiencing Identity
Reminds one of the Lacaton & Vassal buildings where people are free to do as they please! Lacaton & Vassal are a big inspiration to us. They do as little as possible, all simple, and it has maximum effect. I like them because their buildings have a sense of freedom and are fully transformation-proof. There are rigid structures that can be re-clad or re-decorated or whatever you feel like, as against the architecture of somebody like Peter Zumthor’s. A Zumthor house may appeal aesthetically, but you can never sit at a table in your T-shirt and jogging pants. I think it was Heidegger, who said architecture starts with putting a pole into the ground. Suddenly space becomes interesting because there is an object to relate to. That is what it’s all about. We put up columns, floors and walls, and instead of decreasing the amount of freedom we create new possibilities. Have you ever been disappointed with how your building has been used? Of course, a number of times. Some people don’t have a feeling towards their environment and are quite pragmatic about buildings. Others suffer from certain standard preconceived ideas. It disappoints me, but I don’t see how I can influence it. You can try to make your design so strong that it fills the users with inspiration or you can invite them to work together with the space you give them, but you cannot prevent them from going against it. So, we offer each of our clients the same standing invitation: if you want us to change something for you, please get in touch! Atmosphere Talking about Zumthor, we are reviewing the OASE 91 event in this edition. What are your thoughts on OASE 91’s theme, Building Atmosphere? Although it is used all the time, atmosphere is a word with little meaning in itself. It is a hook where you put on different clothes. It is an
33 empty word and the same goes for identity, actually. You cannot speak in abstract terms about either one of them. It is not subjective – you have to load it, like a brand. A brand doesn’t communicate unless you load it with certain values. Atmosphere can be formal, festive, cold and so on. It seems to me, the OASE publication surprisingly restricts the meaning to only a certain atmosphere of solemnity. You mention atmosphere on your website while referring to interior spaces. How do you interpret it? We too are guilty of misusing the word atmosphere. It is far too complicated and too subtle to be used so carelessly, but we do want to imply that we consider crafting a well-fitting atmosphere as the core of every interior design. We care a lot about the interiors of our buildings, maybe even more than about exteriors. So we go right to the beginning and try to get inspired by the users of our building, find out how they see themselves, would like to see themselves, how we see them and what we see as potential for them. We try to create a corresponding atmosphere around that. The future Tell us about plans on building abroad. So far, almost all of our work has been in The Netherlands. Our understanding of buildings is deeply rooted in Dutch culture. However, it would be good for the office to experience other cultures. I think getting involved with foreign projects could also help us see our domestic projects in a different perspective. So international expansion is definitely one of our ambitions. You were briefly interested in China. Yes, we did a number of invited competitions and other projects there, none of which were ever built. I was deeply disappointed with our Chinese adventure. I realized after a while that Chinese clients tend to typecast – they want a European architect for an iconic build-
ing, an American or even a British architect for a good solid office building, only Americans maybe for high class hotels and so on. So in I came with my portfolio – European but not iconic at all and a bit of everything instead of a narrow specialization! They did not know in which category to put me! (laughs) Besides, the market in China is not so huge. The top five percent has all the interesting buildings. Everything below has a completely different definition of quality and is primarily about quantity. I felt a bit lost and thought, ‘Well, let’s not do this.’ What does the future look like for Ector Hoogstad Architecten? I’m certain it looks quite bright. We haven’t been affected by the economic crisis, even managed some steady growth over the years. We’re doing some of the most challenging projects in The Netherlands and we’re being approached ever more often by new clients to help them out. Our work has met with broad acclaim and is being published internationally. I think that’s a perfect starting point for further consolidation of our position, at home as well as abroad, as one of the foremost Dutch architectural design firms.