Mecanoo “Experimental pragmatism”

Founded in Delfi in 1984 as a collective for public housing design, the Mecanoo studio has developed into one of the most significant entities on both the Dutch and international architecture scene having created numerous projects in the fields of culture, higher education and urban planning. Under the guidance of partners Francine Houben, Henk Doll, Michel Tombal and Aart Fransen, Mecanoo has developed a personal revision of the modernist approach to architecture applying experimental design and urbanistic innovations to their projects.

The book examines 24 of their most important buildings and projects divided into four critical themes — The Redefinition of Living, Functional Hybrids, Tectonic Multiplicity, New Territories — which illustrate Mecanoo’s contribution to the creation of new types of collective residences that are geared towards integrating functions other than those of mere living within the home; their use of different structural forms and materials; public spaces, functional integration and the inclusion of elements of landscape as new relational territories.