The Other Architect II with Volume The Other Architect II with Volume

Architects discussed the practice of architects who have embraced a broader definition of their roles as designers. Merve Bedir (L+CC), Edwin Gardner (Monnik), Alison Killing (Killing Architects) and Jarrik Ouburg (HOH Architecten) joined the discussion to address the international position of the Dutch architect. This meeting, in cooperation with _Volume_ magazine, was part of a series of conversations in the context of the exhibition _The Other Architect_.

The financial crisis of 2008 led the architectural community, particularly in the Netherlands, to reflect on the profession's working methods, profile, portfolio and possibilities. As shown in the catalogue for The Other Architect, this was not an entirely new phenomenon; offices had already been thinking outside the box for decades.

With a group of guest architects we discussed where things are today. What possibilities does the architect have? What is he or she able or willing to offer, and what can society expect? We did not shy away from a look at the next crisis - the loss of tasks to AI and digitization. The architect is (almost) dead, long live the architect! Or, to quote Geert Bekaert: 'Architecture can take care of itself, no worries; its lovers are the problem.'

On 9 November 2017 Het Nieuwe Instituut and Archis/Volume hosted a conversation in the framework of _The Other Architect _with Caro van Dijk, André Kempe (Atelier Kempe Thill), Kristian Koreman (ZUS), Lada Hršak and Piet Vollaard. The discussion demanded a follow-up session.

Allison Killing founded her studio Killing Architects in 2010. Based in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, its focus is on design and research in architecture and urbanism. Killing Architects works mostly on the larger scale - architectural design for bigger, mixed-use buildings, or developing strategies for neighbourhoods and cities. Next to this, the office undertakes research and creates events, films and exhibitions that explore issues within the built environment. It works across disciplines, often with groups with no relevant background, bringing an architectural and urbanist perspective to projects in which the built environment is an important aspect. It also researches financial models for projects using temporarily vacant buildings and sites.

Jarrik Ouburg studied architecture at the Delft University of Technology, the Netherlands, and the Eidgenössische Hochschule Zürich, Switzerland. His graduation project was rewarded the Archiprix International. He was a researcher at the Tokyo Institute of Technology and worked with Architecten Cie in Amsterdam, E2A in Zürich, Toyo Ito in Tokyo and Xaveer de Geyter Architecten in Brussels prior to starting his own practice OJO - Office Jarrik Ouburg in 2008. He was visiting professor at the TU Delft and the Design Academy in Eindhoven. From 2012 until 2016 he headed the architecture department at the Academy of Architecture in Amsterdam where he is currently teaching and working on a research and publication calles 'Tabula Scripta'. Jarrik Ouburg regularly gives lectures and workshops at various Universities and Institutes.

Edwin Gardner is a writer, architect, web designer/editor and researcher. He is a co-founder of Monnik, a laboratory for investigation, imagination and storytelling. He graduated with a BSc and MSc in architecture from Delft Technical University in 2009 and also studied at Istanbul Technical University in 2007. His MSc thesis dealt with diagrammatic reasoning and how the creative processes of design can be explained as a form of logic. Between 2005 and 2010, he worked for Archis/Volume as an editor and he remains a regular contributor and editorial consultant for Volume. In 2009/2010 he worked as a researcher for Partizan Publik, and during 2011/2012 he was a research-fellow at the Jan van Eyck Academie, a post-academic institute for research and production in fine art, theory and design.

Merve Bedir is an architect and researcher. She studied architecture at the Middle East Technical University (in Ankara, Turkey) and has a PhD from TU Delft. Her work focuses on urban transformation, public space, and migration. She is a co-founder of Land and Civilization Compositions; a member of Matbakh I Mutfak (Kitchen), a transnational women's collective in Gaziantep; and a founding member of Mekanda Adalet Derneği (the Centre for Spatial Justice) in Istanbul. She is also part of the Future+ Aformal Academy, an independent 'school' for urbanism and public art in Shenzhen.

In Het Nieuwe Instituut's Thursday Night Live! 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. Visit the museum and grab a bite to eat with the speakers and guests. With varied pop-in expo's and diverse partner programmes.