The Journey of the Whales

Two characters seem to mark deeply the wandering paths of Dutch architectural and urban culture in the last century: the attention to urban design issues and landscape derived to the acknowledgement that the soil is a collective good inherited by the “polder” tradition and the experimental attitude to the design of dwelling spaces in relationship to the development of new lifestyles tied to the strong attention to different cultures and customs given by the long merchant tradition. The work of Architekten CIE, but also their design method, embody well both of these characters: the big “whale” dwelling complex in the Borneo new settlement defines a very clear and intimate space in the shape of a rectangular court, and at the same time opens it to the landscape lifting up an angle. Their new projects confront an experience matured in this lively cultural environment with the new challenges of globalization.