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ect is especially coordinated with its environment, the user or the specific requirements.
The clear language of form for which Kaan Architects are famous gets individually
adapted to the project. For each project, the surroundings, the users’ needs and the his-
tory of the location are separately analysed. Despite the clear, recognizable style of the
office, this makes it possible to offer a variety of answers to entirely different questions. Duisburg

r You are currently involved in the construction of the Geo- and Environmental
Research Centre (GUZ) on the campus of Tübingen University. As a German architect,
do you profit from a kind of “home advantage”?
I have been involved in the project for about a year and of course I have a certain home
advantage since I speak the language and am familiar with the structures in Germany
due to my experiences so far and my prior knowledge. The office has very flat hierar-
chies so that young architects have the chance and are trusted to further develop pro-
fessionally. This is completely independent of nationality, experience, age, project and
country. I am well able to contribute to the Tübingen Geo- and Environmental Research
Centre and thus gain a very deep insight into the complete process and the implemen-
tation of a project of this scale. I participate in all the stages – from the design to the
carrying out to the coordination. At present, the focus is on coordinating specialist plan-
ners and contractors as well as on communicating with the client and the users. It is
actually interesting for me to work on a German project with a Dutch office. It helps to
see my understanding of architecture in a new context and allows me new perspectives
and approaches to architecture.

r You studied at Technische Universität (TU) Braunschweig. What is the reputation
that graduates from German architectural schools enjoy in the Netherlands?
As far as I can judge from my own environment, German training and architecture basi-
cally enjoy a good reputation. However, Kaan Architecten are very international so that
the origin does not have a decisive influence on the chances of getting a job. So far,
I have worked exclusively together with highly motivated, open and committed col-
leagues, no matter where they studied. At Kaan Architecten, team spirit and independ-
ent working are expected. For the diploma-degree course of TU Braunschweig, these
were basic requirements for successful studies. I believe that studying in Braunschweig
gave me the chance of developing my own attitude to a variety of issues in architecture
and to credibly represent and clearly communicate them. This has been a major help
to me in my professional life to date.

r Kees Kaan is currently the chairman of the Department of Complex Projects at the
faculty of architecture at Delft University of Technology. His research topic is major
building complexes for rapid global urban development. What are you able to learn
from Kees Kaan and his office partners?
Working with Kees Kaan is a great experience for me because he has an exciting and
very original way of asking questions of architecture and of interpreting tasks. I was
given the chance of working with all three partners in the office. For the competition for
the New Courthouse Amsterdam, I worked with Kees Kaan, for the Supreme Court of
the Netherlands with Vincent Panhuysen and for my current project, the GUZ Tübingen, Der Architekturkongress
I am working very closely with Dikkie Scipio. All three have an incredibly good eye for
the different potentials in the individual approaches to the draft and they integrate the in Duisburg
team into their decisions. Thus the complete design process and the standard of the
respective implementation is always incredibly logical and transparent for me. The pre-
cision and the analytical capability with which decisions are made fascinate me. In
addition, there is a highly relaxed relationship between the project directors, the archi- 20./21. OKTOBER 2016
tects and the partners in the office which makes the whole cooperation more than
pleasant. You are given the chance to assume responsibility – and this motivates. The
ideas, concepts and thoughts of each employee are taken very seriously.
Themen und
r Apart from the job – what is positive about working in the Netherlands?
I experience the Dutch as being very open, friendly people. Rotterdam is a very interna-
tional, modern city where an extreme amount of contemporary architecture is generat- kostenlose Registrierung unter:
ed. The city is constantly changing and growing incredibly fast. With the IABR, the
International Biennale of Architecture Rotterdam, and the Het Nieuwe Instituut, the
Rotterdam training, research- and exhibition centre for architecture and design, and www.architectureworld.com
with the proximity to Delft University of Technology, there is a very energetic, interesting
environment where architecture is generated and lived. Thanks to the harbour, the prox-
imity to the North Sea and also to the weather condition, as being from North Germany
I quickly settled down here.