Past Present Future: Mecanoo

Mecanoo was founded in Delft, the Netherlands, in 1984 and has grown to around 100 employees in four offices: Delft, London, New York, and Kaohsiung. Founding partner Francine Houben is the firm's creative director, overseeing projects that range from single-family houses to complete neighborhoods. Watch the short videos for insight on the past, present, and future of Mecanoo or visit the "Past, Present, Future" website to read a transcript of Itinerant Office's interview with Houben.

Francine Houben's visit to the model making shop at TU Delft's architecture school, while her brother was a student there, solidified her passion for architecture. Later in the film, Houben describes how Mecanoo started even before she graduated from architecture school, how she traveled around the world and visited famous architects, and how she developed an approach to architecture in the firm's early days.

Mecanoo functions like a symphony, in Houben's words. This is an apt analogy given that the firm is about the same size as an orchestra. Furthermore, just as a symphony is made up of musicians playing different instruments, the architects at Mecanoo have various specializations -- all come together to create the firm's distinctive projects.

Although things are changing rapidly with technology, architecture, to Houben, must appeal to all the senses. Therefore she finds interest in space and in unexpected change. A case in point is the library at TU Delft, one of Mecanoo's best projects and a building they have adapted over time, making it a continuously popular place on campus.

"Past, Present, Future" is a project curated by Gianpiero Venturini, founder of Itinerant Office, with the support of the Creative Industries Fund NL and the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Rome. World-Architects is proud to be a media partner of the project.