MVRDV has won the Shift International Architecture Competition with its proposal ‘Rotterdam Rocks!’. Shift, a social enterprise designed to enable large-scale societal change through art and architecture, launched the international competition last year, calling for designs for a ‘Shift Embassy’ – a major cultural destination in Rotterdam that aims to inspire visitors to help realise large-scale ecological and societal change. The competition asked for sustainable concepts for a future landmark which vie to be the next 'Wonder of the World'.
Discover MVRDV's biotopia 'Rotterdam Rocks!'
MVRDV’s proposal showcased a stacked landscape of living rocks that turn architecture into an urban ecosystem, a futuristic take on eco-brutalism that merges nature and public life. This ambition is captured in the studio’s idea of a ‘Biotopia’: a future world where architecture grows like trees, and streets are illuminated by bioluminescent light. The rocky green landmark acts like a living organism, with pockmarked skin to accommodate nature, and will be largely accessible to the public, allowing visitors to explore viewpoints, exhibition areas, and dining areas.
On the public deck
On the floors of Elysium
The €240-million purpose-driven destination will join other newly opened buildings in Rotterdam, including the Netherlands Fotomuseum and MVRDV’s Portlantis, a museum dedicated to the city's port. The Shift Embassy will span 25,000 to 30,000 sq m and will include a 200-room hotel, an observation deck, a conference and meeting centre, and a sustainable food court.
Entering the caves of Elysium
Seven stacked 'rocks' are arranged around two key pathways through the building; one for the exhibition experience and another for the project’s hospitality functions. A third exterior route twists up the sides of the 'rocks', leading to a publicly accessible viewing terrace, while the top of the building features a rooftop terrace for visitors to The Elysium: an immersive art space. The building’s façade will be covered with indents to provide a surface for soil, water, plants and animals.
Entering the central hall
In the caves of Elysium
‘Our first step in approaching this design was to expand the brief – we need to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and to create inclusive spaces for people, trees, plants, water, air, and animal habitats, balancing the need for new built space with new landscapes to compensate for our ecological impact,’ says MVRDV founding partner Winy Maas. ‘Our design integrates these human and natural spaces, playing with porosity to keep the project compact while maximising its ecological value.’
Dining on the top of the rocks
The Shift International Architecture Competition was launched in January 2025. Eighty teams submitted proposals, which were whittled down to the five finalists, including architecture and design studios Ecosistema Urbano, Heatherwick Studio, Mecanoo, MVRDV, and Office for Political Innovation ( discover the Shift entries here), who have continued developing their designs since November 2025.
Inside of the event rock
On the observation deck
Describing the winning concept, the jury said: ‘MVRDV’s proposal is a remarkably bold, powerful statement that we expect will capture visitors' imagination and encourage them to come back again and again. Rotterdam Rocks departs from how sustainability is traditionally communicated, bringing together joy, discovery, and surprise into a new architectural language. We anticipate this building and its program will invite people to rethink their everyday behaviour and encourage new ways of living sustainably together.’
On the public route
MVRDV entered a short pre-design phase in June to further test and improve its design. The refined version is now being unveiled for the first time, ahead of a local participation process in autumn 2026.
Shift’s longer-term ambition for the landmark project is to create a network of similar structures across six continents, each designed to help create a better and more sustainable way of future living.
The skin as habitat
Bird’s-eye view