Winning big: Rotor founder scoops the 2015 Maaskant Prize
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- Sign up to our newsletter Newsletter

Sound the gong – Maarten Gielen of Rotor has just been awarded the Maaskant Prize for Young Architects 2015 in Rotterdam. The co-founder of the renowned Brussels design collective is the worthy recipient 'in recognition of the way he explores the theme of material flows, translating it into concrete designs that convey a poetic message and, at the same time, confront the public with current social issues', explains the jury.
The biannual Maaskant Prize, chosen by a different panel of three judges every time, alternates with its namesake 'older' sibling (which is awarded to a more established architect every other year).
In 2015, the jury was looking for a 'talent under 36', to be approved by all board members unanimously. The winner not only met the foundation's primary criteria, but was also someone whose work, the panel felt, reflects and influences the current economic, cultural and social climate, helping to set the field's agenda.
'The economic crisis poses a new reality for the younger generation [of architects]. How can architects help to solve global problems such as climate change, food shortages, social inequality and vacant real estate?', asked the jury members.
'At the same time, the crisis is also opening up opportunities – unleashing new energy and impetus among architects. Job shortages unexpectedly create space – to reflect, to dream and think "Where do we go from here?" We were looking for architects with a standpoint inspired by a sense of critical optimism, people who were not afraid to venture from well-trodden paths, and who understood the need for experiment, especially now.'
Rotor, a collective founded in 2005 by Gielen, Tristan Boniver and Lionel Devlieger, currently comprises nine members of staff, all driven by a shared fascination for material flows. In their hands – in re-contextualising the things we take for granted and presenting them from a fresh perspective – reuse, recycling and waste material have been given new meaning.
Projects that helped Rotor shoot to fame include the 'OMA/Progress (opens in new tab)' exhibition at the Barbican, where they turned the studio inside out – even using rubbish salvaged from waste bins – to establish a personal connection and showcase projects that provide insight into the firm's design processes. The very successful 2013 Oslo Architecture Triennale (opens in new tab), entitled 'Behind The Green Door', was also their brainchild. The project challenged the catchall concept of sustainability by means of presenting 600 'green-labelled' projects as conversation pieces.
'The designers are empathic but their work is light, not cumbrous', added the jury. 'We see this as an attribute because it makes the work accessible to a wide audience.' Their ability to unveil the poetry in the commonplace and to create interventions that make us look, means that this is just the start for the inspiring practice.
The transformation of an abandoned Ghent warehouse into a series of art pieces is one of collective’s most lauded projects.
Known as ’Grindbakken’, the concrete structure was transformed after a series of interventions by Rotor in 2012.
The practice’s show at the 2010 Venice Architecture Biennale – as part of the Belgian Pavilion – was one of their first projects to receive international critical acclaim.
Following on from Venice’s success, the ’OMA/Progress’ exhibition launched at London’s Barbican in 2011
INFORMATION
For more information, visit the Maaskant Prize’s website (opens in new tab)
-
Revea skin-mapping app uses Nasa technology in pursuit of a perfect complexion
The Revea skin-mapping app may be the next revolution in customised skincare, with unique camera-phone diagnostics
By Pei-Ru Keh • Published
-
Sir Jony Ive designs folding red nose for Comic Relief
Sir Jony Ive and his LoveFrom team create this year’s Comic Relief red nose, for the first time in folding form
By Martha Elliott • Published
-
Last chance to see: Laure Prouvost's Light Hall commission at National Museum in Oslo
The Turner Prize-winning artist takes over the cavernous space atop Oslo’s new National Museum with an ethereal installation
By Will Jennings • Published
-
View from the top: Rotterdam Rooftop Walk rises 30m above the city
The temporary installation, a collaboration with architects MVRDV, offers visitors a new perspective of Rotterdam
By Hannah Silver • Last updated
-
An OMA/AMO show at Het Hem explores our balance with nature
We tour Het Hem's latest exhibition, ‘Chapter 5IVE’, a collaboration with OMA's Rem Koolhaas and Samir Bantal, director of AMO
By Yoko Choy • Last updated
-
Het Nieuwe Instituut's Aric Chen on animals, archives and alternative shopping
Het Nieuwe Instituut's new general and artistic director, and Wallpaper* contributor since 2008, Aric Chen talks to us about the cultural organisation’s exciting future and vision, for Rotterdam and beyond
By Ellie Stathaki • Last updated
-
Studio Libeskind’s reflective geometries shape Holocaust memorial in Amsterdam
Studio Libeskind crafts National Holocaust Memorial of Names in Amsterdam, designing dramatic geometric shapes that carry the message of remembrance
By Ellie Stathaki • Last updated
-
Holiday Home is a sustainable Dutch island retreat
Designed by Rotterdam-based studio Orange Architects, the timber-clad Holiday Home is a retreat that brings together flexibility, sustainability and a strong, sculptural aesthetic
By Ellie Stathaki • Last updated
-
Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen is art storage with a twist in Rotterdam
The brand new Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam, designed by architects MVRDV as art storage-cum-museum, completes and gears up for a November 2021 opening to the public
By Yoko Choy • Last updated
-
Dutch villa's countryside design tantalizes in timber and glass
This countryside design in the woods by DP6 architects is a Dutch villa making the most of its leafy location
By Jonathan Bell • Last updated
-
Rem Koolhaas on OMA’s Rotterdam beginnings, Boompjes and Amex
We caught up with Rem Koolhaas to discuss OMA's beginnings, setting up shop in Rotterdam, and his new design for the Amex Centurion ‘Art Card', which was inspired by Boompjes, OMA's very first commission in the Dutch port city in the early 1980s
By Ellie Stathaki • Last updated