RAAAF
EVERY PROJECT IS A MANIFESTO IN ITSELF.
RAAAF operates at the crossroads of architecture, art and philosophy. The studio started in 2006. RAAAF makes location- and context specific work and has developed the design approach of ‘strategic interventions’, which derives from the respective backgrounds of the founding partners: Prix de Rome Architecture laureate Ronald Rietveld and philosopher Erik Rietveld. Through a unique working method based on multidisciplinary research with scientists and other specialists, RAAAF’s real-life thinking models link local qualities with long-term strategies.
For RAAAF every project is a manifesto in itself. Our interventions are the result of an independent attitude and research agenda, starting from our own fascinations while confronting them with urgent societal issues. To use the words of Lebbeus Woods, what interests us is "what the world would be like if we were free from conventional limits and show what could happen if we lived by a different set of rules." Showing these visions is the aim of each project.
A striking example of this is the installation ‘Vacant NL’, the Dutch contribution to the Venice Architecture Biennale 2010, in which the potential of 10.000 governmentally-owned vacant buildings was shown, now central in the discussions concerning innovative re-use. Another example is the cut-through monument ‘Bunker 599’, which unorthodoxly questions the Dutch and UNESCO policies on cultural heritage. ‘The End of Sitting’ is a thinking model that questions our ‘sitting society’. This architectural installation is a concept for a new working environment wherein the chair and desk are no longer unquestionable starting points. Instead, the installation’s various affordances solicit visitors to explore different standing positions in an experimental work landscape.
RAAAF’s work has been published world-wide and exhibited at leading art- and architecture biennales such as those of São Paulo, Istanbul and Venice. The studio has won several prestigious awards, including the Prix de Rome Architecture 2006, the Architectural Review Award 2013, the European Prize of Architecture 2017 (Philippe Rotthier), a VIDI-award of the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) and a ERC-Starting Grant. In 2013 RAAAF earned the title of New Radical and Dutch Architect of the Year. The various juries emphasize the ability of the studio to cross and stretch the disciplinary borders of architecture, philosophy and art.
In 2016 Ronald & Erik Rietveld have been invited to become members of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts (KNAW).
Secret Operation 610
When aircraft Shelter 610 opens its ruthless doors, a monstrous black behemoth slowly comes driving out. The object revives the mysterious atmosphere of the Cold War and its accompanying terrifying weaponry. At an almost excruciatingly slow pace, the artwork uses its caterpillar tracks to cross the seemingly infinite runway. Due to this brutal object's constantly changing position in the serene landscape, it allows the visitor to experience the area and the history of the military airbase in new ways.
At the same time, the artwork functions as a working environment for researchers. Their temporary stay creates opportunities for innovative research programs that otherwise would be impossible. For example, inside the object, students of the Technical University Delft (Aerospace / CleanEra) will develop a program for the innovative flying of the 21st century: "no noise, no carbon, just fly". The old runway is the perfect test site for state of the art aviation experiments.
The mobile sculpture and shelter 610 are perfect spaces for research, experiment and innovation for groups coming from various disciplines. The unconventional combination of nature and Cold War history offers an exciting environment for the development of knowledge about nature, technology and aviation.
Clients: Vrede van Utrecht, Province Utrecht, SKOR
Design: RAAAF | Studio Frank Havermans
Team: Frank Havermans, Ronald & Erik Rietveld, Arna Mackic
Construction & Coordinator: Koos Schaart
Location: Airbase Soesterberg
Status: Realized, 2013
Video: Moving Films
Photography: Michiel de Cleene, Raymond Rutting
Special thanks to: Koen van Oort, Jigme Radovic, Anne Mauch, Willeke Evenhuis, Feike de Jong, Edwin van der Zanden, Arjan Zandbergen, Hugo Hendrickx, Francois Lombarts, David Habets, Aisha Fouad, Janno Martens, Tomm Velthuis, Erik Rietveld, Stimuleringsfonds Creatieve Industrie and NWO
View the gallery below and Visit the Website:raaaf.nl
