dérive

We’re thrilled and honored to be nominated by the jury for the Prix de Rome 2026! From the jury report: “Welcome To The Black Box focuses on one of the most defining technological developments of our time. The proposal explores the spatial consequences of accelerated industrial growth caused by digitalisation. Not to celebrate or condemn it, but to speculate on it. The proposal identifies chip manufacturer ASML as one of the main drivers behind Terminal Velocity in the Netherlands. Building on the Latourian concept of 'blackboxing', @hedwig.van.der.linden and @kevin.westerveld argue that the production process of digitalisation is deliberately obscured. They see it as the task of architecture to open this black box and reveal how the production process works, in order to gain greater control over its spatial consequences. The jury regards the speculative scenario as a valuable tool for making visible what is at stake if technological acceleration continues.” Thanks to @val_lederer for the help! The results will be on display from December at @nieuweinstituut in Rotterdam. Congratulations to all fellow nominees: @slodkaxzatta , @studio_maartenplomp & @fenderwall , @namelok.eu @prixderome_nl @stimuleringsfonds

Are you eager to provide air within complex transitions challenges? We are currently offering a paid internship for a motivated and independent student to join our team. Our practice engages in a wide range of projects, from research-by-design and scenography to urban design and landscape architecture. Interested? Please send us your CV and a concise portfolio. For any questions, feel free to reach out at [email protected].

Over the holidays, we got together and experimented with and reimagined the firepit for @horstartsandmusic , and are proud to be among the final five selections out of 272 submissions (!) 🔥. With bodies sharing warmth, flames dancing in a flickering rhythm, and stories rising with the smoke, the fireplace becomes a place to sink into, to melt, to digest, and to let go, holding the potential to be as essential to the festival and the @asiatpark site as the dance floor itself. We reimagine the fire pit as a fire platform encouraging a variety of affordances – a fire for dances A spacious and organic platform made from reused and leftover wood from the festival ateliers, unified through burning, accommodates multiple modes of gathering. It offers spaces for intimacy, closeness, and retreat, while others spark encounters and ignite conversation. A cloud of reused ventilation ducts hovers above and reflects the fire. This canopy functions as a protective structure, sheltering people seated around the fire while guiding smoke away from the surrounding trees. For @horstartsandmusic and @fritzkola Team @derive.practice.eu ; @kevin.westerveld @hedwig.van.der.linden @gilbard.e.s @manupapal @antonwvripon @charlotte.coenen

Join our event next Monday: Fix it! Don’t demolish - renovate. 🚧 Architecture drives nearly 40% of CO₂ emissions, yet demolition is still the norm. What if Europe chose renovation instead? 📅 Monday, Sept 29, 20:00 📍 Pakhuis de Zwijger, Amsterdam Join @houseeurope.eu for film, talks & debate with Janna Bystrykh (Academie van Bouwkunst), Nathalie de Vries (MVRDV), Olaf Grawert (HouseEurope!), Hedwig van der Linden (Dérive), moderated by Saskia van Stein (IABR). Free entry → sign up + sign the petition via our link in bio. ✍️ 🗣️ English spoken #FixIt #IABR #RenovateDontSpeculate #HouseEurope! #pakhuisdezwijger #ClimateAction

“Long live Brussels! Long live the future!” Today Kristiaan Borret shared these words as – from now onwards – the former Bouwmeester Maître Architecte of Brussels-Capital Region. As he writes in the BMA newsletter: “After two five-year terms and two exceptional extensions since 2025, pending the appointment of a successor, I am putting a final end to it. Like countless citizens in Brussels, I now await a government that governs, so that everyone can move forward.” To continue advocating for a next BMA with once again a significant role and appropriate independence, we hereby highlight the appreciation for Brussels’ spatial quality policy developed thanks to the work of the BMA. Brussels is an example, also internationally, as also can be seen in the attention for the book “Soft Power - 10 Years of Bouwmeester Maître Architecte in Brussels” and for the events organized around it. In November, the book presentation together with Kristiaan Borret’s farewell as BMA, drew a full house at Usquare in Brussels, with lively contributions from both professionals and the public. In December, the book has been presented in Domushaus, Basel; a dialogue with the authors, the editorial team, and practitioners from Brussels. In June, together with the City of Rotterdam, we hosted a public talk with the book as a starting point. One key takeaway for Rotterdam: “Good commissioning is essential to deploy research by design, not only for more abstract future visions but also in the daily practice of urban development. But in order to make this translation to the built practice, the Netherlands lacks a competition culture that promotes spatial quality. The Brussels approach teaches us that this is possible within the European tendering regulations.” @bouwmeestermaitrearchitecte @buchhandlungwaltherfranzkoenig @hedwig.van.der.linden @jandenoo @lisadevisscher @gillesdebrun @ateliersvenbeirnaert @veroniquepatteeuw @oanabogdan__ @thierrydecuypere @radlouda @meriem.chabani @AnsPersoons @alicebabini @annekatrienverdickt @LeisterhDavid Stéphan Sonneville @domushaus_eg @gemeenterotterdam @sofie.decaigny @jeroen_de_willigen @hammarlundbergmann Bas van der Pol Marieke Berkers

[3/3] The car distribution at the D’Ieteren complex inspires Dérive to question the notion of a ‘vehicle’: a machine that represents various demonstrations of a ‘good place’. A surreal vehicle – composed of reused materials and found artefacts – that challenges conventional paths and provokes the everyday. By parking it in public space and experimenting with different uses, which are recorded on film, a projection of a piece of public outdoor space measuring 2.5 meters by 5 meters is created on the floor of the showroom. These images encourage people to create a good place in their own way, using the affordances the vehicle offers. In doing so, light is shed on the dominant use of our shared spaces and alternative forms of appropriation are explored – an important theme in Dérive’s work. Thanks to @studioemile for the space and expertise to assemble the whole, and to @studioreems for the video. Team Dérive: @hedwig.van.der.linden @kevin.westerveld @clairepss With @acme.image @chambresdesdamies @eelilizz @esque.info @ouvrages.be @variable.ooo @voor.als.nog Organized by @aplusarchitectureinbelgium @ica.wb @vlaams_architectuurinstituut @demeyertheo @pauline.fockedey Thanks to @dieterenimmo @joseph.maziere @svenbekijkthet

[2/3] The car distribution at the D’Ieteren complex inspires Dérive to question the notion of a ‘vehicle’: a machine that represents various demonstrations of a ‘good place’. A surreal vehicle – composed of reused materials and found artefacts – that challenges conventional paths and provokes the everyday. By parking it in public space and experimenting with different uses, which are recorded on film, a projection of a piece of public outdoor space measuring 2.5 meters by 5 meters is created on the floor of the showroom. These images encourage people to create a good place in their own way, using the affordances the vehicle offers. In doing so, light is shed on the dominant use of our shared spaces and alternative forms of appropriation are explored – an important theme in Dérive’s work. Thanks to @studioemile for the space and expertise to assemble the whole, and to @studioreems for the video. Team Dérive: @hedwig.van.der.linden @kevin.westerveld @clairepss With @acme.image @chambresdesdamies @eelilizz @esque.info @ouvrages.be @variable.ooo @voor.als.nog Organized by @aplusarchitectureinbelgium @ica.wb @vlaams_architectuurinstituut @demeyertheo @pauline.fockedey Thanks to @dieterenimmo @joseph.maziere @svenbekijkthet

[1/3] The car distribution at the D’Ieteren complex inspires Dérive to question the notion of a ‘vehicle’: a machine that represents various demonstrations of a ‘good place’. A surreal vehicle – composed of reused materials and found artefacts – that challenges conventional paths and provokes the everyday. By parking it in public space and experimenting with different uses, which are recorded on film, a projection of a piece of public outdoor space measuring 2.5 meters by 5 meters is created on the floor of the showroom. These images encourage people to create a good place in their own way, using the affordances the vehicle offers. In doing so, light is shed on the dominant use of our shared spaces and alternative forms of appropriation are explored – an important theme in Dérive’s work. Thanks to @studioemile for the space and expertise to assemble the whole, and to @studioreems for the video. Team Dérive: @hedwig.van.der.linden @kevin.westerveld @clairepss With @acme.image @chambresdesdamies @eelilizz @esque.info @ouvrages.be @variable.ooo @voor.als.nog Organized by @aplusarchitectureinbelgium @ica.wb @vlaams_architectuurinstituut @demeyertheo @pauline.fockedey Thanks to @dieterenimmo @joseph.maziere @svenbekijkthet

Public Talk: SOFT POWER – towards a good city through creative bureaucracy? Date: Wednesday, June 4 at 6:30 PM Location: @maritiemmuseumrotterdam Language: Dutch How do you promote good spatial quality? And how do we work on this within a landscape of diverse methods, roles, positions, and habits? During this event, four experts – Kristiaan Borret, Jeroen de Willigen, Jessica Hammarlund Bergmann and Bas van der Pol – will engage in a dialogue with each other and the audience, moderated by Marieke Berkers. What formal and informal methods best initiate spatial quality? And what is the ideal role and position of the city architect, politicians, designers and civil servants? The occasion and central theme of the evening: the publication ‘Soft Power. 10 Years of Bouwmeester Maître Architecte in Brussels’. At the initiative of co-author Hedwig van der Linden, @gemeenterotterdam is organizing this public talk, taking place during the @dakendagen010 and the @rotterdamarchitectuurmaand Register now, as ticket availability is limited. Borret on Soft Power: “Providing a legal framework for a pioneering formula for a competition, whispering innovation in the revision of the building code or using design research to unlock a new planning vision: that makes up our daily work. We like to think of ourselves as champions of creative bureaucracy, and we love it.” All information + tickets via the link in bio. Publication and review on Archined via links in bio. - @kristiaanborret : Bouwmeester Maître Architecte (BMA) @bouwmeestermaitrearchitecte - @jeroen_de_willigen : Chair of BNA, former city architect of Groningen and partner at De Zwarte Hond - Jessica @hammarlundbergmann : City architect of Enschede and partner at Blau - basvanderpol : Alderman for Urban Development and Economy of the Municipality of Tilburg and former director of AIR - Teun van der Meulen: Real estate development expert for the municipality of Rotterdam, Urban Development Department - @hedwig.van.der.linden : Co-author of the publication ‘Soft Power. 10 Years of Bouwmeester Maître Architecte in Brussels’ and partner at Dérive

. Werk je aan co-creatie en wil je bijdragen aan een onderzoek naar co-creatie? Het invullen van deze vragenlijst neemt zo’n 10 minuten in beslag en levert een waardevolle bijdrage aan ons onderzoek. Deze vragenlijst staat open van 2 t/m 16 april 2025. Zie story/hoogtepunt voor link enquête! Dérive en Studio Inscape werken aan het zelf-geïniteerde project ‘vorm-geven aan co-creëren’ ondersteund door een open oproep van Stimuleringsfonds Creatieve Industrie. Onder co-creatie verstaan we een participatieve aanpak waarbij de expertise en perspectieven van alle deelnemers worden benut om innovatieve en relevante oplossingen te creëren. In de architectuur en publieke ruimte schieten ontwerpprocessen vaak tekort als het gaat om meerstemmigheid en inclusie van verschillende belanghebbenden. Binnen de huidige ontwerpmethoden lijkt er een gebrek te zijn aan plekken waar ervaringen en tools gedeeld en gevormd worden die bijdragen aan het toegankelijk maken van co-creatie. Wij ervaren een behoefte aan een laagdrempelig medium waarmee architecten, stadsplanners, projectontwikkelaars, landschapsarchitecten, culturele instellingen, communityorganisaties, ondernemers en ontwerpers, beter kunnen inspelen op de veranderende behoeften van gemeenschappen en de (stedelijke) omgeving. Met dit project willen we bijdragen aan een fundamentele verbetering in de manier waarop participatieve processen binnen de architectuurpraktijk worden aangepakt, door co-creatie toegankelijker, inclusiever en effectiever te maken. Dit project resulteert in het ontwerpen en realiseren van een fysieke installatie voor co-creatie die breed toegankelijk wordt. Op basis van eigen ervaringen, referentieprojecten, en een reeks gesprekken met professionals geven we vorm aan een fysieke installatie en de programmatische invulling hiervan. Mogelijk gemaakt door @stimuleringsfonds

Discover @derive.practice.eu , with @hedwig.van.der.linden and @kevin.westerveld , participants of Across in Residence 2025 ! 🔹 Dérive was founded in Brussels in 2022 by Hedwig van der Linden and Kevin Westerveld. Together with Margot De Caster and Maxine Dhuyvetters, they are currently working on a variety of projects, ranging from public amenities and programming to co-creation and curation. 👉 The next Across lecture will take place at VAi / De Singel in Antwerp on the 22nd of April, subscribe via the link in bio. In the meantime, do not hesitate to have a look at Aplus website to get to know the residents: ACME, chambresdamies, Dérive, Elise Helm, esque, O.U.V.R.A.G.E.S., variable (x;y) and voor.als.nog. 🤝 Across in Residence is a collaboration between A+ Architecture in Belgium, Vlaams Architectuurinstitut (VAi) and Institut Culturel d’Architecture Wallonie Bruxelles (ICA). With the support of D’leteren immo and Faculty of Architecture ULiège. @archi_uliege 📽️ Video direction and production @ica.wb © Institut Culturel d’Architecture Wallonie-Bruxelles @aplusarchitectureinbelgium @vlaams_architectuurinstituut @ica.wb @dieterenimmo @archi_uliege @pauline.fockedey @nord.architectes @demeyertheo @acme.image @lisadesa @derive.practice.eu @eelilizz @esque.info @ouvrages.be @variable.xy @voor.als.nog Copyrights of projects mentioned : (c) @derive.practice.eu

Garden of the city: scenography proposal Our proposal challenges the concept of the garden and urban biodiversity, immersing visitors into a surreal corridor that evokes both slight discomfort and familiarity. The proposal invites engagement and appropriation, much like in an urban park. The Museumpark in Rotterdam is in a state of constant change; most recently, grass had to replace the act of skating. By carefully draping, cutting, rolling up, and folding the grass fabric, we capture the light and frame the views. While doing so, we use the concept of the ‘green screen’ as a multilayered metaphor – both a backdrop for the exhibited projects and an active element in suggesting a playful and critical engagement with how public green spaces are perceived, used and designed. The Monobloc completes the stage – a chair many claim to dislike, yet its ubiquitous presence also reflects its adaptability, accessibility and universal appeal. It is an object without context, making it the ideal chair for non-places such as the corridor of this main exhibition. With ephemerality, and reuse in mind, a thorough material investigation – carried out in collaboration with the surrounding institutions and museums – allowed us to borrow most of the materials for the scenography. Invited competition by OMI and AIR Rotterdam Architecture Month 2024