"I have a confession to make: I have no idea what placemaking is"
Discussions about planning and urbanism are awash with talk of "placemaking" but the term remains strangely and troublingly opaque, writes Reinier de Graaf. More
"Listening to any contemporary conversation on architecture is like being indulged in a form of Orwellian Newspeak"
Architects must stop using the vacuous buzzwords that dominate the profession if they are to make a positive difference in the world, writes Reinier de Graaf. More
"The current crisis has exposed the structural shortcomings of our healthcare systems"
The coronavirus has exposed fundamental problems with our healthcare systems that we should not forget once the pandemic passes, warns Reinier de Graaf in a letter to the present from the future. More
"Too much is at stake to leave architecture to architects"
The emotional and economic impacts of cities are closely connected, but this is lost in a proliferation of meaningless phrases like "healthy placemaking" and "human-centric design", says Reinier de Graaf. More
"In the age of big data, everything is quantifiable, even happiness"
Measuring people's happiness with architecture is a step towards trying to control them, says Reinier de Graaf.
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"Can a house be beautiful simply because of what we know, not because of what we see?"
A simple house features on the cover of Reinier de Graaf's new book, Four Walls and a Roof: The Complex Nature of a Simple Profession. In this extract, the OMA partner reveals the building's secret, politically fuelled past. More
"Smart devices introduce a fundamental ambiguity over who is in charge"
Opinion: "smart" technology promises to make our lives easier by learning what we like and giving us more of it, says Reinier de Graaf. But who will really be in control when the machines know everything about us? More
"The smart city is the ultimate free-for-all"
Opinion: is the idea of the smart city really just another way for big businesses to make even more money, asks Reinier de Graaf, who revisits the subject against his own better judgement. More
"Academics need to break out of their loop and get back into the real world"
Opinion: dominated by old boys who think their view is the only one that matters, architecture academia in the US has become insular and out of touch, says Reinier de Graaf, who finds a perfect illustration in a recent debate at the Chicago Architecture Biennial. More
"Charisma allows the architect to speak with authority, even when he has no clue"
Opinion: charisma can't be learned, but it is often the architect's last line of defence against demanding clients and unsavoury economic realties, says Reinier de Graaf. More
"The smart city blinds us to the possibility of political action"
Opinion: the limitless prosperity once promised by urbanisation has failed to materialise, leaving rapidly growing inequality in its wake. It will take more than some clever technology to solve the problems with the world's biggest cities, says Reinier de Graaf. More
"More than just a political system, Europe is a form of modernisation"
Opinion: in the noughties, architects OMA worked on a series of optimistic projects for the European Union, including a proposal for a colourful EU Barcode flag and an exhibition suggesting that a united Europe "could be fun". With the EU looking increasingly fragile, OMA partner Reinier de Graaf wonders if they should have bothered. More
"The same architecture that once embodied social mobility now helps to prevent it"
Opinion: the ideals of Modernism can't survive the pressures of a voracious market that views buildings purely as capital, says Reinier de Graaf. More
"Definitely not a bridge"
Opinion: Dutch architecture firm OMA was among 74 entrants for a competition to design a new footbridge across London's River Thames – but its entry was more about making a statement than trying to win, explains practice partner Reinier de Graaf. More
At your service: 10 tips for becoming a successful urban consultant
Opinion: OMA partner Reinier de Graaf offers his top 10 tips for architects interested in branching out into urban consultancy, including "avoid writing" and "invoice early and invoice often". More
"The vast majority of the built environment is of an unspeakable ugliness"
Opinion: the legacy of the Modernist movement is a "God complex" among contemporary architects that is turning architecture into its own worst enemy, says OMA partner Reinier de Graaf in his first column for Dezeen. More