Ooze Architects & Urbanists

Ooze is an international design practice operating between the fields of art, architecture and urbanism. Our mission is to be a catalyst for change, developing innovative projects that solve complex current needs, whilst exploring alternative futures. Founded by Eva Pfannes and Sylvain Hartenberg in 2003, Ooze is based in Rotterdam, and works internationally for municipalities, property developers, arts and cultural institutions and private clients. Ooze works across scales, from temporary art works to regional urban strategies, combining an elaborate understanding of natural, ecological processes, with technological expertise and deep insights in to the social-cultural behaviour of users of the built environment. The cyclic closed-loop processes found in nature are the foundation for each intervention and integrate the human scale within a comprehensive vision. Each project, whether an art installation, building, public space or urban strategy aims to create experience and drive change. Ooze believes that space is subjective. All our projects allow users to appropriate a space, and use it as a tool to transform their culture of living. Our thinking is always holistic and strategic, generating out of the box ideas and surprising solutions to persistent and complex spatial problems. Our approach is collaborative and open-minded, using design to bring together stakeholders from top down and bottom-up, encouraging the co-evolution of ideas. The work of Ooze has been realised across the world and has been exhibited, among others, at the Venice Biennial (2012), Studio-X in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (2014 and 2017) and the Sitio Roberto Burle Marx (2017). Ooze is published regularly in magazines and journals such as The Guardian, Monocle, Domus, L’Architecture d’Aujourd’hui and the Architects’ Journal. Ooze has received several awards, including the prestigious Dutch Basis Prix de Rome for Architecture in 2006 and the LafargeHolcim Awards Bronze 2017 Latin America.