MINISTRY OF

EXCEPTION
The Ministry of Exception is a critique on the
state of exception as a permanent governmental
technique and the subsequent use of torture as
a form of propaganda. The building is located in
the centre of Washington D.C. and it is a hybrid
between a traditional ministry and a detention
camp.

The facade of the building that sits above the

waterline reflects the people that are detained
below it, merging the contemporary symbolism
of Guantanamo, the orange jumpsuit of the pris-
oners, with architectural symbolism.

From the exterior the ministry of exception seems

to consist of two components a ministry and
a camp, reflected in the faade of the ministry.
From the inside however, the distinction between
camp and ministry is far less clear. Crucial func-
tions of the camp are inside the ministry and vice
versa, there is no longer a difference between
ministry and camp. The ministry is a camp, and
the camp is a ministry
DIVIDED CITY: A
MAZE OF CAMPS
This thesis explores the fields of Biopolitics and
Architecture, which overlap in the notion of the
camp. Camps are multifaceted and come in
many forms, but all are founded on the same
principal of a bounded and controlled space of
exclusion.

This project aims to rearticulate and experiment

on the zones of exclusion that are emerging in
the contemporary city. It is a precognition of the
city of the 21th century, the city as a splintered
urban landscape made of premium enclaves and
exclaves of intensifying marginality, the city as a
maze of camps.

If we look at the city today, we can see that it

has been corralled by spaces of exclusion, setup
to contain the non-citizen, ranging from slums
to refugee camps. But also by spaces of selec-
tive inclusion, setup for the fortunate, ranging
from shopping malls to gated communities. All
of these configurations can be designated as
camps.

The boundaries that signify the fields of a camp

space, are today often not even visible. Yet we
seem to only perceive a camp space when there
is a physical wall around it. And that is why the
disciplinary project on the city can be relevant, by
using the representation of physical architecture
to make legible what is otherwise hidden. The
magnitude of the camp as the dominant form of
spatial production should not be underestimat-
ed. If we do, we run the risk of ending up in a
world that is defined by a maze of camps.
EUnique
In these perilous times in which Europe seeks
to achieve economic, legal and political unity
within its continent, the resistance against the
EU is ever increasing amongst its citizens as
a result of the Euro Crisis and the subsequent
spending cuts. In a society where the gap
between the pro-European elite and the rest of
the population has never been greater, there is
a tremendous opportunity for European cultural
institutions to counteract this alienation. These
cultural institutions should become the bridge
between Europe and its people, and should
exhibit the diverse cultural heritage that forms
Europe, in order to bring more understanding
of our common ground to every layer of society,
and thus creating a more united Europe.

This design for a European Institute of Culture

in Rotterdam, entitled EUnique, is a symbiosis
between two principles. The first is, the almost
paradoxical pursuit, to not only attract the
cultural engaged social layer but also the cultural
shallow group, who has its doubts as to culture
and especially a European culture. The most
effective and engaging way to attract this target
group is to create direct social functions (such as
allotment gardens) with a wider attraction to the
public, next to the traditional cultural functions
(such as a library, an exhibition space and a
concert hall).

The second idea is that a design for a cultural

centre should not only facilitate culture, but
should also express its own cultural context.
The function of a European Institute for Culture
expresses itself within the architectural solutions
present in this design. The most important
and notable one is the shape of the building,
it embodies how contemporary European
society is founded on three eras of European
history: Ancient Greece, the Roman Empire and
Christianity.
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THE CLOUD
Cloud Computing is an increasingly important
phenomenon in our society. Now that the social
contacts often shift to the Internet with services
like Facebook and Twitter, the concept of online
privacy is becoming increasingly more present.
Cloud computing encompasses any form of
personal data storing on external servers, as is
the case with Facebook and Twitter, as well as
with e-mail and almost any online service. This
shift of control over our own data will have major
implications for the privacy of the individual.
Our medical files, bank transcripts, documents,
pictures or any other secrets in digital form are
becoming accessible to the outside world.

The Cloud is designed for the Science Centre

in Delft and aims to stimulate awareness of the
dangers and the merits of cloud computing.
This design, which consists of a high-tech
architectonic cloud, displays the online
available personal information of each visitor on
its translucent faade. In this way the projection
of the personal data is to be seen for everybody
from the inside as well as the outside, literally
embodying the ease in which our online personal
information can be seen by everyone.
THE PROTEST
ARCHITECTURE
PROJECT
The last decade has been marked by massive
protests throughout the world. Rarely in his-
tory have so many people voiced their discon-
tent with the current political course of action.
Yet rarely has mass protest resulted in so little
change.

The Office for Protest Architecture was found-

ed on the belief that architecture can be used
as something more than just being another gift
wrapping for corporate or totalitarian imposi-
tions. Architecture can be used as a political
tool, or even an activist tool in order to instigate
change within society.

The Office for Protest Architecture is develop-

ing a number of inflatable devices to aid the mil-
lions of people around the world who protest for
a more democratic society. The devices range
from inflatable bombs that bring awareness to
tourists, to bodysuits that protect against ex-
cessive police violence, and from zeppelins that
bypass media censorship, to cars that turn into
inflatable barricades.
RECYLCING THE CITY
Commodities like copper, aluminium, steel and
even oil are getting scarcer every day and prices
are skyrocketing. The answer to the resource
deprivation is urban mining, the city as a modern
mine. Cell phones, computers, cars, buildings
and other products are becoming the source for
raw materials.

The Pavilion functions as an example of the future

city, it is a travelling pavilion which is composed
entirely out of urban waste. To be precise, it is
constructed out of the two biggest pollutants
of the consumer society: plastic containers and
cars. Plastic containers are recycled and reused
as wall and floor elements, steel and aluminium
obtained from cars are used for the main
construction.

This building doesnt only represent urban mining

by reusing materials, even the shape resembles
a giant recycling symbol, creating a central court
around which three ramps revolve. These slopes
meet each other at the roof of the building,
making it possible to walk from one to the other
on both the lowest and the highest level. This
unusual design has the benefit of being simple to
build and break down into small parts, making it
easy to transport