Mosaics

Rotterdam's West 8 is not only one of the largest, but also one of the best-known and most active design firms working in Europe today in the field of "urban design and landscape architecture." The phrase suggests the firm's strongly interdisciplinary orientation between landscape architecture and town planning. Its projects are provocative, avant-garde in the typically Dutch manner, and not afraid of contact with popular culture. They were created in close collaboration with such architects as Richard Rogers, Steven Holl, Dominique Perrault, Rem Koolhaas, Renzo Piano, and many others. The founder and director of the firm and its most highly visible figure is Adriaan Geuze, who is curator of this year's International Architecture Biennale in Rotterdam. Classics such as the Schouwburgplein in Rotterdam und Chiswick Park in London stand alongside spectacular temporary installations for the Spoleto Art Festival in Charleston (United States) and Expo.02 in Yverdon-les-Bains. Current projects include Buona Vista Park in Singapore, Luxury Village in Moscow, the outdoor installations for the Hurtigroutenterminal in Tromso, and the South Bank Jubilee Gardens in London.