Dutch architect, landscape architect and urban planner. Co-founder of MVRDV Studio, an award-winning and globally operating architectural practice. Professor of Urban Planning and Architecture at TU Delft, where in 2008 he founded The Why Factory, a research institute exploring the development of future cities.
Founding Partner, Principal Architect, landscape architect, and urban planner, has led MVRDV’s interdisciplinary team since its establishment in 1993. Co-founded with Jacob van Rijs and Nathalie de Vries, the award-winning Dutch practice has achieved international acclaim for a wide variety of buildings, cities, and landscapes that are innovative, experimental, and merge theory with practice.
Driven by this dedication to green, user-defined, sustainable cities and spaces, Maas’ leadership drives many of the office’s award-winning projects. These include the Dutch Pavilion at Expo 2000 in Hannover, Rotterdam’s Markthal, the Crystal Houses in Amsterdam, the Book Mountain public library in Spijkenisse, the Glass Farm in Schijndel, the Taipei Twin Towers, Vanke’s Head Quarters in Shenzhen and the first publicly accessible art depot in the world, Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen, scheduled to open in 2021. In Maas’ broad portfolio are also several masterplans, including a vision for the future of Greater Paris, the Left Bank in Bordeaux, and the waterfront of Oslo.
Maas balances practice with academic leadership. Besides his work for MVRDV, he is Professor of Urbanism and Architecture at the Delft University of Technology. In 2008, he developed The Why Factory, a research institute within TU Delft, which explores possibilities for the development of cities of the future. His academic work also includes numerous visiting professorships at internationally notable institutions including the Architectural Association School of Architecture in London, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Yale University, Columbia University in New York, the Strelka Institute in Moscow, Hong Kong University, and the Rotterdam Building Academy.
He is co-author of Domus (2019); The Why Factory Future Cities Series: Green Dream (2010), Copy Paste (2017), and Porocity (2018); Farmax: Excursions on Density (1997), with co-founder Jacob van Rijs; KM3: Excursions on Capacities (2005); Five Minutes City (2003); and Skycar City (2007).
Interview with Winy Maas for ArchDaily
Interview with Winy Maas for Dezeen