Building Narratives

Abstract

The book explores how architectural design has evolved from the production of form into a communicative and strategic practice. Rather than approaching architecture as a fixed end result, the publication positions design as an active framework through which knowledge, negotiation and collaboration are organised.

Structured around three major projects by KAAN Architecten – the redevelopment of SPOT, the Amsterdam Courthouse and the Schiphol Terminal competition – the book investigates how architecture operates within increasingly complex political, economic and institutional realities. Processes of representation, integration and public communication become central to the act of designing itself.

Combining essays, project analysis and visual documentation, ‘Building Narratives’ reflects on architecture’s shifting role in a context shaped by neoliberal transformation, financial uncertainty and digital culture. The publication proposes architectural design not only as a spatial practice, but as a medium capable of structuring dialogue between stakeholders, institutions and the public realm.