de Zwarte Hond

This monograph on the architecture bureau De Zwarte Hond (The Black Dog) presents a comprehensive overview of realized and unbuilt projects by the office, formerly called Karelse Van der Meer Architecten. De Zwarte Hond is a large and wide-ranging bureau with branches in Groningen and Rotterdam, and has one of the most extensive and eclectic portfolios of built projects in the Netherlands. The bureau is unique in its down-to-earth design mentality that is inspired by the conviction that the best design is the result of a thorough study of task, program and context. The book concentrates on the design process and the resulting solutions for a series of projects within recent years. This focus on "process" and "result" is approached in two ways: on one hand, by means of a substantial reflection on their methodology in which craftsmanship and research are at least as important as the end result; on the other hand, by means of a complete overview of all 500 projects in their extensive archive. Between reflection and the archive lies a concise chronology that traces the history and evolution of the bureau over the years.