2008

by Reinier de Graaf

For the most part, architectural history in Britain is the story of gradual change and evolution, of long term trends that give meaning to events as they unfold, even moments of apparent crescendo and climax. From time to time, however, there comes a tipping point when old certainties are overturned, new ideas break free and the clock of history is reset: we call this a Year Zero. This series of essays invites writers, critics, historians and architects to identify and reflect on a single Year Zero – when the trajectories of architectural and broader history connect and coincide and the status quo is changed forever.

Reinier de Graaf, partner at OMA and author of Four Walls and a Roof, The Complex Nature of a Simple Profession looks at the financial collapse of 2008.

11 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 25, 2018

About the author

Reinier Hendrik de Graaf was born in Schiedam, Netherlands, where he graduated from Stedelijk Gymnasium in 1982.[1] He holds an architecture diploma from Delft University and a master's degree in architecture from the Berlage Institute. De Graaf worked for architecture firms in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom before joining OMA in 1996.