The photography in this book encapsulates a journey throughout the life of twelve buildings by architect Wiel Arets - from construction to inhabitation - as experienced by artist Bas Princen.

Wiel Arets is an architect whose exacting colord pencil perspectives, mysteriously transcending images, and prolific oeuvre of built works have garnered global accolades; they engage within their context, possess a hybrid future-flexibility, and yet they remain distinguised in stance, even after decades of use.
Bas Princen is acclaimed for his immense imagery that portrays the interplay of contemporary metropolitan conditions as they converge with landscape and nature.

The architecture within the book’s pages emanates from an unexpected lens, to those familiar with Arets’ work; columns seem to be composed of trees; fritted surfaces resemble abstract paintings; technical spaces replicate sculptural silhouettes. The concentrated photographs by Bas Princen not only capture the atmosphere of the twelve buildings, but also convey the impact and powerful symbolism of architecture in its most primeval sense–as protective shelter. Travelling through Europe and Japan, Bas Princen has recorded inconspicuous incidents of ephemerality that parralleled the use and construction of twelve buildings - all of which are representative of Arets' studio throughout its three-decade history.

The photography in this book encapsulates a journey throughout the life of twelve buildings by architect Wiel Arets - from construction to inhabitation - as experienced by artist Bas Princen.

Wiel Arets is an architect whose exacting colord pencil perspectives, mysteriously transcending images, and prolific oeuvre of built works have garnered global accolades; they engage within their context, possess a hybrid future-flexibility, and yet they remain distinguised in stance, even after decades of use.
Bas Princen is acclaimed for his immense imagery that portrays the interplay of contemporary metropolitan conditions as they converge with landscape and nature.

The architecture within the book’s pages emanates from an unexpected lens, to those familiar with Arets’ work; columns seem to be composed of trees; fritted surfaces resemble abstract paintings; technical spaces replicate sculptural silhouettes. The concentrated photographs by Bas Princen not only capture the atmosphere of the twelve buildings, but also convey the impact and powerful symbolism of architecture in its most primeval sense–as protective shelter. Travelling through Europe and Japan, Bas Princen has recorded inconspicuous incidents of ephemerality that parralleled the use and construction of twelve buildings - all of which are representative of Arets' studio throughout its three-decade history.

Wiel Arets (*1955 in Heerlen) is also known as a designer, author, and educator, and is the Dean of the College of Architecture at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago. Wiel Arets Architects (WAA), which was founded in 1983, has branches in Amsterdam, Maastricht, and Zürich.