Bogdan

15/01/2025

A core value of &bogdan is creating and supporting spaces of integrity and respect. This principle is central to our architectural work and informs how we, as a team, engage with our communities, environments, and each other. We believe we should extend these same standards to the digital spaces we support. For this reason, we have decided to pause our use of Meta platforms—Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp.

Meta’s recent policy changes—such as loosening restrictions on sensitive topics like immigration and gender, and allowing harmful content related to mental illness and sexual orientation—are deeply concerning. These changes, coupled with a reduced threshold for automated content moderation, reflect a disregard for safety, inclusivity, and respect. If these policies remain unchanged, we will close our accounts.

We will remain active on LinkedIn, a platform we believe better aligns with our commitment to integrity and professionalism. We are hopeful LinkedIn will continue to maintain these standards and, where possible, improve the interface design.

We deserve digital spaces that do not propagate hate.

+

21/10/2024

Lecture about the housing crisis in Luxembourg at LUCA Luxembourg Center for Architecture

The ‘housing crisis’ is a major issue for Luxembourg, as it is for other European countries. After the Semaine Nationale du Logement, where the issue of density is addressed, LUCA is organising, with the support of the Ministry of Housing and Spatial Planning, a series of four lectures on affordable housing.

The series, which starts on 23 October, will look at how architects, through their commitment, can help to produce quality affordable housing, even in restrictive economic and regulatory contexts.

The first lecture will be by Oana Bogdan on "Affordable Good Living in Europe": The world is facing a severe housing affordability crisis, widening the gap in wealth and income inequality. Rents in major cities are skyrocketing, outpacing incomes as property becomes a prime investment. The once vital social mission of modern architecture - to provide a decent standard of living for all - feels like a distant memory. Today, construction often serves investment interests, but the right to quality housing should be a fundamental human right, with architecture as a tool for social justice.

23.10.2024 at 18h30
Free upon registration at https://luca.lu/evenements/oana-bogdan-bogdan-bruxelles
Language: English
LUCA - Luxembourg Center for Architecture

Picture by Laurian Ghinitoiu

Head over to our website to learn more about the lecture!

24/09/2024

Join us this Thursday 26 September for a lecture and a debate on the Inclusive City with Globe Aroma &bogdan, organised by ARCHIPEL vzw! More than ever, architecture should become an instrument of social justice and inclusivity. It should become part of the future-proof city that takes into account its responsibility towards other natures, generations, cultures, genders, classes and vulnerabilities.

The lecture will be held at our project COOP in Anderlecht. You can get tickets on the Archipel website.

06/09/2024

We are delighted to hear that Bijgaardehof is one of the twenty shortlisted projects for the Architecture Prize Ghent 2024 (Architectuur Prijs Gent - editie 2024)! We invite you to explore the selected projects via the special bike route that is running through the city, and join us on the 6th of October at the guided visit of Bijgaardehof and, later, to the award ceremony in the Wintercircus.

Bijgaardehof focuses on sustainability, at the social, urban and building level. It has an ambitious, mixed programme organised around meeting and interaction in one of the largest cohousing projects in Flanders. The thinking behind this project was not only the subject of an architectural design, but was also the design of a participatory process. The relationship established between the design team and the inhabitants (co-housers) became enriching and rewarding for everyone.

We would like to express our gratitude for the collaborations and trust throughout the journey of this project, but also for the positive reactions we received from you, our online community. Next to the professional jury prize, Bijgaardehof has a chance to win the audience award, which this year will be presented by the youth of Ghent.

Team work: Ney & Partners + architects + + Daidalos Peutz + &Bogdan

Clients: Wijkgezondheidscentrum Sint-Amandsberg + BioTope Cohousing + Cohousing De Spore + Wijgaard cohousing

With the support of Sogent

Images: Architectuur Prijs Gent

Head over to our website to learn more about Bijgaardehof!

Link to Architectuur Prijs Gent: https://www.architectuur.gent/project/66c31d5cb504a/cohousing-bijgaardehof?edition=2024

Link to our website: https://www.bogdan.design/projects/bijgaardehof/

22/06/2024

Dear Colleagues,

I would like to thank you for the many messages encouraging me to be a candidate for the new position of Brussels Government Architect BMA bouwmeester maître architecte. In many of the lectures I have given in recent years, I have mentioned how fortunate I feel to be in Belgium at a time when the work of the Bouwmeesters of Brussels, Charleroi, Ghent, Antwerp, and Flanders is being recognized, visited by students, architects, and public servants from across Europe, and most importantly, appreciated by the citizens. It is precisely the quality of urban space enhanced by these Bouwmeesters that inspires me today to commit fully to &bogdan (Bogdan).

Why haven't I focused on &bogdan before? Since 2007, when I co-founded BOGDAN & VAN BROECK with Leo Van Broeck, my time has been occupied with various responsibilities. I taught at KU Leuven (2005-2011), studied business administration at Vlerick Business School (2013-2015), served Romania as Secretary of State and co-founded a political party (2016-2019), participated in numerous non-profit boards, served Brussels as chairwoman the Good Living expert committee for the Building Code Reform (2021-2022), and, at the end of 2022, took over BOGDAN & VAN BROECK, which became &bogdan, after Leo's retirement from practice.

In short, I want to give &bogdan a fair chance to play a central role in my professional life. I also dream of free weekends and evenings, but that's something I will pursue once the working conditions for architects in Belgium will get better (if they ever will).

However, I am one of the people who believe the next Brussels Bouwmeester Maître Architecte should be a woman. I have several brilliant women in mind who could excel in this role, and I offer them my full support. ❤️

Best regards,
Oana

Photo: COOP, the first competition organized by the BMA that we won in 2011, transforming a mill into an SME incubator and museum.
Bogdan

02/05/2024

The KU Leuven Faculty of Architecture is showcasing by means of an alumni event the four Belgian shortlisted projects and the 18 Belgian nominations for the EU Prize for Contemporary Architecture - Mies van der Rohe Awards 2024. Oana Bogdan will introduce Amal Amjahid on the launch of this Exhibition.

🔊 BELGIAN NOMINATIONS | Exhibition of the EUmies Awards 2024.

This exhibition puts the winners and finalists of the 2024 EUmies Awards, together with the four Belgian shortlisted projects, the eighteen Belgian nominees, as well as the Young Talent KU Leuven () finalist including the 11 Belgian nominees.

→ KU Leuven has had two winners in the Young Talent category and many of its alumni have been nominees, shortlistees and finalists.

Book your place 🔗 https://connect.kuleuven.cloud/events/145817

——
➡️ EXHIBITION
From 02 May to 07 October, 2024
KU Leuven Faculty of Architecture, Campus Sint-Lucas Brussels Paleizenstraat 65, 1030
eu

26/03/2024

Vacancy - 2024

We are seeking (engineer-) architects to join our international team at the atelier space where we are currently relocating: Rue des Ateliers 19, 1080 Molenbeek.

Fluent in either French or Dutch, as well as English, you possess excellent design skills and proficiency in ArchiCAD. Above all, we prioritize a strong team spirit, as close collaboration is fundamental at &bogdan.

We look forward to hearing from you. Please submit your portfolio to [email protected], following the procedure outlined on our website.

23/03/2024

Architect Oana Bogdan on life on the edge of her piano chair: Glenn Gould, a tête-à-tête with her younger self and architectural mayonnaise.
////////////////
Text: Thijs Demeulemeester Photo: Alexander D'Hiet
Published today in , in Dutch (De Tijd) and French ( L'Echo).
////////////////

29/02/2024

Recent discussions surrounding the new energy standards (EPB/EPC) in Flanders overlook crucial aspects essential for achieving a carbon-neutral and sustainable future for both existing and new buildings. According to Cente Van Hout, project architect at &bogdan, highlighted in De Standaard, the focus on energy efficiency must extend beyond merely relying on technology and insulation. Instead, it should prioritise spatial design principles that consider the urban environment, location, and incorporate low-tech solutions.

Cente advocates for a shift in mindset towards reevaluating our comfort and living standards. He emphasises that this reevaluation should not be solely driven by the goal of reducing energy consumption but should also aim to enhance spatial qualities. By acknowledging that slight adjustments, such as lowering the average indoor temperature from 23 to 19°C, can open up new design opportunities, he suggests a balanced approach that harmonises spatial and thermal comfort. This perspective underscores the importance of integrating architectural innovation with energy efficiency measures to create buildings that not only consume less energy but also offer improved living environments.

More about this on our website! See links in comment.

22/02/2024

Our project Amal Amjahid - community facility along the canal in Molenbeek is one of the 40 shortlisted projects for the European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture Mies van der Rohe Awards 2024!

For that reason, we would like to celebrate our close collaboration with the photographers who helped to shape the online appearance of the project. Photography is not only a record in time, but the place of the project itself starts to live a double life in publications, blogs and magazines.

Corentin Haubruge clinically sets Amal in an urban stage and shows the viewer how light, material, composition and structure are embedded in the DNA of the building.

Team work: Molenbeek, Feder-Efro, Brussels Region, urban.brussels, The European Commission, EU Prize for Contemporary Architecture - Mies van der Rohe Awards, UTIL, Enerdo Studie Bureau, ASM acoustics
+ Leo Van Broeck, Emilie Bechet, Studio Thomas Willemse

Photography: Corentin Haubruge

Head over to our website to learn more about the project.

21/02/2024

Our project Amal Amjahid - community facility along the canal in Molenbeek is one of the 40 shortlisted projects for the European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture Mies van der Rohe Awards 2024!

For that reason, we would like to celebrate our close collaboration with the photographers who helped to shape the online appearance of the project. Photography is not only a record in time, but the place of the project itself starts to live a double life in publications, blogs and magazines.

In his photographs, Laurian Ghinitoiu tells the story of Amal Amjahid: a building for the community that comes to life by its usages and users.

Team work: Molenbeek, Feder-Efro, Brussels Region, urban.brussels, The European Commission, EU Prize for Contemporary Architecture - Mies van der Rohe Awards, UTIL, Enerdo Studie Bureau, ASM acoustics
+ Leo Van Broeck, Emilie Bechet, Studio Thomas Willemse

Photography: Laurian Ghinitoiu

Head over to our website to learn more about the project.