OASE # 67 may be taken as an attempt to reclaim the debate about the purpose and the possibilities of the architectural profession and of design in the Netherlands and, more generally, in Western Europe at a moment that patterns of collective organisation are challenged under the influence of developments on the market of labour and commodities.
Oase, rather than formulating a defined position,limits itself to asking a series of questions which may open up this debate. How can architects position themselves, individually and collectively, in a society undergoing fundamental cultural change? How can alternatives be formulated to the collective amnesia which mistakes sentimental nostalgia for consciousness of history? How can the populist identity politics that affect architecture like any other aspect of the organisation of everyday life be countered? If we are neither interested in facilitating the ruthless sub urbanisation of this territory, nor in producing images for any kind of media, spiraling out of control, is there a way of making an analysis of what is happening around us productive for our work?