B612 Associates

Profile

B612associates is a Belgian office for contemporary architecture and urban design. Our studies include master planning as well as architecture, landscape design and scenography. Our strength is based on our curriculum of engineers and architects, but also clear understanding of urban planning, philosophy and history and theory of architecture. Those competencies have fostered our ability to capture and translate the essence and quality of each site into our projects. Specific needs and constraints of programs constitute the base and the catalysis of our reflection.

The office has developed an efficient methodology based on holistic approach of the projects; taking into account their spatial, social, natural and urban environment while at the same time optimising their economic aspect as well as achieving creative and human spaces.

We are convinced by the essential contribution of multidisciplinary collaboration to our practice as well as by the necessity to develop sustainable means for architecture and urban design. Our expertise in green architecture has led us to large-scale studies of sustainable building and urban design with a definitive contemporary approach of the discipline.

Founded in 1997, our firm has acquired a sound reputation for the quality of its design.

Biography

Li Mei Tsien is architect and urban designer. She studied Civil Engineering In Architecture at the Université Catholique de Louvain, where she graduated cum magna laude in 1993. She received a scholarship from the Rotary International Foundation and studied with honors, one year of Master In Urbanism at the National Taiwan University before achieving a Masters Degree in History And Theory of Architecture at the Architectural Association in London. She has worked with Bruno Albert in Liège and CK Tcheng architect (I.M. PEI's associates) in Taipei before co-founding B612associates in 1997 together with Olivier Mathieu.

Li Mei Tsien is Unit Master at the University of Mons( Department of Architectural and Urban Engineering) and lecturer at the ISURU (Institut Supérieur d’Urbanisme et de Rénovation Urbaine) in Brussels. She has co curated the exhibitions “Brussels/Shanghai : Architopia” in 2007 and 2008 and the exhibition “Belgian Spirit” in Hong Kong in 2011. Her work as an architect and her theoretical articles have been presented and published internationaly in books and magazines (including BOZAR, Belgian National Centre for Fine Art, Shenzen Biennal of Architecture, spanish a+t density books series, Belgian New Architecture book, Inventaire Wallonie Bruxelles, international Detail magazine, AANews, A+) and several others.

Olivier Mathieu studied Civil Engineering In Architecture at the Université Catholique de Louvain, where he graduated cum magna laude in 1994. He also holds a bachelor in Philosophy cum magna laude from the Université Catholique de Louvain where he has taught architectural and urban design at the Department of Architecture for 10 years.
In 1997, he co-founded B612associates together with Li Mei Tsien.

Olivier Mathieu is regularly invited as lecturer by institution such as the Belgian National Center of Fine Art, the International Center for city and architecture. His work as an architect and his theoretical articles have been presented and published internationaly in books (including a+t density series, Tourism Revisited, Inside density “Èdition de la lettre volée”, Belgian New Architecture, Inventaire Wallonie Bruxelles amongst others) as well as magazines (among wich A+, Detail, AANews, and several other national newspapers) and exhibitions. Recently, his work was presented again for the « XXMODELS » exhibition at the Belgian National Center of Fine Art BOZAR.