Most buildings in most cities are built in stone and concrete. Yet, there are not that many big cities that are predominantly grey. The people working, living in a city give it colour. Graphic designers can colour a city like no other, when given the space and opportunity. Online magazine, Stedebouw & Architectuur, interviewed Nikki to delve into how urban planning and graphic design can collaborate and improve each other, and how that changed over time.

“Thirty years ago, a building was still really the architect’s creation,” Nikki explains. “No wall, floor or skirting board could be changed, and that is definitely different now.” In this day and age, buildings have become more of a collaborative effort, and a good collaboration between the architect and the designer can up brighten a city and make a building into a landmark. By translating a brand identity to signage, posters, or architectural elements that take up actual, physical space, both a brand and the city come to life.

thonik’s office is a prime example of such a collaboration: the black and white stripes contribute to a more diverse streetscape on one of Amsterdam’s widest streets: the Wibautstraat. The building showcases what a city could look like, if the users of the buildings had a bigger say in what they look like: a more vibrant city, in which a diverse group of people feel at home.

Read the whole article (in Dutch) here.