Julien de Smedt, JDS Architects
JDS / Julien De Smedt Architects is a multidisciplinary office that focuses on
architecture and design, from large scale planning to furniture. Rich with
multiple expertises, our office is fuelled by talented designers and
experienced architects that jointly develop projects from early sketches to
on-site supervision. All of which, regardless of scale, outlines an approach
that is affirmatively social in its outcome, enthusiastic in its ambition and
professional in its process. At the core of our architecture is the ability to
take a fresh look at design issues through experienced eyes. Our approach aims
at turning intense research and analysis of practical and theoretical matters
into the driving forces of design. By continuously developing rigorous methods
of analysis and execution, JDS is able to combine innovative thinking and
efficient production.
Founded and directed by Julien De Smedt (co-founder of PLOT), JDS currently
employs some 50 people with offices in Copenhagen, Brussels and Brazil. We work
with corporate, government and private clients in numerous countries to realize
major civic, hotel, residential, office, commercial, health care, educational,
and waterfront developments. We carefully limit the commissions we take on to
help ensure a high degree of professional attention and overall project
quality. JDS envisions itself as a proactive partner for its client, rather
than a consultant. The office has a wide portfolio of international work and
the attitude of involving external consultants to improve the design
intelligence of a given project team. The use of complementing teams ensures
that a project will never suffer from being neither too conventional nor too naive.