At the end of August, Silvie Dees joined the IABR as Managing Director. In this interview, she shares who she is, why she feels connected to the IABR, and how she envisions the year ahead.
Silvie, could you tell us a bit about yourself –your background, your motivations – and how these eventually led you to the IABR?
Of course! I’ve always been fascinated by landscape, space, culture, and society – something that partly stems from where I grew up. I was born in Zeeuws-Vlaanderen, a unique part of the Netherlands that’s geographically ‘attached’ to Belgium rather than to the Netherlands, and therefore sometimes literally falls off the map. It’s a border region with a rich mix of identities and influences that shaped my outlook.
On the Flemish side, the landscape developed organically: infrastructure and buildings follow a more irregular pattern, shaped by chance and by historical growth. On the Dutch side, structure and planning dominate: the landscape is designed rationally, and residential areas are built with cohesion and order in mind. Growing up between these two spatial approaches strongly influenced my perspective on the relationship between space, culture, and society. Space is never neutral – it expresses ways of thinking, of culture, of how we choose to live together.
In the early years of my career, I worked in the corporate and healthcare sectors, both nationally and internationally, while living in Belgium. Later, I made the transition to the cultural sector and moved to Rotterdam – an inspiring, ever-changing city that left a strong impression on me. Within the arts, I worked at Theaterproductiehuis Zeeland/Zeeland Nazomerfestival, Theater Rotterdam, festival and concert organizer Motel Mozaïque, theater company De Warme Winkel, and the dance company Ann Van den Broek (WArd/waRD).
And now, I’m at the IABR, an organization where culture, spatial design, community, and new talent all have a place. I’m looking forward to working with the team. At a time when social and spatial challenges are becoming increasingly complex, we need organizations that use imagination to make these challenges tangible and discussable. I believe imagination is essential for truly seeing one another, and for translating abstract challenges into concrete, widely supported plans.
What do you recognize in the IABR’s mission that resonates most with you?
What speaks to me most about the IABR’s mission is its belief that spatial design can act as a catalyst for social change. The way the IABR uses design to make urgent issues like climate adaptation, energy transition, and social justice tangible and conceivable is inspiring to me. I believe design holds not only aesthetic value but also, and especially, strategic power: it can open new perspectives and bring together diverse disciplines and interests. That connective role, where imagination helps steer real transitions, is something we need more than ever.
How do you envision the year ahead?
In my first months at the IABR, I want to get to know both the organization and the wider field in which we operate. I’m naturally curious and enjoy discovering new worlds. For me, that means actively engaging in conversations, diving into the themes, partnerships, and policies around us, as well as drawing inspiration from the diversity of perspectives within the field. At the same time, I look forward to working with the team and our partners toward the next biennale.
I’m also eager to follow the new Ministry of Make! project in Gelderland, where collaboration and creativity come together to concretely address social challenges.
Finally, what would you like to share with the IABR’s readers and network about your start here?
I look forward to engaging in conversations with many people – preferably in places that are meaningful or inspiring to them, both in the city and in the region. And yes, I like to call that ‘going for coffee,’ even though I don’t in fact drink coffee.
