The South Wing of the Randstad is evolving from a group of cities and towns into an interconnected network city, characterised by a growing exchange between its parts. The concept of the ‘network city’ however remains ambiguous. The Atelier seeks to understand where the spatial interconnectedness of the network city is to be found and in which way such interconnectedness can become the breeding ground for stronger linkages to develop.

The South Wing lacks a clear planning strategy. Taken as a spatial entity, it misses the ambitions and programs that exist for other European regions –like the Greater London, the Paris Basin, the Zurich Canton and the Ruhr area. Hence, the central question for the Atelier is to find out which regional issues can help to steer and shape the spatial planning of the South Wing.

The Atelier has in the last two years devoted time and resources to such a task, resorting to designs and programs whose spatial scope extends to the entire South Wing. By means of challenging actions and inspiring products, it also reinforced the integration between municipal, metropolitan and regional plans. This integration has resulted in bringing new meaning for the urbanised part of the South-Holland province as a network city.

The Atelier can be considered as a ‘safety zone’ where several projects, initiatives and people come together. It is a place with diverse functions, mainly in the form of a workshop with facilities to design and build models and a gathering place where people exchange knowledge and experience about the South Wing. But it is not just a place; the Atelier is also a group of people, a team of designers coming from the province, the municipalities and independent offices and who are willing to think of spatial strategies for the South-Wing aided by projects, texts or models.