BEAToronto Talk with MVRDV

Wednesday, June 3, 2026
6:45 PM 8:30 PM

Paul Cadario Conference Centre 15 King's College Circle Toronto, ON, M5S 3H7 Canada (map)

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We are honoured to have MVRDV's Nathalie De Vries and Sanne van der Burgh deliver a BEA Toronto Talk on Wednesday, June 03, 2026. This session will be held in person at the Paul Cadario Conference Centre. Event schedule and location details below.

BEAToronto is a volunteer-run organization made up of architects, designers, leaders, and entrepreneurs creating opportunities for community-building, advocacy, networking, and mentorship.

BEAToronto Talks are a series of discussions held at the offices of Architects across the city. Hosts will share their learned experience.

BEAToronto Talks qualify for OAA Structured Learning hours

In their BEAT Talk, Nathalie de Vries and Sanne van der Burgh will recount the projects and stories that mark their careers. Beginning with Nathalie’s story of how she became the first of MVRDV’s three founding partners to “take the plunge” and leave her previous job – allowing her to lead the construction supervision of the studio’s first built project, Villa VPRO – the conversation will reflect on navigating and succeeding within traditionally male-dominated fields. Sanne will connect these experiences to her own field of practice, working within sustainability and technology-driven design environments, and reflect on how this shapes questions of authorship, visibility, and agency today.

At the same time, they will reflect on the complexities of the “woman in architecture” label, a moniker that can both celebrate an architect’s successes and draw attention away from their unique contributions to the profession. Nathalie will discuss how, after initially rejecting the label, she grew to accept it as a tool to provide a role model for younger architects.

About Nathalie de Vries:

Architect and urban planner Nathalie de Vries is the founding partner and the “DV” in MVRDV. She is an Honorary Fellow of the AIA and International Fellow of the RIBA. With MVRDV, De Vries develops sustainable and innovative concepts and working methods, and showcases them through exhibitions, publications, interviews, and lectures. Alongside this, she is currently Professor of Architectural Design and Public Building at Delft University of Technology, and from 2021 to 2023 held the role of City Architect for Groningen.

Nathalie de Vries’ work at MVRDV:

As an architect, De Vries appreciates intensive collaboration with clients and interdisciplinary design teams, but also with residents and other stakeholders. Her work often focuses on the invention of new building typologies and the creation of changeable, open systems, an approach which she brings to both buildings and urban plans. Her projects are spatially varied and ground breaking, always giving particular attention to the project’s interaction with the public domain. Whatever the project, there is always a lot of attention given to the design’s interaction with its surroundings, by designing inviting collective spaces and outdoor areas, among other approaches. In her urban designs, De Vries explores the combination of high-quality public spaces with functionally mixed buildings that act as catalysts for the development of an area.

About Sanne van der Burgh:

Sanne van der Burgh leads MVRDV’s research and development and climate teams, driven by her passions for sustainability, new technology, and innovation. A dedicated advocate for environmental awareness and the fight against climate change, Sanne’s fascination for computational workflows and methodologies led her to create MVRDV’s in-house research and development group MVRDV NEXT. Combining missions in innovation and sustainability, NEXT focuses on the creation and implementation of cutting-edge technologies in MVRDV’s projects and the development of data-based, digital approaches to tackling climate change.