Ninke Happel studied architecture at TU Delft and took a minor in architectural psychology and art criticism at KU leuven. In 2007, she started the architectural collective Happel Cornelisse Verhoeven (HCVA) together with Floris Cornelisse and Paul Verhoeven. The firm works on a broad portfolio of public buildings, redevelopments, residential buildings and public interiors in the Netherlands and Belgium.
HCVA’s work is characterised by a precise interpretation of recognisable typologies and a predilection for an intense use of materials in which the tactile properties of materials play an important role in the experience of space. Design decisions, material choices and detailing are driven by the conviction that solidly constructed buildings can absorb changing needs so that they retain their relevance thanks to their usability and durability.
In recent years, HCVA has worked on the high-profile restoration and transformation processes of Museum de Lakenhal, the temporary housing of the Senate and the Council of State, the restoration and infill of Stadhuis Groningen and the restoration and transformation of the brick modernist residential building De Fierens. The office is currently working on the renovation of Aldo and Hannie van Ecyk’s Court of Audit and Museum Mayer van Den Bergh, a 1904 collection museum.
Happel Cornelisse Verhoeven actively participates in the architectural debate, teaches at various courses and gives lectures and guest critiques at home and abroad. Her fascination for alternative development and financing models for housing development also makes her the initiator of Het Rotterdams Woongenootschap, a cooperative association that initiates, builds and maintains housing projects for its members.