AMORV is a shared vision. A place where architecture, art, and nature come together. Where space is not just designed but experienced.

We build more than just buildings. We create meaningful places - living systems where context, culture, and concept come together. This philosophy shapes not only our architecture, interiors, and exhibitions but also the AMORV Academy, where we inspire the next generation of designers and thinkers with a systemic and regenerative perspective on the world.

Our collaboration evolved organically. Jamie, an architect and systems thinker, passionate about sustainable architecture and ecological design. Mira, an experienced curator and spatial designer, with a keen eye for detail, composition, and the art of experience. Together, we combine conceptual depth with pragmatic execution - ranging from large-scale urban concepts to the smallest nuance in materiality and light.

We work from De Vijverschie, a historic country estate just outside of Rotterdam, which we transformed into an inspiring meeting place. Here, we live and work, surrounded by books, art, and nature. It is the heart of AMORV’s vision, a space where ideas emerge, and where we welcome like-minded people to co-create a sustainable and future full of life.

Our work has been recognized with numerous awards, including the first international Good Green Design Award for our Context-Culture-Concept methodology, the Senter NOVEM Nett-Trophy for the Elemental House, the House of Energy Award, and a nomination for the Groenfonds Natuurprijs amongst others.

We continue to research, learn, and create - because we believe that architecture and design should not only be beautiful and functional but also meaningful, ecologically responsible, and deeply rooted in the place from which they arise. This investigative mindset led us to design the first Smart Grid House in the Netherlands (for Enexis), complete the first energy-producing renovation home in the country, and develop the world’s first roof attached with Velcro - a system that is more sustainable, resilient, and cost-effective than traditional methods, which are often also hazardous for roofers. A system, in fact, that nature itself devised eons ago. As British researcher Julian Vincent once put it: "Nature solves problems, engineers want answers—what better marriage?"
Welcome to AMORV - space to be

Jamie sees patterns where others see only fragments. He is not just an architect; he is a systems thinker, a philosopher, and a storyteller on space. Where others design buildings, he creates living ecosystems. His gift lies in connecting disciplines, thinking beyond conventions, and discovering possibilities where others see limitations.

When you work with Jamie, you don’t get ready-made answers. You get questions. Good questions. The kind that challenge you to think deeper, to uncover the essence. And that is his strength: he not only pushes himself but also everyone around him to look further, to see more.

His love for architecture started early - a toolbox as a gift, a hand-built birdhouse that actually became a home for a bird. That was all the proof he needed: he would become an architect. A world trip before university deepened his fascination for vernacular building traditions - structures seamlessly adapted to their environment and climate. His studies at TU Delft quickly revealed that modernist doctrines were not his path. Instead, he founded Origins Architects straight out of university, becoming a pioneer in sustainable design. By 2006, he was already recognized as one of the Top-20 Green Gurus by Building Business Magazine. With a constant stream of innovative projects, Origins soon became one of the ten most published architecture firms in the Netherlands at the time.

But Jamie is more than an architect. He is a storyteller, a bridge-builder, someone who understands the complexity of systems and translates them into spaces that resonate with those who use them. His curiosity is boundless - from architecture to agriculture, from quantum mechanics to mythology, from shamanism to psychology. He is a man with a library of more than 4000 books (which I jokingly call his mistresses), an obsession with ancient wisdom, and an insatiable drive to learn and share. Jamie is a people person who wants nothing more than to create soulful places where the human spirit can thrive. A notion that earned him the title Magister Dignitatis Humanae (Master of Human Dignity).

Building with Jamie means building with intention. With depth. With an open mind and a sharp intellect - and a bottomless well of knowledge. And that makes working with him not just inspiring, but truly enriching.

© Carel van Hees

Mira has a rare gift: she feels space. Where others see an empty room, she sees a story, a composition, a play of light and shadow. She translates abstract ideas into tangible environments, seamlessly merging art, architecture, and emotion.

For twenty years, she worked at the Dutch Photography Museum, mastering the way art and space enhance each other. She collaborated with visionary artists like Alfredo Jaar, Sebastião Salgado, and Nan Goldin, developing an unparalleled sense for detail, materiality, and meaningful presentation. Her strength lies in bridging the conceptual and the practical. She understands how an idea becomes physical, how an exhibition space becomes an experience, how an interior becomes an extension of its inhabitants. 

But Mira is more than a designer - she is a mentor and curator. She has an instinct for talent and helps artists refine and amplify their work. She is a sought-after jury member and advisor, including for the Steenbergen Institute Photography Prize and Huis Marseille in Amsterdam, and she deeply believes that art and design play a crucial role in shaping our experience of the world. 

And then, there is something else that makes Mira truly unique: her ability to merge beauty and functionality effortlessly. Whether designing a museum exhibition, an interior, or an ecological landscape, her approach is always intuitive, deeply felt, and elegantly executed. She creates spaces where people want to be. Spaces that resonate with the culture of hospitality in which she was raised.

Working with Mira means collaborating with someone who not only envisions the final result but cherishes the process. She listens, she observes, and then - with a subtle gesture or a perfectly placed intervention - she transforms a space into an experience.

That is her gift. And that is what makes AMORV what it is.

• Spaces are alive! To varying degrees, that is. Some places nourish the soul - we call these lively and spirited - while others drain us, leaving us empty.

• Nature knows no lifeless places. Everything fits perfectly, adhering to a natural order.

• This natural order lives within us, too. We resonate with it, which is why we feel comfortable, free, and alive in spaces full of soul.

• Entering architecture that is full of life is an experience. It's a sensory journey that we experience our sense. We have five senses, some say maybe even twelve. Spatial design is therefore much more than a visual discipline.

•Many artists have a keen sense of space. Through art, they interpret and enliven the quality of a space, enhancing it. That's why we involve art or artists in our projects.

• The reverse is also true. Art needs suitable spaces to come into its own, to be truly experienced. That's why we enjoy working on exhibitions.

• Good buildings and pleasant, lively spaces adapt to their surroundings - to the context, to what already exists. They fit in and, in doing so, strengthen, improve, complete, and heal the whole.

• Our pre-modern ancestors knew well how to integrate a building into the existing order, placing it amidst something greater – in the middle, dans le milieu as the French say. Through trial and error, learning and experimenting, the best solutions for specific locations have been found worldwide. This is what we call culture, and it's something we must build upon.

• As modern humans, we've somewhat forgotten how to connect to this natural order. Look around - where does space touch your soul? This is because we've started viewing the world through a reductionist lens. To understand our surroundings, we dissect everything into manageable pieces and measurable matter within inert space, losing sight of the whole. In nature, it's the opposite - the whole organizes the parts! Everything is systemic. This is called ecology, an incredibly complex, holistic phenomenon that can't be captured in (climate) models.

• If context is guiding and shaping, and if specific building cultures have emerged worldwide from this, it logically leads to the ecological design approach we apply in our projects: Context, Culture, Concept.

• Concept, Conception - the birth of something new. Everything starts with a good idea, a creative hook to hang everything on. We call this a concept. If the concept is solid, robust, and well-thought-out, conception follows naturally. Everything then takes shape, falls into place, everything flows, everything becomes AMORV – space to be!

• A great project needs a great architect. But for a truly great project, you need a great client. That means that in collaborating with us we expect something from you too. We expect a captain at the helm. Someone with a vision. Because without direction, any wind will do.

•    Whether it’s a house, a museum interior, or an office renovation, we need to know who we are working for. The user, the organization, the community - there has to be a clear identity we can work with. Not some statistical average family with 1.2 cars and 3.2 kids.

•    Together, we explore every imaginable possibility - thinking outside the box, pushing boundaries. This is called diverging - creating a vibrant, sometimes chaotic, field of ideas. But then comes the moment of clarity: converging, refining, shaping the best possible solution.

•    First, though, we need to truly understand your question. And sometimes that means redefining it. You might come to us asking for a blue square box - but after a few weeks of exploration, we might come back with a pink round tower, and you’ll say: "That’s exactly what I meant!"

•    This process is personal. We want to get to know you - your vision, your challenges, your aspirations. That means trust, honesty, and sometimes naming an elephant in the room. The best projects come from open conversations, where nothing is off-limits.

•    One last thing about that captain - we trust you to represent your crew well. That you will involve the right people at the right time. And that you will share insights from our design process and bring back feedback. Every voice matters, but beware: too many voices can turn vibrant colours into a dull shade of grey. And nobody wants that.

•    A good building is always sustainable - but a sustainable building isn’t necessarily good. Many clients come to us wanting an "eco-friendly" design, quickly jumping to technical solutions. But a heat pump or solar panels don’t make a project sustainable. That’s why we avoid the word altogether.

•    Instead, we focus on spaces that feel right, that work, that are in harmony with their surroundings, that adapt to a natural order. After all, the word technique comes from the Greek techné, meaning beauty, craftsmanship, function, and applied knowledge. Sustainability isn’t about ticking boxes - it’s about intelligent, meaningful design.

•    Our greatest strength lies in the concept phase - the moment when ideas take shape. Here, we pour in all our experience, knowledge, and creativity to find that one great idea. And when the concept is right, everything else follows naturally: conception, growth, execution.

•    Once the concept is born, we bring in the right specialists - draftsmen, structural engineers, lighting designers, cost experts, builders, artists and sometimes even therapists, or biologists -whatever the project needs. And of course, we stay involved from start to finish.

•    As the name Amorv suggests, we do everything with love. If we take on your project, you get our full dedication and devotion. And that’s not something we measure in billable hours. That’s why we work with fixed fees - an honorarium (literally, a fee of honour). Because a great idea is worth far more than the time it took to conceive it.

•    Speaking of value - we always integrate art or artists into our projects. They lift the entire design to another level. Yet too often, their contribution is undervalued. That’s why we uphold the Fair Practice Code of the Mondriaan Fund, ensuring that artists are fairly paid for the value they bring.
If this way of working resonates with you, we’re excited to start the journey.