A couple of years ago I attended a lecture/discussion given by Lars Spuybroek from NOX and Winy Maas of MVRDV. It was chaired by the author of 'SuperDutch', Bart Lootsma. His book discusses the history of Dutch architecture.

The pragmatism required for land reclamation, the self-assessment that has occurred through the forces of internationalization, a history of welfare state politics, its cultural institutions, the cautious nature with which it approaches economic success, and the growing culture of public consultation are all cited by Lootsma as instrumental in forming the present Dutch architectural attitude.

Also examined in the book are the influences of Rem Koolhaas' approach to undertaking research and theoretical work and the financial support provided to upcoming students by the Dutch government.

It's widely recognised that Koolhaas is the Father of contemporary Dutch architecture. This is partly because of the influence his work has over his peers; but also because many of the Netherlands' new practices are started by ex-employees of his office. Winy Maas from MVRDV is one such example. During the lecture, to demonstrate the importance of Koolhaas' work in Dutch architecture, Lars Spuybroek proposed that;

"There are two forms of postgraduate architectural education in the Netherlands - the grant system and Rem."