Madelon Vriesendorp

Madelon Vriesendorp (born 1945 in Bilthoven) is a Dutch artist, painter, sculptor, and art collector. She was married to Rem Koolhaas and is best known as one of the co-founders of the Office of Metropolitan Architecture (OMA) in the early 1970s (together with Koolhaas and Elia Zenghelis and Zoe Zenghelis). Vriesendorp would often create visuals and graphics for OMA in the early years.

Early life and education Vriesendorp was born 1945, Bilthoven, Netherlands. She attended Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam in 1964. Flagrant Delit features the Empire State building and the Chrysler building of New York City, post coitus in bed together while outside the window an armless version of the Statue of Liberty looks sad. Koolhaas suggested she add in the Rockefeller Center catching the two buildings in the act, as a reference to Modernity.

The World of Madelon Vriesendorp: Paintings/Postcards/Objects/Games was a 40-year retrospective exhibition of the artist's career, curated by Shumon Basar and Stephan Trüby. It originated at the Architectural Association School of Architecture, London in 2008, and then toured to Aedes, Berlin; the Venice Biennale of Architecture; and finally the Swiss Architecture Museum, Basel. It was accompanied by a richly illustrated catalogue, and had contributions from Beatriz Colomina, Douglas Coupland, Hubert Damisch, Teri -Damisch, Zaha Hadid, Charles Jencks, Charlie Koolhaas, Hans Ulrich Obrist, Brett Steele and Fenna Haakma Wagenaar.

In 2018, she was awarded The Architectural Review, Ada Louise Huxtable Prize for her contributions to the architectural industry.

In 2025, she was awarded The Soane Medal, in recognition of her lasting contribution to architecture and the legacy of designs, images and paintings she has created. She collected her award and delivered a lecture at the Royal Academy on 18 November 2025. Established in 2017, the Soane Medal, organised annually by Sir John Soane's Museum, recognises those who have made a major contribution to their field through practice, history or theory, and in doing so have enriched the public understanding of architecture.

Personal life Vriesendorp lives in London and has two children, Charlie Koolhaas, a photographer, and Tomas Koolhaas, a filmmaker. She was previously married to Rem Koolhaas, they divorced in 2012.

Collections Vriesendorp's work is held in the following permanent collections: Museum of Modern Art, New York FRAC Centre, Orléans, France