DOCSLIB.ORG

Rotterdam City Centre Rotterdam City Centre ROTTE RDAM

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Rotterdam City Centre Rotterdam City Centre ROTTE RDAM Rotterdam city centre Rotterdam city centre ROTTE RDAM - 5 Rotterdam city centre - 7 Rotterdam City Centre City Rotterdam 09 LATITUDE 51°55’51” N An icon in the heart of Rotterdam The ABN-AMRO Building, established as the Rotterdamsche Bank, was realized in 1949. It is the first building to be realized within the destroyed central zone since the war. Its position, away from the Coolsingel, is due to the original position of the Coolsingel. The building was built according to Plan Witteveen, the first masterplan for the center developed during the war and based on the old city from before war. The architect of the building was H.F. Mertens. Soon after the war ended, this plan was replaced by the progressive modern ‘Basisplan Van Traa’ in 1949. In this plan the Coolsingel changes direction towards the harbour, leaving the bank building in an awkward position. The position of the bank in the new plan has remained unresolved since then. It is also the spot closest to metrostation Beurs. This metrostation is the central hub that connects the two existing metrolines of Rotterdam. With the cities ambition of developing Coolsingel to a pedestrian orientated boulevards, this station will increase in importance. The development of the Coolsingel will add to the attraction of the heart of Rotterdam. LONGITUDE 4 °28’45” E LONGITUDE - 9 “The city that continually reinvents itself.” - 11 history of an icon A permanent asset on the Coolsingel In 1941 the foundations were laid for main entrance for visitors lay an oval sloping saddle roof was covered in the new building of Rotterdamsche entrance hall, on the left was the cash copper. The sculpture “Peace and Bank Vereeniging (Association) at 119 hall, on the right were the stocks hall Prosperity” by Pieter Starreveld, Coolsingel and this was the starting and the cash desks for private people. better known as “Naked on the signal for the reconstruction of the The hall was of double height with Blaak”, came from the Incassobank on city. Due to delays in construction work stations for 500 employees, with the Blaak. and lack of materials the building three floors of offices in the shape of was only completed in 1949. It is one a U. Since the mid 70s the building of the few developments that was The building was not only impressive has been used as the head office built according to the traditional style from the outside, the interior was also of the AMRO bank, a merger of reconstruction plan of Witteveen. In designed in grand style. The walls the Amsterdamsche bank and the 50s glass pavilions were built on were covered in wood and there were the Rotterdamsche Bank. In 1978 the very wide pavement in front of tall stately windows. further low rise space and a tower the building. Herman Mertens (1885- were added at the back of the 1960) was the regular architect of The building had a facade of red complex (Kraaijvanger Architecten the National Bank Vereeniging and bricks, pierced with vertical window in collaboration with A.J.B. van de the Rotterdamsche Bank, for whom frames. In the rounded corners there Graaf). In 2007 the building designed he had previously designed offices in were windows, classical columns and by Mertens was listed as a protected Gouda and The Hague. decorative sculptures. The slightly State Monument. His most famous design in Rotterdam is the headquarters of Unilever (1931) on the Wytemaweg. Right after the war the bank building on the Coolsingel was one of the first of the main buildings to go up in the bombed out centre of Rotterdam. The stately, oblong colossus is almost completely symmetrical. Its main entrance, decorated with sculptures by Gerard Héman, stands in the middle of the Coolsingel. There are two other entrances, located on the Binnenweg and on the Van Oldenbarneveltplaats. Behind the - 13 Amsterdam - Rotterdam Bank, entrance Coolsingel, 1950 Amsterdam - Rotterdam Bank, monumental staircase, 1950 Amsterdam - Rotterdam Bank, entrance hall, 1950 - 15 Rotterdam city center Population The location is well connected to the metro station 5 minutes from Rotterdam has 639.587 inhabitants (apr. 2017) and is the 2nd largest Rotterdam Central Station. Metro-lines offer direct connections to city in the Netherlands. all parts of the city and also to some towns in the agglomeration. it’s the Furthermore the most important node of bus- and tram-lines is Rotterdam is the most important city in the Groot Rijnmond just opposite of the location at the Coolsingel, in front of the main- conurbation. This is the economic region clustered around the entrance of the historic ABN-Amro building. This makes it one of the harbor complex stretching from just east of Rotterdam to the best accessible locations in the city centre. west where the harbor complex connects to the Northsea. Groot Rijnmond with a total population of 1.39 million is growing by 0.3% The inner-city high-street retail is centered adjacent to the building per year. The expected population in 2025 is 1.43 million. around Lijnbaan, Hoogstraat, Korte Lijnbaan, Beurstraverse and centre the Coolsingel. This is the dominant location for fun-shopping in The region of Rotterdam consists of mid-size towns predominantly Rotterdam as well as the region. Two large suburban shopping between 30.000 and 70.000 inhabitants. centers in Rotterdam are Alexandrium in the northeast, a strong Economy location combining shopping, big box retail, and themed furniture Rotterdam is the second largest port in the world and is a crucial of the centre retail, and Zuidplein in the south of the city. However, both do not cornerstone in the Dutch economic system. have the scale and nor the mix similar to the inner-city retail. Important sectors in the Rotterdam economy include logistics, trade, In a wider area around the city-center Rotterdam offers many more industries, and services. destinations for visitors. The nearby museum district, the opera- house and various theaters and also districts with a wide variety of Erasmus University is among the top universities of Europe and is restaurants, bars and other going-out venues are all within walking well known abroad a.o. for the international business school and distance and attract consumers from a wide region. Rotterdam is attracts many foreign students and scholars. known in the Netherlands for national weekend tourism, a.o. driven by new developments and modern architecture as well as by the city center retail offer. Amsterdam Leiden Den Haag Utrecht Delft Rotterdam Dordrecht Breda - 17 central location The site is positioned in the centre of Rotterdam, where the city’s primary streets: Coolsingel, Lijnbaan, Beurstraverse and Binnenweg. These streets, developed in different time periods, have a distinct character and attract different users. The project has the opportunity to attract all the different groups through a diverse program. - 19 Infrastructure & S C H IE K A D accessibilityE “A modern metropolis with G OUD SESI NGE L T G M BUR PEN POTM Centraal HOFPLEIN GOUDS T ESINGEL Station an attractive businessheart.” STATIONS- PLEIN T M M WEENA A C R I ID O N ZU NA O I EE E W L R S S L I W I N J K N G E . E G D B BINNENROTTE A L O A OR N T M A K N R T S U T I R S . P L . NT HAAGSEVEER MEE T GR. KERK PL. C O O L T . S AT R I RA SCHOUWBURG- SST N ST M L G NE G O N I HO A J A V E PLEIN RT N E L U A B R A I T A S N DE W Station ISKA BEURSPLEIN KRU E T- G WES K . D Rotterdam Blaak O BEURSTRAVERSE O M R W T G M E O A S U N T B V E S U R T G R E . V V . R R S W E T A . L R N I S N U K VAN M A L E W LA . G E B G S W E T I L R L OLDEBARNEVELDSTR. L A E RD A M LEVA T M S OU B SB R AA T . M AK BLA BINNENWEG-PLEIN EG NW NNE AAK . BI TBL T O WES T AAK TBL BINNENWEG WES S NIEUWE C M H I E D A M S WESTERSINGEL E S Leuve- D I J T K T S S E JE V P EENDRACHTSSTRAAT E M MATH S ENESS O E M O RLA haven B AN A D E I H Maas C Essence of the development S Metro M Tram Forum plans to bring this city centre residential properties are located on the M T Car location to life for the wider public. It will higher levels and will add to the vibrancy T Train be a mixed-use development consisting of of the location. The total development retail, food & beverage, offices and housing. spans an area of 60,000 m2, making it a T AA TR NS SE Forum is located on the site of the former significance to the city and its visitors. US This will make it a true city centre location, major project of economic significance, CH RO D ABN AMRO bank, right in the heart of the It is a highly visibleLA Nlocation, with an STE catering to numerous target groups at considering the creation of employment VA city centre. The location is situated between prominent address on the Coolsingel. different times of the day and week.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Media Inquiries
    2010 WORLD MONUMENTS FUND/KNOLL MODERNISM PRIZE AWARDED TO BIERMAN HENKET ARCHITECTEN AND WESSEL DE JONGE ARCHITECTEN Award given for restoration of Zonnestraal Sanatorium, in Hilversum, The Netherlands; rescue of iconic building helped launch global efforts to preserve modern architecture at risk. For Immediate Release—New York, NY, October 5, 2010. Bonnie Burnham, president, World Monuments Fund (WMF), announced today that WMF has awarded its 2010 World Monuments Fund/Knoll Modernism Prize to Bierman Henket architecten and Wessel de Jonge architecten, leading practitioners in the restoration of modern buildings, for their technically and programmatically exemplary restoration of the Zonnestraal Sanatorium (designed 1926–28; completed 1931), in Hilversum, The Netherlands. The sanatorium is a little-known but iconic modernist building designed by Johannes Duiker (1890–1935) and Bernard Bijvoet (1889–1979). The biennial award will Zonnestraal, Main Pavilion, 2004 (post-restoration). Photo courtesy Bierman Henket architecten and Wessel de Jonge architecten. be presented to the Netherlands- based firms at The Museum of Modern Art, New York (MoMA), on November 18, 2010, by Ms. Burnham; Barry Bergdoll, MoMA’s Philip Johnson Chief Curator of Architecture & Design and chairman of the Prize jury; and Andrew Cogan, CEO, Knoll, Inc. The presentation will be followed by a free public lecture by Messrs. Henket and de Jonge, who will accept the award on behalf of their firms. The World Monuments Fund/Knoll Modernism Prize is the only prize to acknowledge the specific and growing threats facing significant modern buildings, and to recognize the architects and designers who help ensure their rejuvenation and long-term survival through new design solutions.
    [Show full text]
  • Paimio Sanatorium
    MARIANNA HE IKINHEIMO ALVAR AALTO’S PAIMIO SANATORIUM PAIMIO AALTO’S ALVAR ARCHITECTURE AND TECHNOLOGY ARCHITECTURE AND TECHNOLOGY: : PAIMIO SANATORIUM ARCHITECTURE AND TECHNOLOGY: Alvar Aalto’s Paimio Sanatorium TIIVISTELMÄ rkkitehti, kuvataiteen maisteri Marianna Heikinheimon arkkitehtuurin histo- rian alaan kuuluva väitöskirja Architecture and Technology: Alvar Aalto’s Paimio A Sanatorium tarkastelee arkkitehtuurin ja teknologian suhdetta suomalaisen mestariarkkitehdin Alvar Aallon suunnittelemassa Paimion parantolassa (1928–1933). Teosta pidetään Aallon uran käännekohtana ja yhtenä maailmansotien välisen moder- nismin kansainvälisesti keskeisimpänä teoksena. Eurooppalainen arkkitehtuuri koki tuolloin valtavan ideologisen muutoksen pyrkiessään vastaamaan yhä nopeammin teollis- tuvan ja kaupungistuvan yhteiskunnan haasteisiin. Aalto tuli kosketuksiin avantgardisti- arkkitehtien kanssa Congrès internationaux d’architecture moderne -järjestön piirissä vuodesta 1929 alkaen. Hän pyrki Paimion parantolassa, siihenastisen uransa haastavim- massa työssä, soveltamaan uutta näkemystään arkkitehtuurista. Työn teoreettisena näkökulmana on ranskalaisen sosiologin Bruno Latourin (1947–) aktiivisesti kehittämä toimijaverkkoteoria, joka korostaa paitsi sosiaalisten, myös materi- aalisten tekijöiden osuutta teknologisten järjestelmien muotoutumisessa. Teorian mukaan sosiaalisten ja materiaalisten toimijoiden välinen suhde ei ole yksisuuntainen, mikä huo- mio avaa kiinnostavia näkökulmia arkkitehtuuritutkimuksen kannalta. Olen ymmärtänyt arkkitehtuurin
    [Show full text]
  • The Rise and Fall of the Tuberculosis Sanitarium in Response to the White Plague a Thesis Submitted to the Graduate School In
    THE RISE AND FALL OF THE TUBERCULOSIS SANITARIUM IN RESPONSE TO THE WHITE PLAGUE A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE MASTER OF SCIENCE HISTORIC PRESERVATION BY ANYA GRAHN (EDWARD WOLNER) BALL STATE UNIVERSITY MUNCIE, INDIANA MAY 2012 Acknowledgements This thesis would not have been possible without the support and encouragement of my thesis committee. I must first thank Architecture Professor Edward Wolner for his patience with me, his guidance, and for sharing his wealth of knowledge about modernist architecture and architects, Johannes Duiker and Alvar Aalto, in particular. Secondly, I am incredibly grateful to History Professor Nina Mjagkij, a former consumptive, for directing my research and organization of this thesis. Finally, I am appreciative of Architecture instructor Cynthia Brubaker’s support of my initial research, eagerness to learn more about tuberculosis sanitariums, and willingness to serve on this committee. I am also thankful to my MSHP colleagues Emily Husted, Kelli Kellerhals, and Chris Allen. The four of us formed a student thesis committee, meeting weekly to set goals for our research and writing, discussing our topics, and keeping one another on task. It is very possible that this thesis would not have been completed without them. I would also like to acknowledge the help provided to me in researching Kneipp Springs Sanitarium. Bridgett Cox at the Hope Springs Library was very helpful, responding to my email requests and introducing me to the Scrapbooks of M.F. Owen: Rome City Area History that played such a pivotal role in my research of this institution.
    [Show full text]
  • Word Heritage Papers 5 ; Identification and Documentation of Modern
    World Heritage papers5 Identification and Documentation of Modern Heritage Identification and Documentation of Modern Heritage Disclaimer The authors are responsible for the choice and presentation of the facts contained in this publication and for the opinions therein, which are not necessarily those of UNESCO and do not commit the Organization. The designation employed and the presentation of the material throughout this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of UNESCO concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Published in 2003 by the UNESCO World Heritage Centre with financial contribution from the Netherlands Funds-in-Trust 7, place de Fontenoy 75352 Paris 07 SP France Tel : 33 (0)1 45 68 18 76 Fax : 33 (0)1 45 68 55 70 E-mail : [email protected] http://whc.unesco.org Compiled and edited by R. van Oers and S. Haraguchi Foreword Under the Global Strategy for a credible, balanced and representative World Heritage List, adopted by the World Heritage Committee in 1994, the World Heritage Centre is engaged in assisting States Parties that have few or no World Heritage sites to protect, preserve and nominate their heritage of outstanding universal value. Next to this, a pro-active approach is also taken with regard to the identification and documentation of less-represented categories of heritage for inclusion on the World Heritage List. One such category is Modern Heritage, which comprises the architecture, town planning and landscape design of the 19th and 20th centuries.
    [Show full text]
  • Open Corner Loggias Tested Key Interventions That Were Damaging to the Physical Fabric
    World Monuments Fund/ Knoll Modernism Prize 2016 AWARD TO Molenaar & Co. architecten, Hebly Theunissen architecten, and Michael van Gessel landscapes For the rehabilitation of the Justus van Effen complex in Rotterdam, the Netherlands Designed and built by Michiel Brinkman 1919-1922 1 Jury Citation The 2016 World Monuments Fund/Knoll Modernism Prize is awarded to Molenaar and Co. architecten, Rotterdam; Hebly Theunissen architecten, Delft; and Michael van Gessel landscapes, Amsterdam for the restoration of the Justus van Effen Complex. Located in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, the complex was designed by Michiel Brinkman in 1919-1921, and completed in 1922. The Justus van Effen complex is a remarkable example of early Modernism, and is emblematic of the ideals embodied in the Modern movement. The concept and execution of these 264 dwellings in Rotterdam’s new Spangen district were impressively novel in 1922. Combining typologies of the perimeter block and the row house, the complex presented by far the most radical response to the pressing post WWI housing shortage in the Netherlands. The boldly cantilevered walkway above the second floor reduced vertical circulation space and tied the complex together, while creating a careful balance between the collective and the private. The flat roofs, sparse and delicate ornamentation, careful contrast of bricks with exposed concrete, and open corner loggias tested key interventions that were damaging to the physical fabric. It elements and strategies of the emerging modern movement. also reflects the technological innovation that founded the original design by introducing state of the art energy-saving In the context of Spangen, a neighborhood that has faced devices for climate control.
    [Show full text]
  • Modernism-Hizuchi.Pdf
    2012 award to The Architectural Consortium for Hizuchi Elementary School SUZUKI Hiroyuki, MAGATA Kiyotada, HANADA Yoshiaki, WADA Kouichi, TAKECHI Kazutomi, KOSHIHARA Mikio, and Yawatahama City, OHSHIRO Ichiro, Mayor, for the restoration of Hizuchi Elementary School Yawatahama City, Ehime Prefecture, Japan Designed by MATSUMURA Masatsune 1956–1958 Jury Citation THE 2012 WORLD MONUMENTS FUND/KNOLL MODERNISM PRIZE is awarded to the Architectural Consortium for Hizuchi Elementary School for the restoration of Hizuchi Elementary School. Located in Yawatahama City, Ehime Prefecture, Japan, Hizuchi was designed by MATSUMURA Masatsune, constructed from 1956 to 1958, and restored by the Con- sortium from 2008 to 2009. In its review of the nominations, the jury was delighted to discover an exemplary building in the history of post-war modernist architecture in Japan little known, as yet, outside the country. Even at the time it was built, Hizuchi, a wood-framed modern structure located in a small, relatively re- mote Japanese town, took the Japanese architectural profession by surprise for its originality and conviction. Of local and national significance, Hizuchi Elementary School has been saved and masterfully restored, and has been re-inscribed in national modern architectural history. It can now be recognized internationally as both an extremely fine building and an absolutely impeccable res- toration project. Equally impressive was the process by which the community was engaged, came to re-appre- ciate, and eventually saved the school despite some initial sentiment to tear it down following ex- tensive damage in a 2004 typhoon. It is a living piece of the community once again—where school- children are interacting with a very finely designed building in everything from education and recreation to their part in daily maintenance.
    [Show full text]
  • The Architectural Programming of the Royal Melbourne Hospital 1935–45? the Sub-Questions Are As Follows
    DESIGN-BY-DIALOGUE: THE ARCHITECTURAL PROGRAMMING OF THE ROYAL MELBOURNE HOSPITAL 1935 – 1945 Catherine Ann Tate Submitted in total fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy March 2016 Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning The University of Melbourne Printed on Archival Paper In memory of my mother and father, Winifred (Win) and John (Jack) Tate We shall not cease from exploration. And the end of all our exploring Will be to arrive where we started And know the place for the first time. TS Eliot (1943), Little Gidding V, Four Quartets. Catherine Tate ABSTRACT This dissertation argues that the dialogue between expert clients and expert architects is critical to the creation of a general hospital – arguably the most programmatically complex of all building types. Using the third realisation of the Royal Melbourne Hospital (RMH), the initial structure on the Parkville site, 1935-45, as an historical example, this dissertation provides significant insights into rarely recorded programming interaction between the clients, the RMH, and the architects, Stephenson Meldrum/Turner (SM/T). The RMH was (and still is) a premier health, teaching and research facility within Australia. In 1935, the RMH’s goal for the new hospital was to create a modern teaching hospital on a par with the world’s best. This clearly was achieved as, in 1945, the hospital buildings had gained significance within the Australian hospital architectural milieu for being the first general public hospital to be completed in the vertical typology and implementing the modernist principles of functionality and the minimalist aesthetic. It was also particularly significant within the hospital oeuvre of SM/T as it was their first general hospital and one which became the exemplar for their later hospital work.
    [Show full text]
  • Conserving Modern Architecture Issue. Spring 2013 (PDF Edition)
    29215 GCI_NewsSpr13 R1.indd 1 4/19/13 9:17 AM A Note from the Director For the past few decades, our colleagues who advocated for the preservation of great twentieth-century architecture have been suc- cessful. They have not only saved important buildings—think the De La Warr Pavilion in England or the Century Plaza Hotel in my hometown of Los Angeles—but have also, in the process, raised public consciousness of their significance and helped preserve the ideas of optimism, innovation, and prog- ress that they contain. These colleagues have my admiration and appreciation! Still, despite these successes and a considerable amount of work on issues facing practitioners, done early on by a number of key organizations, the conservation field has lagged behind in the research necessary for the develop- ment of best-practice solutions for the maintenance, repair, and renovation of these structures. Working closely with international partners, our Conserving Modern Architecture Initiative (CMAI) attempts to reinvigorate some of those efforts that began in the 1990s. We seek to bring a strategic focus to these challenges through a program of research, through the development and dissemination of knowledge intended to fill identified gaps in practice, and through training and education efforts. This edition of Conservation Perspectives is a small piece of this effort. The feature article in this edition is authored by Susan Macdonald, who not only is head of GCI Field Projects, but also serves as the project director of the CMAI. In her article she notes the relatively recent emergence of myriad organizations dedicated to saving and conserving modern heritage and delineates the challenges that lie ahead, including achieving widespread recognition and support for the conservation of twentieth-century places, as well as developing a common vision and approach to do so.
    [Show full text]
  • A Plea for Sustainable Modernity
    ESSAYS When the Oppressive New and the Vulnerable Old Meet; a Plea for Sustainable Modernity BY HUBERT-JAN HENKET The following article is an edited version of the keynote presented at the 13th International docomomo Conference that took place in Seoul, Korea, on September 2014. The economic miracle, increasing transparency and growing emancipation are some of the striking advantages of modernity. However these meet their opposites in severe conflicts at both global and regional scales. Where the oppressive new meets the vulnerable old the damage is at its heaviest and often non-reversible. The history of modernity in the Western world, from the European Renaissance, the Enlightenment and the Industrial Revolution to the Machine Age provides information of the root causes of these conflicts, such as the dominance of rationality, fragmentation, the linear and short term mind frame, devotion to constant newness and ever increasing scale. The history of East Asian civilizations shows the millennia old care for the environment and for dynamic tradition. Precisely the 14th International docomomo Conference in Seoul — for the first time organized entirely in an 52 – 2015/1 Asian country — offers the opportunity to widen our scope. docomomo has four advantages that make it particularly useful to contribute to soften these conflicts in the future. Today it is a global organization with many different cultural backgrounds, it is multidisciplinary, it docomomo concentrates on history and on the reuse of what is already existing and it shares communal enthusiasm. Until today we concentrated our efforts mainly on the history of the Modern Movement and the restoration of its icons.
    [Show full text]
  • A Study of Postwar Architecture in Center City, Philadelphia
    University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons Theses (Historic Preservation) Graduate Program in Historic Preservation 1992 A Study of Postwar Architecture in Center City, Philadelphia Jeffrey L. Baumoel University of Pennsylvania Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.upenn.edu/hp_theses Part of the Historic Preservation and Conservation Commons Baumoel, Jeffrey L., "A Study of Postwar Architecture in Center City, Philadelphia" (1992). Theses (Historic Preservation). 259. https://repository.upenn.edu/hp_theses/259 Copyright note: Penn School of Design permits distribution and display of this student work by University of Pennsylvania Libraries. Suggested Citation: Baumoel, Jeffrey L. (1992). A Study of Postwar Architecture in Center City, Philadelphia. (Masters Thesis). University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA. This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. https://repository.upenn.edu/hp_theses/259 For more information, please contact [email protected]. A Study of Postwar Architecture in Center City, Philadelphia Disciplines Historic Preservation and Conservation Comments Copyright note: Penn School of Design permits distribution and display of this student work by University of Pennsylvania Libraries. Suggested Citation: Baumoel, Jeffrey L. (1992). A Study of Postwar Architecture in Center City, Philadelphia. (Masters Thesis). University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA. This thesis or dissertation is available at ScholarlyCommons: https://repository.upenn.edu/hp_theses/259 UNIVERSITYy PENN5YL\^\NIA. UBRARIE5
    [Show full text]
  • Bierman Henket Architecten Wessel De Jonge Architecten
    2010 award to Bierman Henket architecten and Wessel de Jonge architecten For the restoration of the Zonnestraal Sanatorium (1928–1931) Hilversum, The Netherlands Designed by Johannes Duiker and Bernard Bijvoet Zonnestraal is a modern movement gem of concrete and glass, revelatory in its own time and a discovery anew each time architects and historians have rediscovered it after years of neglect. Now as Wessel de Jonge’s and Hubert- Jan Henket’s work on the restoration comes to a key stage of completion, it reconfirms without a doubt that Zonnestraal stands as one of the most experimental designs in the fervently creative decades of modernism between the two world wars. A beacon of Dutch rationalism, it is also a major work of modern architecture that can now be experienced in a way that resonates with its original architects’ intentions. —Jury Chairman Barry Bergdoll The Philip Johnson Chief Curator of Architecture and Design at The Museum of Modern Art 2 ince the founding of the World Monuments Fund Modernism at Risk Initiative in 2006, we have encountered dozens of great buildings from the recent past that were on the brink of loss, and where architects and other advocates were strug- Sgling to save them. Lacking a watchful constituency or a clear future, modern buildings disappear without a trace, often without adequate public review. To save them requires imagination, determination, and even a measure of heroism. The 2010 WMF/Knoll Modernism Prize recognizes a prime example of this struggle. The Zonnestraal Sanitorium is an elegant functionalist work, but it was built to have a short life.
    [Show full text]
  • The Joseph Lemaire Sanatorium in Belgium: a Forgotten Modern Masterpiece
    Athens Journal of Architecture - Volume 3, Issue 1 – Pages 41-62 The Joseph Lemaire Sanatorium in Belgium: A Forgotten Modern Masterpiece By Rossella Putzolu The Joseph Lemaire Sanatorium, completed in 1937 in Belgium, is one of the masterpieces of sanatorium typology, which spread from the end of the 18th Century to the 1930s, when they were characterized by the principles of the International Style. Lemaire Sanatorium was designed by Maxime Brunfaut with a main hospital building, a wing for general services and superposed leisure rooms. The Modernity of this work is traceable certainly in the composition and in the constructive technology of the complex, with a capable use of modern materials. Brunfaut’s formal language is strongly modern also thanks to the distinction amongst functions, services, spaces dedicated to clinic duties, to the leisure and to administrative functions. Great importance is also given to the technical features, either under the principles of Hygienism either to the Functionalism of the Modern Movement. Unfortunately at the end of the 1980s it was dismissed, so the building was exposed to degradation and vandalism that transformed this site into a devastated ruin with serious problems affecting fixtures, inner spaces and loaded parts. Despite its inscription as a historical and architectural monument in 1993, only in 2011 the Flemish Minister of Cultural Heritage started its restoration, which is still far from being concluded. Introduction Tuberculosis has always been a social plague in the world, but only two centuries ago they started to treat it as a proper disease with sanitary approaches, specific clinics and modern medical studies.
    [Show full text]