Mackintosh’s Hill House Becomes an International Iconic House!
Obituary and Interment: The Death and Disposition of Irving J. Gill
Iconic Houses in the Media
Interview in Leading Catalan newspaper ARA
Bauhaus Villa in Berlin For Sale
Historical Exhibition, Marie-Laure de Noailles, Painter, Conversation
Our Badge of Honour
Istanbul’s Modernist Ataköy Housing Estate is At Risk
Early Furniture Designs by Le Corbusier on Permanent Display in Maison Blanche
Photo Report City Icons Amsterdam
Healing Through Architecture
Reopening An Iconic Modernist Landmark
City Icons Kick Off with Talk by Linda Vlassenrood
MORE MIES - Pure Architecture in Haus Lange Haus Esters
Through a Bauhaus Lens: Edith Tudor-Hart and Isokon
Modernism Week Lecture: 10 Years of Iconic Houses
Aluminaire House Grand Opening
Exhibition Icons of the Czech Avant-Garde
An Elementalist and Mediterranean Architecture
Icon for Sale - Loos Villa: Haus Horner
SPECIAL – Iconic Dreams Europe - Sleep in an Iconic House!
SPECIAL – Iconic Dreams North America - Sleep in an Iconic House!
SPECIAL – German Greats!
SPECIAL - Vacances en France!
SPECIAL - Casas Icónicas en España!
SPECIAL – Dutch Delights!
SPECIAL – Iconic Artist Residencies
SPECIAL – Northern (High)Lights!
SPECIAL – Iconic Collective Housing
SPECIAL – Women & Iconic Houses
Public Screenings and Private Streaming of Pioneers of the Dutch Modern House
Winy Wants a World Wonder
Welcome Atelier Volten!
Sleep in a Modernist Gem – Huis Billiet in Bruges
Iconic Houses in The Netherlands - 100 Years Van Zessen House
Exclusive Tour and Film Screening Package
The Last House Designed by Adolf Loos Will Be Built in Prague
Icons of the Czech Avantgarde
Icon for Sale - Casa Legorreta
Rietveld Day: 200 Enthusiasts Explored 3 Utrecht Icons
Hurray! 10 Years Iconic Houses
7th International Iconic Houses Conference A Huge Success
Meet Conference Co-Chair Iveta Černá
Meet Conference Co-Chair Maria Szadkowska
Eighteen Iconic Houses Under One Roof
17 June - 'Pioneers-film' Screening Amersfoort
Iconic Houses in The Netherlands - Van Eesteren House Museum
Welcome Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky Zentrum in Vienna!
Welcome Vila Volman! Jewel of Czech Functionalism
Movie Night: Adolf Loos- Revolutionary Among Architects
'Inside Iconic Houses' Case Study House #26 Webcast in Webshop
Inside Iconic Houses at Taut’s Home in Berlin
Rediscovering Forgotten Loos Interiors in Pilsen
'Inside Iconic Houses' - Online Tour Program
Iconic Houses in The Netherlands - The Diagoon House
Iconic Houses in The Netherlands - Rietveld Schröder House
Rietveld Houses Owners Association
Corberó Space: New Life for Hidden Jewel
Iconic Houses in The Netherlands - Pierre Cuypers' House and Workshops
Reeuwijk Celebrates Completion of Restoration Rietveld Homes!
Iconic Houses in The Netherlands - Van Doesburg Rinsema House
Welcome Rietveld's Van Daalen House!
Architect Harry Gessner Passed Away at 97
Watch Pioneers of the Dutch Modern House Now On Demand
Icon Saved: Dorchester Drive House
Welcome Umbrella House!
Iconic Houses in the Netherlands – Berlage’s Masterpiece
Iconic Houses in The Netherlands - Het Schip
Inside Iconic Houses - Tour of Maison Cazenave
Inside Iconic Houses Tours Vizcaya Museum & Gardens in Miami
Casa Masó Celebrates 10 Year Anniversary
Inside Iconic Houses tours Roland Reisley's Usonian Frank Lloyd Wright House
Rietveld’s Experimental Housing in Reeuwijk Saved
Serralves Villa after restoration
Portraits of the Architect - Interview with Gennaro Postiglione
Test Labs for New Ideas - Interview with Natascha Drabbe
Inside Iconic Houses - Isokon Building
Inside Iconic Houses - 16 December: Sunnylands with Janice Lyle
BCN-BXL Coderch-De Koninck - Beyond Time
New Chairman Architect Nanne de Ru on The Perfect Platform
Health and Home - Interview with Beatriz Colomina
A Life Less Ordinary – Interview with Valentijn Carbo
Invisible Women - Interview with Alice T. Friedman
Winy Maas on the Green Dip
Anita Blom on Experimental Housing of the 1970s
Women’s Worlds - Interview with Natalie Dubois
The Culture of Living - Interview with Robert von der Nahmer
Hetty Berens: A Fresh Take on Modernism
Niek Smit on Supporting Modern Heritage
Alice Roegholt on Amsterdam’s Working-Class Palaces
July is Iconic Houses Month
Hans van Heeswijk on The Pioneers of the Dutch Modern House
Wessel de Jonge on Dutch Icons at Risk
Save Maison Zilveli - Sign the Petition!
How a Building Tells a Story - Recorded Event
Toolkit for Owners of a Modern House
13 Aalto Sites Nominated for UNESCO World Heritage
Villa Beer At Risk - Sign the Petition!
Business Cards of Stone, Timber and Concrete in the Brussels Region 1830-1970
Exhibiting & Visiting Modernist Monuments
Fostering Well-Researched Responsible Design
ICONS AT RISK
Enjoy a virtual visit to the California House and a Q&A with architect Peter Gluck
Exhibition 'Modernism and Refuge'
A Hidden Gem of Postmodernism
New Centre for Historic Houses of India
An Online Chronicle of the Douglas House
Villa Henny, geometric style icon in The Netherlands
A Mendini temple in Amsterdam
IH-lectures USA & Canada Feb 2020 on Melnikov House
Sponsors and Friends
An Afternoon with the Glucks
Chandler McCoy on Making Modern Houses Sustainable
Catherine Croft: Getting Away from the Demolition Mentality in the UK
Patrick Weber on Discovering an Unknown Icon
Fiona Fisher on Iconic Interiors
Jocelyn Bouraly on Villa Cavrois
Mireia Massagué on finding success through a new kind of partnership
Danish Moderns – Looking Back at Our Mini-Seminar
Venturo house complements Exhibition Centre WeeGee’s offering
Lecture report: Remembering Richard Neutra
Hôtel Mezzara and the Guimard Museum project
We welcome 13 new members!
BREAKING NEWS: 8 Wright Sites Inscribed on Unesco World Heritage List!
LECTURE 29 August - Raymond Neutra: My Father and Frank Lloyd Wright
Iconic Reads
Iconic Houses End Year Message
City-ordered rebuild of landmark house stirs debate: Appropriate or overreach?
Kohlberg House Restoration in Progress
Planned Demolition of Rietveld Homes in Reeuwijk
Renovation Gili House in Crisis
An Iconic Saga
Restoring Eileen Gray’s Villa E-1027 and Clarifying the Controversies
Modernism on the East Coast
Iconic Houses in Latin America
Conference testimonials
House Tours May 2018
Expert Meetings
Natascha Drabbe - Iconic Houses: The Next Chapter
Terence Riley -KEYNOTE SPEAKER- on Philip Johnson
New era for Villa E-1027 and Cap Moderne
Hilary Lewis on Philip Johnson and his Glass House
John Arbuckle on Great House Tours
William D. Earls on the Harvard Five in New Canaan
Stover Jenkins on Working for Philip Johnson
Frederick Noyes on his Father’s House
Scott Fellows and Craig Bassam on their Passion for Preservation
Jorge Liernur -KEYNOTE SPEAKER- on Latin American Modernism(s)
Fabio Grementieri on Modernism in Argentina
Catalina Corcuera Cabezut on Casa Luis Barragán
Renato Anelli on Lina Bo Bardi’s Casa de Vidro
Tim McClimon on Corporate Preservation
Amanda Nelson on Building Donor Relationships
John Bacon on Planned Giving
Jean-Paul Warmoes on the Art of Fundraising in America
Chandler McCoy on Why Less is More
Katherine Malone-France on Moving with the Times
Anne Mette Rahbæk on Philanthropic Investments and Preservation
Peter McMahon on Saving Modern Houses on Cape Cod
Toshiko Kinoshita on Japanese Modern Heritage Houses
Roland Reisley on Life in a Frank Lloyd Wright House
5th Iconic Houses Conference May 2018
Kristin Stone, Pasadena Tour Company
Restoring the past: The Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo Home Studio
Behind the Scenes: Hendrick de Keyser Association
Crosby Doe, Architecture for Sale
Latin America Special – Focus on Mexico
De Stijl in Drachten
Preserving the Nancarrow House-Studio
Meet the Friends - Nanne de Ru
Latin America Special – Focus on Brazil
Jan de Jong’s House is Latest Hendrick de Keyser Acquisition
Stay in a Belgian Modernist Masterpiece
In Berlin’s Modernist Network
Rietveld-Schröder House Celebrates De Stijl Anniversary
Meet Our New Foundation Board Members
Maintaining Aalto's Studio – Linoleum Conservation
Virtual Tour of a Papaverhof Home in 3D
Getty Grant for Villa E-1027
Plečnik House in Ljubljana
Iconic Dacha
Iconic Houses: A Bohemian Road Trip
Work in Progress: Capricho de Gaudí
11 Le Corbusier Homes now on Unesco World Heritage List
At home with Le Corbusier
Henry van de Velde’s Study in Haus Hohe Pappeln Restored
Lynda Waggoner reports
A Conference to Remember
4th International Iconic Houses Conference
Guest of Honor - Harry Gesner
Fallingwater: European Lecture Tour
Wright Plus 2016 Walk
Susan Macdonald, Getty Conservation Institute
John Mcllwee, Garcia House
Meet the Friends – Elisabeth Tostrup
Iconic Houses: The Story So Far
Willie van Burgsteden, designer Iconic Houses
Buff Kavelman, Philanthropic Advisor
Meet the Friends - Frederick Noyes
Sheridan Burke, GML Heritage
Meet the Friends - Raymond Neutra
Sidney Williams, Frey House
Franklin Vagnone and Deborah Ryan, Museum Anarchists
Meet the Friends - James Haefner
Toshiko Mori, architect
Malachi Connolly, Cape Cod Modern House Trust
Meet the Friends - Penny Sparke
Lucia Dewey Atwood, Eames House
Cory Buckner, Mutual Housing Site Office
Jeffrey Herr, Hollyhock House
Speaking Volumes: Building the Iconic Houses Library
Sarah Lorenzen, Neutra VDL Studio and Residences
Ted Bosley, Gamble House
Keeping It Modern - Getty Conservation Grants
Meet the Friends - Thomas Schönauer
Wim de Wit, Stanford University
Linda Dishman, Los Angeles Conservancy
Jesse Lattig, Pasadena Heritage
Join us in Los Angeles! Update
Work in Progress: Casa Vicens
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Work in Progress: Villa Cavrois
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Conference calls!
Follow us!
Third Iconic Houses Conference a huge success
Conference House Tours Barcelona
Marta Lacambra, Fundació Catalunya-La Pedrera
Natascha Drabbe, Iconic Houses Foundation
Special speaker Oscar Tusquets
Jordi Tresserras, UNESCO Network ‘Culture, tourism and development’
Christen Obel, Utzon Foundation
Elena Ruiz Sastre, Casa Broner
Fernando Alvarez Prozorovich, La Ricarda
Tim Benton, Professor of Art History (Emeritus)
Susana Landrove, Docomomo Spain
Rossend Casanova, Casa Bloc
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Jordi Falgàs, Casa Rafael Masó
Documentary La Ricarda
Marga Viza, Casa Míla/La Pedrera
Celeste Adams, Frank Lloyd Wright Trust
Conference 25 November 2014 at La Pedrera
Henry Urbach, The Glass House
Victoria & Albert Museum London November 12
Tommi Lindh, new director of the Alvar Aalto Foundation and Museum
Iveta Černá, Villa Tugendhat
Lynda Waggoner, Fallingwater
Kimberli Meyer, MAK Center
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Triennale der Moderne 27 September - 13 October 2013
Prestigious Art Nouveau mansions in Brussels open
September 14 + 15: Heritage Days in Paris
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Corbu’s Cabanon: Reconstruction and Lecture
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MAMO: Le Corbu’s ‘Park in the Sky’ open 12 June
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Annual Wright Architectural Housewalk: 18 May
Frank Lloyd Wright Homes on Screen
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Neutra’s House on Screen
Michel Richard, Fondation Le Corbusier
Symposium The Public and the Modern House
Melnikov House on Screen
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Round Table Review
Eileen Gray House on Screen
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Iconic Houses in The Netherlands - Van Eesteren House Museum
A Special House in an Ordinary Neighbourhood
Far from the centre of Amsterdam with its seventeenth century canals, in the middle of the typical post-war Amsterdam suburb of Slotermeer, you find a special house from 1952: the Van Eesteren House Museum. The atmosphere of the 1950s is completely restored in the house: multifunctional and sleek furniture, new hygienic materials, but also heating with a coal stove, telephone with 'a large bakelite case' and cooking in a Bruynzeel kitchen, which was ultra-modern for that time.
Text: Jorn Konijn
Van Eesteren Museum
The museum house is part of the Van Eesteren Museum that has been housed in a new building since 2017 pavilion on the Sloterplas about a ten-minute walk away of the house museum. The museum tells a broad and topical story about urban planning from the perspective of the history of urban expansion and urban planning Cornelis van Eesteren (1897-1988). Cornelis van Eesteren was a member of the movement 'De Stijl' with colleagues such as Piet Mondrian, Wim Rietveld, Theo van Doesburg and J.J.P. Old. Inspired by the modernists Tony Garnier, Le Corbusier and Walter Gropius developed it in 1935 the General Extension Plan (AUP) that specifies the housing needs of the population until the year 2000.
The museum is in Amsterdam New-West, the largest post-war expansion area of Amsterdam. New West was part of it of the AUP. The plan had to prepare Amsterdam for growth to one million inhabitants. Urban planners Cornelis van Eesteren and Jakoba Mulder (1900-1988) were at the basis of the plan, in which 'light, air and space' was the motto. The residential complex, in which the house museum is situated, was designed by Nielsen, Spruit & Van de Kuilen Architects.
New West
Nowadays, the New-West district is constantly in transition. In the 1990s, the district was taken over by the national media referred to as 'the worst neighbourhood in the Netherlands', a reputation it in recent years was able to shake off. Although the district in liveability still lags, New-West is now developing at high speed through renovation, transformation, or new construction. And since the rental and purchase prices in the centrally located districts are virtually unaffordable, many people in Amsterdam move to this part of the city, just like the new residents of the capital. New West is one of them few places where you can still live affordably. It is the largest and youngest district of the municipality with 145,000 inhabitants (as many as the city of Amersfoort) where 70% of the residents have a migration background.
No more floral curtains and the rugs on the table disappeared |
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Good Living
The Van Eesteren Museum was founded in 2010 as an outdoor museum with a varied program of activities and events. At the end of 2017, the Van Eesteren Museum moved to a new pavilion on the Sloterplas. This location was already designated by Cornelis van Eesteren in 1939 as a space for a possible pavilion; with the creation of the pavilion his idea became reality. Already in 2012, the museum got access to a house museum that was furnished according to the principles of the Good Living Foundation (Stichting Goed Wonen) from the 50s of the twentieth century. In those years a new movement Stichting Goed Wonen emerged, committed to and promoting a new and modern way of living. No dark and heavy oak and upholstered furniture, but lightly constructed functional designs, based on the ideas of ergonomics for the housewife. No more floral curtains and the rugs on the table disappeared. 'Light, air and space' came in the place for it. Idealistic architects, designers and manufacturers pursued a home furnishing after the Second World War in which every family member could develop optimally. Well-known manufacturers from that time, such as Bruynzeel, Auping, Gispen, Spectrum, De Ploeg, Fris Edam and Gero got the so-called 'Good Housing quality mark'. The foundation started from the thought that the social ideal of a new society could be reached through good design and architecture: 'good taste is a matter of upbringing'. Although in practice that belief not always worked, the philosophy of Good Living resulted in a lot of design classics.
The interior of the house museum is decorated according to the philosophy of Good Living. All furniture in it interior – from Tomado bookshelves to the colourful crockery – were donated to the museum by residents. Visitors can touch everything, look everywhere, and feel what it was like to live in a house in which people learned to live according to the ideas of functionalism and the modern household in 1952, when the house was built became. Based on several of those classics in the home the principles of the Good Living Foundation can be seen, for example in the efficiently thought-out floor plan, the extendable cutting board, the functional cupboard layout, the pans that could also serve as a cover dish and the sofa that folds out into a sofa bed. The Van Eesteren Museum House in Slotermeer is in October 2012, exactly 60 years after the emergence of the district, for the open to the public. Together with housing corporation De Alliantie the house has been returned to its original state.
House Museum As Test Lab
The house museum is an important part of the Van Eesteren Museum. In order not to freeze the house in time, the museum started a new program this year in which the house museum is used as a test lab. Three times a year a designer, architect, or curator is given the chance to make an installation in the home. Through the confrontation with a current design the contemporary design world is becoming the house museum.
Activating the house museum always focuses on one element from the house. This element is created by a designer, architect or curator analysed, interpreted, and translated to the present through an intervention. In 2023, the museum will focus on three elements from the house: the bookcase, the textiles, the board games, and the toys. The free exhibition in the pavilion talks about Van Eesteren and the way in which he presented his vision on the urban development in Amsterdam New-West. The Van Eesteren Museum also offers a guided walk in the neighbourhood. The Van Eesteren House Museum is a member of Iconic Houses and can be visited by appointment. www.iconichouses.org
Light, air and space were the motto |
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About the Author
Jorn Konijn has been director of the Van Eesteren Museum since June 2022. He worked as a chief programmer at the Dutch Design Week, as a curator at EYE Film Museum and Dutch Architecture Institute and gained administrative experience at the Council for Culture and Brabant C Culture Fund. His arrival ad director coincides with the start of the event about 20 years of urban innovation in New-West, entitled 'SuperWest'.
This article previously appeared in Dutch Magazine Herenhuis #93, January/February 2023. Photos: Van Eesteren House Museum exterior, photo: Monique van Dongen. Urban planners Jakoba Mulder and Cornelis van Eesteren in 1958. Image Van Eesteren Museum. All interior images: Van Eesteren Museum.
Pioneers of the Dutch Modern House
For those who are curious about more stories about the developments in Dutch residential architecture in the twentieth century, Iconic Houses has made a video in which five specialists discussing the following topics:
- Hygiene and Health in the Modern Home by Hetty Berens, Curator of the Sonneveld House.
- Palaces for the People by Valentijn Carbo, Architectural Historian at Hendrick de Keyser Monuments.
- A Woman’s Place: Clients & Architects, by Natalie Dubois, Curator of Design at the Centraal Museum Utrecht.
- Experiments with Space by Robert von der Nahmer, resident of the Diagoon House.
- Home as a Self-Portrait: Architect ‘s Houses by Natascha Drabbe, Architectural Historian and owner of the Van Schijndel House.
The 1 hour video can be streamed via the webshop.
Posted February 12, 2023