Flatgebouw, Pieter Zeemanlaan 4

English translation

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Description

Introduction

RESIDENTIAL BLOCK, L- or hook-shaped building block from Complex Jeruzalem in the district Tuindorp Frankendael, part of a working-class housing complex consisting of linked duplex dwellings in Amsterdam, built in 1951 according to a design from 1947-1949 by the architects' office Merkelbach & Karsten (later Merkelbach & Elling). Two hook-shaped building blocks each surround one courtyard.

The building blocks of Jeruzalem form part of the urban design for Tuindorp Frankendael, which is an elaboration of the General Expansion Plan of Amsterdam from 1935. The Department of Public Works, Urban Development Section, studied between 1929 and 1948, and especially in the period between late 1947 and late 1948, an ideal land subdivision form with open building blocks that were to offer a better housing alternative to 19th-century closed building blocks, but also to modern open strip development.

On behalf of the Housing Service, the architects B. Merkelbach, Ch.J.F. Karsten (later P.J. Elling) and M. Stam developed a completely new subdivision form in consultation with the Urban Development Section, consisting of two hooks. The nearly four hundred single-family dwellings were executed as duplex dwellings, which doubled the number of dwellings. This was an emergency solution to alleviate the post-war housing shortage in the short term. This meant that the architects had to design the dwellings so that they could temporarily function as a ground-floor dwelling and a separate dwelling on the upper storey, which could then be recombined with a minor modification after a number of years into a normal single-family dwelling with three bedrooms on the upper storey. The duplex dwellings in Tuindorp Frankendael were a first in the Netherlands. From a housing policy perspective, this temporary solution was considered more attractive by all those involved than reducing the average dwelling size.

Description

L-shaped RESIDENTIAL BLOCK with a flat roof executed in systematic construction with a grid of load-bearing concrete columns and facade cladding in a fixed modular system. The appearance is determined to a large extent by the construction method. The housing development of Jeruzalem was namely executed in systematic construction. The given grid of load-bearing concrete columns and the originally almost white concrete facade cladding forms an architectural characteristic. The flat roofs too are dictated by this because the building system requires a light roof structure. In particular, the appearance of the front facades shows how compelling and at the same time pleasantly logical the modular system is. The somewhat idiosyncratic slanted canopies projecting upwards above the front doors are essentially the only pronounced architectural addition to a design that is thoroughly rational. In Jeruzalem they chose the Dotremont-Ten Bosch building system. Little is known about this originally Belgian system, called "Skalja". The building system was one of many put forward around 1947-1948 to be able to benefit from government subsidies for non-traditional construction methods. In terms of design and appearance, the Dotremont-Ten Bosch system strongly resembles the Airey system promoted by the government. Characteristic of the system is that the construction consists of regularly placed concrete columns and beams covered with concrete prefab panels. The columns are incorporated into the inner leaf of the cavity wall, which gave the dwellings their structural rigidity. The columns in the front and rear facades are provided with recesses into which the ridges of the facade panels must fit. Since these facade panels had fairly large dimensions, precision in positioning the columns was required. Furthermore, the building package includes concrete beams for the floor above and a beam layer under the roof of pumice concrete channel slabs.

The single-family dwellings were not only fairly large, but were also characterised by a special floor plan that makes the spatial experience pleasant. Unlike what was usual in Dutch housing construction, they did not choose a two-aisle solution with a living room against one party wall and a hall with stairs behind which the kitchen lies against the other party wall. The collaboration of Mart Stam resulted in a more German dwelling type, with two zones separated by a hall parallel to the outer facades. This offers the possibility of placing the living room along the full width of the rear facade. Due to the rotation of the hooks in relation to the north axis, which runs diagonally across the planning area, the living rooms are alternately oriented south-east and south-west. The small entrance hall, with the fairly steep staircase to the upper storey, the storage room, the kitchen and the bathroom are on the other facade. The spatial arrangement of the dwelling is also clearly expressed in the facade appearance. The rear facades of the rows are rhythmically articulated by the robust masonry chimneys which give the party walls a strong accent. The facade appearance is further determined by two loggias placed one above the other against the chimneys and the largely glazed wooden frames for the living room and the large bedroom on the rear. This frame is placed on one side against the chimney; a hook of concrete facade elements, wider at the top and narrower on the side of the loggias, forms together with the chimneys a striking frame around the frame. The facade surfaces between the chimneys were closed off by a slenderly detailed eaves moulding. In this way the designers have managed to compose a calm but nonetheless engaging facade appearance through its strong rhythm with simple elements and without any decoration. The oval openings in the gable ends on the sunny side enliven the appearance of the rows. The facades with the front doors have a more closed character, with two doors and a narrow kitchen window on the ground floor and two somewhat wider windows on the upper storey that are strikingly positioned high in the facade. The two doors temporarily serve as front doors for the two duplex dwellings; after recombination, the door against the party wall becomes the front door and the other door serves as access to the storage room. The downpipes indicate where the party walls are located.

Valuation

The L-shaped RESIDENTIAL BLOCK is of general interest as an example of early Post-War Reconstruction on account of cultural-historical value, architectural and urban development historical value, ensemble value and urban design value. It is a recognisable example of post-war industrialised systematic construction. The experimental character of the urban space of the courtyard subdivision is reinforced by the architecture. The housing complex is furthermore of significance as an example of good collaboration between the designers.