In the tradition of the Amsterdam School

The Spaarndammerbuurt is located in the west of Amsterdam. This district is still characterized by the clinker bricks, colors and curves of the Amsterdam School. Now they are coming back into their own. New architecture is enhancing the district.

Spaarndammerbuurt is a district in the west of Amsterdam. It is still characterized by numerous buildings from the Amsterdam School. Many of these building structures are still intact. Nevertheless, many clinker brick buildings have suffered over the years. These wounds are currently being healed. A new, colorful residential building by architects korth tielens architects and Marcel Lok Architects also contributes to this. Their design captures the richness and spirit of the Amsterdam School, in which architecture, art and nature came together.

The colorful new building by korth tielens architects and Marcel Lok Architects is located on two different sides of a street. The plot was owned by the city. For many years, a school was built on it, which ran across the Krommeniestraat. However, this building with its bar always remained a foreign body in the district with Amsterdam school buildings. After the school moved, the building was demolished. One of the aims was to restore the old image of the street in the spirit of the Amsterdam School. With an architectural concept from the two offices korth tielens and Marcel Lok in the bag, the project developer Heijmans Vastgoed won the competition.

Former school, now residential

Where the school buildings and courtyard used to be, people now live. A new building on both sides of the Krommeniestraat closes the gaps left by the demolition of the school. The new buildings face the street in yellow and red clinker brick and blend in with the existing buildings of the Amsterdam school. Another green building is hidden behind the southern yellow block. It projects into the inner courtyard in a horseshoe shape and offers a wide range of housing. Green dominates the interior of the complex. However, the architects did not just choose green clinker bricks. In the communal gardens, many new trees are grouped around the old trees. As a result, both the residents of the new building and the people living in the neighboring buildings always have a view of the greenery.

In the new residential complex, it is not only the clinker brick façade and the trees in the inner courtyard that are green. The roofs are also green. In doing so, the architects are following a requirement of the city of Amsterdam. This requires the greening of roofs and minimal sealing in public spaces. These measures are intended to counteract heat stress in the city and contribute to cooling the environment. In addition, greening provides food and habitat for urban wildlife. Small songbirds, bats and insects find food and breeding opportunities in the various plants. Nesting boxes have even been integrated into the overhangs of the roofs and dormers.

Two sides, two bars

On the eastern side of the Krommeniestraat, a continuous, four-storey block of terraced houses characterizes the new block edge. The architects designed a long row of 16 terraced houses for this purpose. The first floors can be used for both residential and commercial purposes. The long, dark red clinker brick street front is interrupted by two vertical waves of clinker brick. They mark the narrow passageways to the private courtyards and echo elements of the Amsterdam School.

To the west of the Krommeniestraat, the new building presents itself with a five-storey block facing the street. While the lower two storeys follow the line of the street, the upper three storeys are set back. This creates staggered storeys that even wrap around the corners of the building with curves and terraces. The façade is interrupted in two places. At these points, high arched gates mark the entrances to the building and the passageways to the inner courtyard. The arches and also the floors in the inner courtyard are decorated with figures. They are the work of Martijn Sandberg, who plays with time and dates here.

In their design for the residential building, the architects take up characteristics of their historical predecessors and the Amsterdam School. Not only the material of the façades, but also the shape of the straight, large building sections, in which playful and curved forms mark entrances, are reminiscent of the old architecture of the Amsterdam School. A total of 80 new apartments have been created in the buildings by korth tielens architects and Marcel Lok Architects. More than a quarter are subsidized apartments. The other units are rental and owner-occupied apartments, ranging in size from 35 to 157 square meters.

How do you deal with an architectural heritage? Architects Chybik and Kristof rescued the Zvonarka Bus Terminal in the Czech city of Brno and have now redesigned it. Read more here.