Lichtjesroute, freedom celebrated in light

This year marks the 30^th anniversary of the Lichtjesroute, an outdoor festival held every autumn in Eindhoven. The festival always starts on September 18 and lasts three weeks. As part of Operation Market Garden the city of Eindhoven was liberated in 1944 together with the rest of the southern Netherlands (including Belgium). This is still celebrated with a parade on September 18, every year since 1945.

During the first commemoration of the liberation of Eindhoven in 1945 the inhabitants places candles in their windows along the route of the parade. This was formalised a year later with the formation of the Committee for Festive Lighting (Feestverlichtingscomité). The year after the Remembrance Foundation was made responsible for all commemorative festivities and the single day event was expanded into a route of lights with every Neighbourhood Association in the boroughs of Woensel, Strijp, Eindhoven, Gestel and Stratum*.The initial five locations of lights (displays of incandescent light bulbs donated by Philips) grew into a 40 km long string of locations throughout the whole of the city. 1969, 25 years after liberation, saw the last commemorative event organised by the Remembrance Foundation.

The Route of Lights festival was revived by a group of enthusiasts in the borough of Strijp in 1984. A committee of volunteers set to work at attracting sponsors (such as NRE, DAF and Philips Lighting), creating the light ornaments and getting several Neighbourhood Associations involved in the new Lichtjesroute. The route consists of a string of streets and sites with light art through the centre of Eindhoven and Stratum, Strijp and Woensel. The route is about 25 km long that can be travelled by car (mostly for families) and by bicycle. The route is indicated by signs with a light bulb. Although originally light bulbs were used for the ornaments and displays, the organisers are gradually changing over to LEDs.

Along the route various ornaments consisting of lamps mounted on frames are hung of lamp posts. There are some reoccurring designs, this penguin for instance (left). As the route of lights was initially mainly aimed at children most of the initial ornaments were made to appeal to them. So gnomes in various shapes and sizes are well represented. In some streets the neighbourhood committee has decided to opt for light garlands, like this street in the Garden Village Barrier (on the right).

The route has been signposted with these light bulb pointers. In some streets the residents have opted for light ornaments that reflect the street name, like here in de Zwaanstraat (Swan Street). The famous Evoluon building, once a science museum, has also been immortalized in lights (right).

Some of the modern ornaments stay within the fairy lights theme of the early period. Along the edge of the Philips - de Jong Park monstrous masks pop out of the tree canopy with large elves (middle) taking centre stage. Seals are a kids-favourite and also occur as lamp post ornaments along several streets.

As a city of design, new ornament are being commissioned from local, young graphic designers every few years. This chameleon in LEDs actually changes colour and appears to catch the large fly at the end of its perch. Another modern light ornament that has movement incorporated into the design is this tall lighthouse that sends out beams of light. This spectacular angel stands three storeys high and harbours a flickering flame of remembrance for the victims of war.

 

Neighbourhood Associations have great freedom in their input for the Route of Lights. Here the residents have opted for a pirate theme with tall ships, a pirate with his treasure and lamp post ornaments in the shape of buoys, anchors (right) and swords.

Although some of the light displays are serious and commemorative, most are meant to be fun. This is quite apparent in this clown juggling with money that stands opposite the business school. Although many of the people involved in the Lichtjesroute don't see this as culture it most certainly is. This has prompted a graphic designer to create this display of a large theatre in the middle of his parental neighbourhood. The lamp post ornaments leading up to the central green are shaped like theatre curtains. This stick figure is called "Lampie". He was the unofficial emblem of the last jubilee of the Route of Lights.  

 * the Franconian names are easily translated in their Saxon counterparts, which makes it possible to give English versions or cognates: Wednesley, Stripe, Gaesley, Hove's End and Streatham. (Just a lark of course, don't take it too seriously!)

Fruitful season

The end of summer is the time most of the garden fruit is ready for harvest. This year has been a bumper year so far with lots of cherries on the tree, big juicy raspberries (right) and a load of blackberries (middle) that are just starting to ripen and change colour.   

Garden Village Buiksloterham North: a myriad of stylistic references part 2

As a result of the canal reservation that still separates the northern and southern sections of the Tuindorp Buiksloterham these are widely regarded as two separate garden villages. As the northern southern part was developed by several housing associations and the Amsterdam Housing Service combined,  this section of the garden village can be subdivided in a number of stylistically uniform  developments of which the two southern (Latherusbuurt-Noord and Latherusbuurt-Zuid) and western (Bloemenbuurt-West) neighbourhoods will be shown in this series of impressions.

This Montessori school is part of the Northern Latherus Neighbourhood that stretches from the Azalestraat to the Berberisstraat. It dates from 1931 and has been designed as a so-called Freiluftschule (Open Air School), a German concept where all classrooms have access to the outside via big windows that bring in natural light and windows and doors that can be opened.

The Florapark runs along the whole length of the northern section of the garden village and includes many large open spaces laid to grass to accommodate playing en sports. Although it has been designed to look very natural with a lot of indigenous trees and ornamental trees and shrubs, the whole park is artificial. It was planted on a sludge deposit along the North Holland Canal.

The Duindoornplein (Sea-buckthorn Square) lies at the heart of the northern Latherusbuurt. It is a large garden square that takes inspiration from the classic Unwinesque green. the long row of terraced housing wraps round the central space forming a nice curved continuous facade. The central trees make it impossible to view the whole facade at once, except in winter. The architect of these houses is Karel Greiner (1891-1964).

 

The expressive architecture that defines the corners takes some inspiration from the Amsterdam School. The steep pitched roofs with high end gables are typical of vernacular architecture in Holland. The buildings were meant to serve as corner shops. The long rows of houses have a variable building line with protruding volumes on the corners to create interest in the visual experience. The details are kept simple and utilitarian.

The clusters of 4 doors signify that these were originally so-called over-and-under duplex houses. The facade has been designed to form an interesting composition of windows and doors that are all clustered. Since renovation the two middle doors are defunct as the two apartments have been joined to create larger family houses. These houses (that are somewhat simpler than those around the Duindoornplein are by J.H. Mulder.

Especially on the corners the architecture is more expressive in an effort to create more visual interest, but also emphasise the layout of the streets. Concrete beams are used as embellishment. Some clusters of doors are part of a shallow porch as seen on the right. This is one of the variations consciously introduced by the architect to prevent unappealing uniform streetscapes.

The streets are mostly straight but tend to have a kink at either end thus creating short lines of sight along the streets conform Unwinesque design principles. It also allows for maximising the land for building houses on these tapered plots between streets that run east west.

This former fire station on Berberisstraat (left) was designed in a similar style to the primary school. It sits in between long rows of family houses all designed by J. H. Mulder. On the other side of the street are some distinctly differently designed ensembles of mostly social rented housing designed by different architects for different Housing Associations. The window details in expressive modernism (Amsterdam School) are by Willem Noorlander the architect of 4 blocks around the Andoornstraat (Woundwort Street).

The corners of the long rows of closed blocks are emphasised by higher pyramid roofs. This is done on all sides to create interest and also, as these building were built first in 1921 surrounded by undeveloped raised ground, this better defines this small neighbourhood.

The central Andoornstraat in the Noorlanderbuurt is a long open space that is basically a garden square with a large playground. This green space separates the four closed blocks of row houses around it and serves the same purpose as the courtyard garden in the Viennese super blocks built in the same period.

With simple means Noorlander achieves great effect in his buildings. To create interest in the long facade roof lights and dormers are alternated with raised facades. The clustered doors again indicate that these houses are over-and-under duplexes, with the apartment above being a maisonette as it also included bedrooms in the loft space.

Noorlander designed everything from facade to details. His blocks -that are listed- have been lovingly restored. The original doors with the original colours are still in place. The architect also designed al the details like the window boxes and cornerstones of the dormers. Also note the comb shape of the windowsill.

The block with 69 dwellings and 2 shops designed by A van Wamelen stands next to that of Noorlander. It was built in 1925 around a reservation where later a church was built. The style is reminiscent of Amsterdam School architecture with expressive handling of the volume. The corners are also emphasised, both in roof treatment and in materials used in the facade.

Another example of an expressive corner (left) where the architects uses the stairwell as both a structural and decorative element around which several volumes are arranged thus rounding the corner of the block. Sadly architects nowadays seem to have lost this skill of designing a building around the corner. In contrast Ary van Wamelen has kept the entrances rather subdued (right). a cluster of 4 doors in a porch behind an archway give access to the duplex flats. Again these buildings contain a ground floor flat with a maisonette above.

The C-shaped block has no back or front. The western facade is continuous, but visual interest is created by emphasising the corners and playing with the building line and groups of dormers and roof lights.

The area west of the Kamperfoelieweg (Honeysuckle Road) was developed from 1931 onwards by several housing associations and collectives. The buildings from the 1930 are al recognisable by their red front doors and window frames. The architecture is also more elaborate than the post-WW2 building that all have blue front doors (as seen on the right).

Here a typical streetscape along the Heggenrankweg (Bryony Road) with long rows of terraced housing that follow the gentle curve of the street. The corners are treated more ornamental. Her the typical buildings from the late 1930s originally built by the Socialist Housing Collective for Teachers. These houses are still rented social houses.

Garden Village Buiksloterham North: a myriad of stylistic references part 1

As a result of the canal reservation that still separates the northern and southern sections of the Tuindorp Buiksloterham these are widely regarded as two separate garden villages. As the northern southern part was developed by several housing associations and the Amsterdam Housing Service combined,  this section can be subdivided in a number of stylistically uniform  developments that will be shown in a two-part series of impressions. This first part will focus on the two northern neighbourhoods: Floradorp and Zomers Buiten.

The Florapark was planted in 1927 and provides a green lung separating the garden village from the North Holland Canal. Providing leisure space was an important part of the ideals of the Garden City Movement and was translated to a public park along the lines of a German 'Volkspark' (the name in Dutch is the same by the way) with a public pool.

A gate forms the entrance to the municipal neighbourhood of the garden village from the Floraweg (Flora Road) hence the name Floradorp (Village of Flora). From this point there used to be a foot[path to a bridge that ran to the village of Buiksloot. Such gate buildings are a reoccurring phenomenon, used both to present the garden village as a separate entity and make control over the inhabitants possible.

The often curved streets lined with short terraces and semidetached houses with small front gardens are very much in keeping with the Unwinesque design aesthetic. This can't be said of the buildings themselves that have a distinct modernist design that fits with New Objectivity. The buildings of Floradorp were designed by J. H. Mulder (1888-1960) an architect who worked for the Amsterdam Housing Service all his career.

The bold use of colour on the rendered facades is used to great effect and underlines the modernity of these dwellings and visibly sets them apart from the squalorous brick-built tenements most of the residents came from. All buildings have a maximum height of 3 storeys and are all built with pitched roofs. Only two wall colours were used: a bright pink and a light blue. The rendered walls thus contrast heavily with the tiles roofs in orange and orange-red.

Based on the Almshouses of old a provision was made to include homes for the elderly. This took the shape of an oval of small houses around a central private courtyard garden. The original buildings from 1929 were destroyed by a bomb during WW2 and stripped for wood afterwards. This meant they had to be rebuilt in 1949. The houses are reminiscent of the small dyke houses so common around Amsterdam with their steep gables. Pr

The modernist vocabulary of the design shows clearly in the details and materials used. All doors are of a same simple shape in the same deep blue colour. The door surrounds are tiled with dark grey tiles on the pink houses and light grey tiles on blue buildings. The same tiles are used on corners as an embellishment along the lines of Unwinesque design principles. Lighter grey tiles are used to cover side extensions. The tiles used for the low plinth along the bottom of all buildings is in a contrasting shade of grey to the colour used for the door surrounds.

As a result of the rendered walls in blue (or pink) this part of the garden village is very distinct. It is no wonder that it was given a separate name as it differs in appearance as well as in landlord (the city of Amsterdam instead of a Housing Association).The coloured rendered walls are very uncommon in the Netherlands and are more reminiscent of Germany.

A large green square with shops around it forms the entrance to the largest single housing association portion of the garden village from the main road. The treatment of public space that is emphasised in the placement of the buildings and the curve of the building lines are a typical Unwinesque design principle. The focus of the congruent lines that edge Zomers Buiten lies beyond the through route on a small garden square.

The neighbourhood south of Floradorp is also known as Zomers Buiten (Country Retreat for Summer) after the name of the Housing Association that built the houses here between 1925 and '27. The layout of the streets on this trapezoid piece of the garden village has a rather formal quality emphasised by two garden squares. The streets are mostly straight with similar housing in long terraces on both sides.

The style of architecture is semi-traditional with a strong influence of expressive modernist brick architecture. The ground floor had darker bricks with a lighter layer above thus breaking the high facades. Due to renovations of the facades the bricks have been painted in  colours close to the intended scheme. All doors are the same and have this moss green colour. The same colour is used for the window frames. To create interest in the streetscape the roofline is lowered in some long rows of terraced housing.

The buildings in this part of the garden village are more urban than those in neighbouring Floradorp due to the longer length of the facades and the greater height of 2 storeys with a fully habitable loft underneath the pitched roofs. These bedrooms in the loft space all have dormers that form long ribbons on the roofs. All dwellings have been renovated in 2003 and have been sold off since with stringent rules for the facades as the whole of the garden village has been listed as an ensemble.