School:1927/1928; Addition in 1930;
Housing: 1928; Rebuilt in 2007;
Merelstraat 43, Hilversum;
Architect: W.M. Dudok.
Willem Marinus Dudok’s (1884-1974) drawings of 1927 show an obtuse L shape school to match the angles of the adjacent roads. A third wing, designed in 1930, was added to make the final composition a Y shape. This allowed Dudok to divide the mid block site into a formal front lawn and a large enclosed play yard, while still engaging great contextual connections to both adjacent roads. This integration is enhanced by the separate caretaker’s house which matches the detail and brick colour of the school, but is attached to and ‘bookends’ the south side housing block. The north side housing is also quite unique in that it is turned to face the formal school yard to create a sense of ownership. This results in ‘Defensible Spaces’ for both the school and the residents. Urban planning at its finest!
While undoubtedly a good example of Dudok’s well developed interlocking ‘cubist’ massing, this apparently unassuming school appears to be quite significant in the evolution of Dudok’s work. In fact this school is listed as an important cultural Rijksmonument (National Monument).
One reason for this recognition is that this school can be seen as a significant transition in Dudok’s thinking and design sensibilities. He moved quite noticeably from the contextual ‘vernacular’ based forms such as the Fabritius / Ruysdael (1925/26,28) and Minckeler(1927) schools, to the more ‘hard-line’ modern of the Vondel (1928/29), Lorentz (1929/30) and Snellius (1930/32) schools. Interesting evidence of this transition are the well developed drawings for a sloped roof version of the Nassauschool that were rejected in favour of the more modern flat roof design that was actually built (see the ‘architect’s exhibit’ inside the gymnasium).
The Nassauschool could also be seen as an important design laboratory for many of the playful new details used on later projects. For example, ideas such as flush square and round ‘porthole’ window patterns, the light shelf window detail (for sun control), and the newly developed steel window frames in continuous strips, projecting bays, and large ‘curtain walls’ all show up first at this time. It is interesting to consider that some of these details may even have been perfected for use on the Raadhuis (1924-1931; actual start in 1927).
The school has been completely restored to an ‘as-designed’ state and is in excellent condition. For example, the gorgeous new mullioned classroom windows replace expedient past renovations. They are indistinguishable from the original designs. Brilliant!
The model is representative of the school as it is now. Scene tabs set up for a walk around the block and a view inside the gymnastiekzaal. Scenes were also set up to show the clever modernization of the adjacent housing blocks to match what was originally designed while accommodating a new modern program (less units / larger rooms). The current condition is based on imagery from the web while the original design is based on Dudok’s drawings reproduced in the excellent CD-rom “Dudok: Werken in Hilversum” published by Gemeente Hilversum (2004). There are a few locations that were not visible in any of the sources. I apologize for any misinterpretation. Nonetheless, the model should provide an enjoyable and informative tour for those who can not actually visit this fascinating precinct.
- Comments
