"Icons of Dutch public housing"

Dear members of the KIVI Department of History of Engineering and of Histechnica,

The boards of the association Histechnica and of the KIVI Department of the History of Technology are pleased to invite you to attend a lecture to be given by Mr.dr. ir. N. de Vreeze with the title:

"Icons of Dutch public housing".

Programme:

  • 10.30 am:walk-in with coffee and tea
  • 11:00 am:welcome and introduction
  • 11.05:00: Lecture by Mr Noud de Vreeze
  • 12:00: Break
  • 12:15: Continuation of lecture and closing discussion
  • 12:45: End of the meeting

please register to attend this lecture:

  • KIVI members can register via the KIVI website
  • Members of Histechnica can register through the secretary hotzeboonstra@gmail.com.
  • Interested parties who are not members can also register through the above channels. There will then be a cost of ā‚¬5.00.
  • The lecture will be broadcast live; you should also register for this through the above channels. There is no charge for this.

Summary of the lecture

In "Icons of Dutch public housing", Noud de Vreeze tells the story of the development of social housing under the influence of the 1902 Housing Act. That law made it possible for almost 100 years for municipalities and housing corporations to build housing for low-income households with cheap and long-term loans. From 1902 until the mid-1990s, this always accounted for about 30% of annual building production, which in total produced 2 million houses, i.e. about 20% of the current housing stock. There are interesting examples from different periods that express the changing views on housing quality.

Information about the speaker

Noud de Vreeze studied at Delft University of Technology. In his dissertation (1993), he analysed the qualitative foundations of social housing construction in the Netherlands.

As an urban planning consultant, he worked for housing corporations and local and provincial governments. In the 1980s, he was editor of Archis magazine and a board member of Europan. He lectured at the Academy of Architecture in Rotterdam, Amsterdam and Tilburg and at the PDI of the University of Amsterdam. From 2008 to 2012, he was city architect in Amersfoort. On that, he wrote the book "Long lines in urban development, Amersfoort 1945-2010 ", which analyses the influence of national urbanisation policy on local political decision-making. From 2012 to 2018, he was chairman of the Van Eesteren Museum in Amsterdam. During that period, the Van Eesteren Pavilion on Sloterplas came into being. In 2018, he published a book on the bombing of German cities and reconstruction in the post-war years.

Photo above: Zaanhof, Amsterdam-oud-West, 1920, architect. Walenkamp

Photo below: eRA flat, Van Eesteren Bouwbedrijf Zoetermeer, 1970

Call for Board position: One (or perhaps more) position(s) will soon become vacant on the Board of the KIVI History of Engineering Section. In any case, we are looking for a new treasurer. Further contact via: frank.w.vandenberg@gmail.com.

Upcoming activities at Science Center Delft:

  • Saturday 17 May 2025 at 11:00 lecture by ir A. Burgers: "From the Scheldt to the Rhine: The waterway quarrels between the Netherlands and Belgium".
  • Saturday 28 June 2025 at 11:00am lecture by Dr H.G Heijmans: "The deception of Alexandria; Robert Fryer and the Pocahontas"
  • A 2-day study tour to Liege and its surroundings will take place on Thursday 22 May and Friday 23 May 2025

On the occasion of Histechnica's 50th anniversary, a book "Out of Failure Making Progress" was published on Saturday 20 April 2024. The book will be available free of charge during the lecture.