Postwar reconstruction icon. Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen
27/06/2021.
[Rotterdam] Netherlands
metalocus, RAMIRO ISAURRALDE
metalocus, RAMIRO ISAURRALDE
As we mentioned in the series of articles on architectural works in interwar Rotterdam, the profession suffered a lot with the German bombing of 1940. A city in crisis (and a country, of course), a historic centre in ruins, important buildings that disappeared amid the ashes of the tragedy and others that barely managed to remain standing.
As part of the city's reconstruction plan, the Groot Handelsgebouw (Wholesale Building) was born, an innovative private investment intervention in the new centre of Rotterdam, by architects Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen, two of the most influential and important professionals in Reconstruction.
As part of the city's reconstruction plan, the Groot Handelsgebouw (Wholesale Building) was born, an innovative private investment intervention in the new centre of Rotterdam, by architects Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen, two of the most influential and important professionals in Reconstruction.
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 347041. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 347036. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 347037. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph courtesy of Van Duinen National Archive / ANEFO
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph courtesy of Janvan Helleman
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 347044. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 347038. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 347042. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 347040. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 347039. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph by Jan Voets
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 347043. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 347049. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 347048. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 347047. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 347046. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 347055. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 347050. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph by Joop van Bilsen
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph by Joop van Bilsen
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 347056. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 347052. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 347051. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 347053. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 347054. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 347045. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph by Joop van Bilsen
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph by Joop van Bilsen
Construction. Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph courtesy of Winterbergen / ANEFO
Construction. Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph courtesy of Winterbergen / ANEFO
Construction. Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph courtesy of Winterbergen / ANEFO
Construction. Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph by Ary Groeneveld
Construction. Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph by Herbert Behrens
Construction. Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph by Herbert Behrens
Construction. Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph by Herbert Behrens
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph courtesy of Van Duinen National Archive / ANEFO
Construction. Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph by J.D. Noske
Construction. Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph by J.D. Noske
Fire of the seventies. Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph by Ary Groeneveld
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph by Ossip van Duivenbode, GHG
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph by Ossip van Duivenbode, GHG
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph by Ossip van Duivenbode, GHG
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph by Ossip van Duivenbode, GHG
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph by Ossip van Duivenbode, GHG
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Rijksdienst voor het Cultuur Erfgoed, Amersfoort / 350683. Photograph by AJ van der Wal
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph by Ossip van Duivenbode, GHG
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph by Ossip van Duivenbode, GHG
Groot Handelsgebouw by Huig Maaskant and Willem van Tijen. Photograph by Frans Blok
The Stairs to Kriterion by MVRDV. Photograph by Ossip van Duivenbode
The Stairs to Kriterion by MVRDV. Photograph by Ossip van Duivenbode
The Stairs to Kriterion by MVRDV. Photograph by Ossip van Duivenbode
The Stairs to Kriterion by MVRDV. Photograph by Ossip van Duivenbode
The Stairs to Kriterion by MVRDV. Photograph by Ossip van Duivenbode
The Groot Handelsgebouw (GHG) is probably the biggest icon of the reconstruction of Rotterdam. At that time, approximately 388,000 m² of commercial space was lost as a result of the occupation. This was reason enough to start the undertaking of what was the largest building in the Netherlands at the time.
Continuing with the impetus that characterized the entire reconstruction process, the building began to be planned shortly after the liberation of 45, with the intention of not wasting time and thus preventing businesses from choosing to move to other large districts such as Amsterdam.
This company was born then of the agreement between several parties (wholesale commercial companies, the Chamber of Commerce and the National Government) who believed that the new proportions of the city should be reflected in its architecture. Hence, they contacted Huig Maaskant, who already had two similar buildings under his belt (albeit on a smaller scale) in Oostzeedijk and Goudsesingel, to project a large commercial building that could house many companies for a lower construction cost.
Maaskant, who at that time had his office with Willem van Tijen set up, drank from the works he had visited years before in Chicago such as the Merchandise Mart, an Art Deco giant made by Graham, Anderson, Probst & White, an office originally founded by Daniel Burnham.
The building is to this day one of the greatest exponents of Dutch brutalism, which, beyond any formal stylism, continued to uphold the classic precepts of the New Objectivity, of which Maaskant and van Tijen had been great defenders and representatives.
On a longitudinal lot, slightly broken towards the centre, the program was distributed in an area of 220 by 85 meters, divided into nine levels with a reinforced concrete structure made in situ. The floors of the building, arranged under this structure with spans of almost seven meters, favoured the adaptability of uses and the interchangeability that could exist between the different tenant companies.
Continuing with the impetus that characterized the entire reconstruction process, the building began to be planned shortly after the liberation of 45, with the intention of not wasting time and thus preventing businesses from choosing to move to other large districts such as Amsterdam.
This company was born then of the agreement between several parties (wholesale commercial companies, the Chamber of Commerce and the National Government) who believed that the new proportions of the city should be reflected in its architecture. Hence, they contacted Huig Maaskant, who already had two similar buildings under his belt (albeit on a smaller scale) in Oostzeedijk and Goudsesingel, to project a large commercial building that could house many companies for a lower construction cost.
Maaskant, who at that time had his office with Willem van Tijen set up, drank from the works he had visited years before in Chicago such as the Merchandise Mart, an Art Deco giant made by Graham, Anderson, Probst & White, an office originally founded by Daniel Burnham.
The building is to this day one of the greatest exponents of Dutch brutalism, which, beyond any formal stylism, continued to uphold the classic precepts of the New Objectivity, of which Maaskant and van Tijen had been great defenders and representatives.
On a longitudinal lot, slightly broken towards the centre, the program was distributed in an area of 220 by 85 meters, divided into nine levels with a reinforced concrete structure made in situ. The floors of the building, arranged under this structure with spans of almost seven meters, favoured the adaptability of uses and the interchangeability that could exist between the different tenant companies.
“The huge concrete colossus, which now completely dominates the centre due to its size, is essentially a completely commercial building. It is always the workplace of the always busy businessman. His clean lines speak of sobriety and a sense of reality. "
Van idee tot werkelijkheid, 1953.
The tour of the work is undoubtedly extraordinary. After entering through one of the five entrances distributed throughout its front, we come across wide lobbies supported by octagonal columns of exposed concrete, bathed by the light that enters decimated by the precast concrete parasols of the façade. From there we could go to one of the three patios that interrupt the volume at all levels. There is also the internal street, a mobility route of approximately one kilometre of development between the first three floors that helped supply the more than 150 shops that it housed at its inauguration, crossing the building through arches and tunnels as if from a small commercial city involved.
As we make our way up, we can see the terraces between levels that give rise to small gardens that decorate the internal facades of the building, including the four apartments located on the seventh level (and where Els Stolk, the only resident of the building since 1962), to finally finish them off with an accessible terrace from which to see the entire city and which, at that time, housed the Kriterion movie theatre, located on the façade facing what is now the Station Square.
“The formation of the concrete colossus in the immediate vicinity of the Central Station formed the most spectacular part of the road that would lead to the wholesalers' stronghold of Rotterdam. There was nothing to be seen of the fragile financing network, nor of the operational concerns, but the lifting of the endless formwork, the lifting of the concrete masses, the busy activity around and in a complicated building of unprecedented dimensions, everyone I could see it with your own eyes. "
Leo Ott - Van luchtkasteel tot koopmansburcht.
Between its inauguration by Queen Juliana in 1953 and 1970, the building maintained its functions without major changes. But precisely this last year was when one of the great fires that have affected the city happened, this time originating in the Groot Handelsgebouw. This would not only affect the uses of the building and cause the displacement of many businesses towards the periphery of the city, but would also begin with the decline of the life of the building, which would be saturated with offices in the nineties, but with the use and the lack of maintenance would lose the splendour of that bastion of postwar reconstruction.
In October 1991, in an attempt to recover the memory of the iconic building, the work of Maaskant and van Tijen would be recognized as a municipal historical monument, for ten years later, on the anniversary of its fifty years, to begin a process of renovation The total was carried out by the J. van Stigt study, completed in 2005, and which would also be promoted by the transformation of the Rotterdam centre, with the creation of the new Rotterdam Centraal station by Benthem Crouwel, MVSA and West 8.
A year later, Tak Architecten would be in charge of the maintenance and supervision of the building, to control the adjustments during the change of tenants and advise on the maintenance of the building, and thus prevent what happened in the nineties from happening again.
From then on, the Groot Handelsgebouw has hosted a large number of functions and events that have brought the building and the particular environment that surrounds it back to life. Among the most outstanding we can mention The Stairs to Kriterion, the intervention of the Rotterdammers MVRDV in 2016. A colossal and temporary staircase 29 meters tall and 57 meters long, which connected the Stationsplein with the terrace of the building built with scaffolding in honor of the 75 years of the reconstruction of the city, and which attracted more than 350,000 visitors who enjoyed the views of the renovated town.
NOTES.-
1- Phrase from the promotional pamphlet for the building “Van idee tot werkelijkheid” (From idea to reality), published by Groothandelsgebouw N.V. in 1993.
2- OTT, Leo (1969) Van luchtkasteel tot koopmansburcht: In opdracht van de Raad van commissarissen der Groothandelsgebouwen N. V., P. 34. Rotterdam: Nijgh & Van Ditmar.
2- OTT, Leo (1969) Van luchtkasteel tot koopmansburcht: In opdracht van de Raad van commissarissen der Groothandelsgebouwen N. V., P. 34. Rotterdam: Nijgh & Van Ditmar.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.-
-ZULSTRA, Hielkje. (2018). "Het unieke Groothandelsgebouw in Rotterdam. Monument". 12-’02, pp. 7-11. Netherlands.
-DORMAN, Ewout et al. (2004). "De Lijnbaan. Cultuurhistorische verkenning van het Lijnbaan ensemble". Netherlands: CRIMSON.
-PROVOOST, Michelle. (2011). "Hugh Maaskant, Architect of Progress. Chapter 5. Architecture of Genius and Bureaucracy. By verzamelgebouwen 1939-1960". Pp. 64-93. The Netherlands: NAI Uitgevers.
-OTT, Leo. (1969). "Van luchtkasteel tot koopmansburcht: In opdracht van de Raad van commissarissen der Groothandelsgebouwen N. V.". Rotterdam: Nijgh & Van Ditmar.
-DORMAN, Ewout et al. (2004). "De Lijnbaan. Cultuurhistorische verkenning van het Lijnbaan ensemble". Netherlands: CRIMSON.
-PROVOOST, Michelle. (2011). "Hugh Maaskant, Architect of Progress. Chapter 5. Architecture of Genius and Bureaucracy. By verzamelgebouwen 1939-1960". Pp. 64-93. The Netherlands: NAI Uitgevers.
-OTT, Leo. (1969). "Van luchtkasteel tot koopmansburcht: In opdracht van de Raad van commissarissen der Groothandelsgebouwen N. V.". Rotterdam: Nijgh & Van Ditmar.
More information
Architects
Huig Maaskant. Willem van Tijen. Renovation.- J. van Stigt. André van Stigt.
Client
Builder
Van Eesteren. Dura. HBM. BAM. De Kondor. Renovation.- Strukton BV.
Developer
Area
Plot area.- 128,000 sqm. Built area.- 445,000 sqm.
Budget
Construction.- € 11,100,000. Renovation.- € 63,530,000.
Dates
Project.- 1945. Start of construction.- 1947. End of construction.- 1953. Expansion.- 1961. Renovation.- 2000-2005.
Location
Stationsplein 45, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Photography
A.J. van der Wal. Van Duinen National Archive / ANEFO. Joop van Bilsen. Herbert Behrens. Jan Voets. J.D. Noske. Ossip van Duivenbode. Frans Blok. Ary Groeneveld. Janvan Helleman.
Huig Aart Maaskant
Huig Maaskant was one of the most important reconstruction architects in the Netherlands, and in Rotterdam in particular, after the Second World War. Furthermore, he was one of the first architects to deal with the aesthetic side of industrial buildings. His buildings are characterized by their large scale, monumentality, and substantial details.
Maaskant built the most important buildings for him in Rotterdam. With the Groothandelsgebouw, the Lijnbaanflats, the Hilton hotel and the Euromast, he contributed greatly to the image of the new Rotterdam. Other well-known buildings in Rotterdam are the Adriaan Volkerhuis in Oostmaaslaan, the South Collective Building in Zuidplein, and the Technikon school complex. Outside of Rotterdam, Maaskant designs, among other things, the Scheveningen pier (1961), the KNVB sports hall in Zeist (1965) and the provincial house in Den Bosch (1971).
Maaskant was born on August 17, 1907 in Rotterdam. In his own city, he studies architecture at the Academy of Fine Arts and Technical Sciences. After his studies, he began his career as an architect with Jos de Jonge (1887-1965), whose office he soon had to leave due to the economic crisis. In 1935, Maaskant began working for Willem van Tijen (1894-1974), with whom he partnered in 1937, building mainly industrial and commercial buildings. The most famous is the Groothandelsgebouw in Weena in Rotterdam.
With Van Tijen, Maaskant comes into contact with Nieuwe Bouwen. Van Tijen belongs to the Rotterdam group of architects de Opbouw, a Dutch CIAM movement. He is part of the mainstream ideological movement of the Nieuwe Bouwen movement, which puts social housing first. Maaskant's preference for business architecture over more social housing is one of the reasons that led to the split with Van Tijen after eighteen years of collaboration.
After his departure from Van Tijen in 1955, Maaskant ran an architectural office for just five years. In 1960 he teamed up with his most important collaborators PW van Dommelen, J. Kroos and Ir. H. Senf. This office, Maaskant Van Dommelen Kroos and Senf Architecten, became one of the largest in the Netherlands.
Maaskant built the most important buildings for him in Rotterdam. With the Groothandelsgebouw, the Lijnbaanflats, the Hilton hotel and the Euromast, he contributed greatly to the image of the new Rotterdam. Other well-known buildings in Rotterdam are the Adriaan Volkerhuis in Oostmaaslaan, the South Collective Building in Zuidplein, and the Technikon school complex. Outside of Rotterdam, Maaskant designs, among other things, the Scheveningen pier (1961), the KNVB sports hall in Zeist (1965) and the provincial house in Den Bosch (1971).
Maaskant was born on August 17, 1907 in Rotterdam. In his own city, he studies architecture at the Academy of Fine Arts and Technical Sciences. After his studies, he began his career as an architect with Jos de Jonge (1887-1965), whose office he soon had to leave due to the economic crisis. In 1935, Maaskant began working for Willem van Tijen (1894-1974), with whom he partnered in 1937, building mainly industrial and commercial buildings. The most famous is the Groothandelsgebouw in Weena in Rotterdam.
With Van Tijen, Maaskant comes into contact with Nieuwe Bouwen. Van Tijen belongs to the Rotterdam group of architects de Opbouw, a Dutch CIAM movement. He is part of the mainstream ideological movement of the Nieuwe Bouwen movement, which puts social housing first. Maaskant's preference for business architecture over more social housing is one of the reasons that led to the split with Van Tijen after eighteen years of collaboration.
After his departure from Van Tijen in 1955, Maaskant ran an architectural office for just five years. In 1960 he teamed up with his most important collaborators PW van Dommelen, J. Kroos and Ir. H. Senf. This office, Maaskant Van Dommelen Kroos and Senf Architecten, became one of the largest in the Netherlands.
Willem Van Tijen
Willem van Tijen was born on February 1, 1894 in Wormerveer. From 1907 to 1914, he attended HBS and the Hilversum gymnasium. After graduating from high school, he moved to Amsterdam, where he would study law. After some travels in Russia, Sumatra, and the United States, he and his wife went to Bandoeng in 1920, where he studied irrigation engineering at the Special Technical School until 1924.
Due to illness, Van Tijen and his wife returned to the Netherlands in 1926. Together with A. Plate he founded NV. Volkswoningbouw Rotterdam, a public housing company for which he designed several projects together with L.C. van der Vlugt. In 1929, Van Tijen partnered with Rotterdam structural engineer J.H. van den Broek and subsequently opened his own office.
From 1937 to 1954, Van Tijen was associated with HA Maaskant. Several "well-known" architects worked in the office, such as L.A. Hoogstraaten (until 1946), E.F. Groosman (until 1948), W. Buma (around 1950) and W. Wissing (1947-1955). In 1955, Van Tijen, together with M. Boom and J. Posno, formed the Van Tijen, Boom & Posno working group, which grew to become the Van Tijen, Boom, Posno & Van Randen architecture studio at the end of the 1960s.
Over the years, in addition to the people mentioned above, Van Tijen frequently collaborated with other architects, such as J.A. Brinkman, S.J. van Embden, C.J.F. Karsten, F. Klein, D. Melchior, B. Merkelbach, G.T. Rietveld, R. Romke de Vries, M.A. Stam, C.I.A. Stam-Beese and M.B. van Wensveen.
Due to illness, Van Tijen and his wife returned to the Netherlands in 1926. Together with A. Plate he founded NV. Volkswoningbouw Rotterdam, a public housing company for which he designed several projects together with L.C. van der Vlugt. In 1929, Van Tijen partnered with Rotterdam structural engineer J.H. van den Broek and subsequently opened his own office.
From 1937 to 1954, Van Tijen was associated with HA Maaskant. Several "well-known" architects worked in the office, such as L.A. Hoogstraaten (until 1946), E.F. Groosman (until 1948), W. Buma (around 1950) and W. Wissing (1947-1955). In 1955, Van Tijen, together with M. Boom and J. Posno, formed the Van Tijen, Boom & Posno working group, which grew to become the Van Tijen, Boom, Posno & Van Randen architecture studio at the end of the 1960s.
Over the years, in addition to the people mentioned above, Van Tijen frequently collaborated with other architects, such as J.A. Brinkman, S.J. van Embden, C.J.F. Karsten, F. Klein, D. Melchior, B. Merkelbach, G.T. Rietveld, R. Romke de Vries, M.A. Stam, C.I.A. Stam-Beese and M.B. van Wensveen.
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