The Ship. Museum of the Amsterdam School of Architecture

The brick Expressionist style, used in Amsterdam and elsewhere in the Netherlands in the early twentieth century, for a time influenced architects all over Europe. Het Schip, an apartment block, designed by Michael de Clerk (1884-1923) in 1919 and completed the following year, is one of the outstanding buildings in the style. From the beginning of the twentieth century government initiatives encouraged the building of high quality homes for Amsterdam’s working class, particularly in the Spaarndammerplantsoen area near city centre. Groups of many kinds, housing associations, workers’ collectives, socialist groups and religious organisations were involved in providing houses. Het Schip was one of three blocks commissioned by a group called Eigen Haard (Our own hearth). The outline of the building resembles a ship, and is triangular in plan. Buildings in the style of the Amsterdam School characteristically had brick towers and spire, ornamented windows and doors and wrought iron fittings painted black or dark green. Het Schip has a squat brick spire. It includes 102 homes, and originally included a meeting hall and a post office which in 2001 became the museum of the Amsterdam Expressionist School. Apart from displaying drawings and photographs the museum arranges exhibitions by artists, and tours by boat and bus of other Expressionist buildings in the city.

The Ship. Museum of the Amsterdam School of Architecture
Museum Het Schip
Oostzaanstraat 45
1013 WG Amsterdam
Netherlands
+31 (0) 20 - 6868595
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