De Stijl

Neo-Plasticism & Elementarism

#8
Hendrik Petrus Berlage
1856 – 1934

1915- Planul de extindere în sud a Amsterdamului / Amsterdam extension plan

Clădiri realizate de Școala din Amsterdam (expresionism) / Buildings by representatives of
the Amsterdam School (expressionist): Michel de Klerk, Johan van der Mey, Piet Kramer ...
Hendrik Petrus Berlage
1856 – 1934

Arta constructorului constă în aceasta: crearea spațiului, nu schițarea de fațade. O

anvelopă spațială se realizează cu ajutorul pereților, prin care un spațiu sau o serie de
spații devin manifeste, în funcție de complexitatea zidurilor.
Și astfel, în arhitectură, decorația și ornamentul sunt neimportante, în timp ce crearea
spațiului și relația dintre mase sunt cu adevărat esențiale.

Principalul lucru este să lucrezi sistematic, iar aceasta poate conduce către rezultate
remarcabile pentru teoria modernă a proporțiilor; eu însumi am lucrat ani de zile în
acest fel ... Timpul modifică modele... dar ceea ce este fondat pe geometrie și știință
reală va rămâne nealterat.

Arhitectura va fi arta creativă a secolului XX, ... pictura și sculptura vor avansa
împreună ca servitori ai ei, și astfel vor putea ajunge la cea mai înaltă dezvoltare.

Atunci care este problema? A avea (din nou) un stil.

Care este ideea spirituală care va sta la baza noii concepții?... Individul sau
comunitatea? Odată negată moralitatea tradițională, va fi oare doar individul servit,
sau, dat fiind principiul egalității, vor fi toți?
Hendrik Petrus Berlage
1856 – 1934

The base for the healthy development of architecture and of art in general is the
subduing of any indication of form in the sense of a preconceived type. Instead of using
earlier types of style as a pattern, thus imitating former styles, it is necessary to set the
problem of architecture wholly anew.
New architecture is elementary, that is to say, it develops from the elements of building,
in the widest sense. These elements, i.e. function, mass, plane, line, space, light, colour,
material, etc., are at the same time elements of plastic expression.
New architecture is economic, that is, it organizes its elementary means as efficiently
and economically as possible, without any waste of means or material. New
architecture is functional, that is to say it develops from the precise definition of
practical requirements, fixed on a clear ground plan.
New architecture is shapeless and yet distinctive, that is to say it ignores any
preconceived aesthetical scheme, any form, in the sense of pastry-cooks, in which it
casts its functional space, i.e. the sum of practical living conditions …
Underlying ideas stemming from the 19th century

— from E.E. Viollet-le-Duc — the idea that one architect should just choose among a
variety of pre-existing styles available, ready-to-be-used as decorum. Instead, one
should endeavour to elaborate/invent/construct the style of the epoch

— from Karl Friedrich Schinkel — incl. the name De Stijl

Neoplasticism și apoi Elementarism 1917-1931
primul, după Manifestul Neo-Plasticist al lui Piet Mondrian despre “noua plastică”
al doilea, începând cu 1926, intuitiv de la descompunerea în elemente

– în legătură cu revista De Stijl

– promovează abstractizare absolută, depersonalizare (vs. individualism), încercarea de

a accede la un adevăr universal, supraindividual în relație cu teoriile matematice ale lui
M. H. J. Schoenmaekers
– reducerea la cele mai pure mijloace: culori primare + punctul, linia și suprafața

– două faze (Banham/Frampton) — cea olandeză și cea internațională:

1. o asociere de indivizi coagulați de Theo van Doesburg în jurul revistei
2. deschiderea către influențele externe și colaborări internaționale, în special cu
futurismul și constructivismul prin intermediul lui El Lissitzky

– estetică bazată pe estetica mașinii și pe (un altfel de) elementarism (Guadet)

De Stijl (1917-1931)
Neo-Plasticism after Piet Mondrian’s Neo–Plasticism (1918)
Elementarism after Theo van Doesburg’s Elementarism (Fragment of a Manifesto) (1927)

– linked with the De Stijl magazine

– promoted total abstraction in relation with the neoplatonic mathematics of M. H. J.

Schoenmaekers
– reduction to primary colours and to the simplest ‘forms’ (point, line, surface)

– two phases (Banham) the Dutch and the international one: the former characterized by
a loose association of individuals that would later gravitate away from the magazine;
the latter opening to influences from the outside – especially from Italian futurism and
Russian constructivism through El Lissitzky

– esthetics based from the onset on

the machine aesthetic
elementarism (a different Guadet)
Robert van’t Hoff
1887 – 1979
Villa Verloop, Huis ter Heide, Utrecht, 1915-16
Robert van’t Hoff
1887 – 1979
Villa Henny, Huis ter Heide, Utrecht, 1915-19
revista De Stijl
Vol.1, no.1, Delft, October 1917
Editată de / Edited by Theo van Doesburg
Copertă originală de / Original cover design by Vilmos Huszár
De Stijl 1917-1931
Theo van Doesburg (1883–1931), pictor, designer și scriitor;
Cornelis van Eesteren (1897–1981), arhitect
Robert van 't Hoff (1887–1979), arhitect
Vilmos Huszár (1884–1960), pictor
Frederick John Kiesler (1890-1965), arhitect, scenograf, artist, sculptor
Bart van der Leck (1876–1958), pictor
Piet Mondrian (1872–1944), pictor
J. J. P. Oud (1890–1963), arhitect
Gerrit Rietveld (1888–1964), arhitect și designer
Kurt Schwitters (1887–1948), pictor, sculptor
Georges Vantongerloo (1886–1965), sculptor
De Stijl 1917-1931
Theo van Doesburg (1883–1931), painter, designer, and writer;
Cornelis van Eesteren (1897–1981), architect
Robert van 't Hoff (1887–1979), architect
Vilmos Huszár (1884–1960), painter
Frederick John Kiesler (1890-1965), architect, theater designer, artist, sculptor
Bart van der Leck (1876–1958), painter
Piet Mondrian (1872–1944), painter
J. J. P. Oud (1890–1963), architect
Gerrit Rietveld (1888–1964), architect and designer
Kurt Schwitters (1887–1948), painter, sculptor
Georges Vantongerloo (1886–1965), sculptor
Piet Mondrian 1909 | 1909 | 1911 | 1912
72 – 1944
1913
Piet Mondrian
1872 – 1944
Studio, 26 rue du Départ, Paris
Piet Mondrian
1872 – 1944
Piet Mondrian
1872 – 1944
Theo van Doesburg
1883 – 1931

1920 Dada
1921 Weimar / Bauhaus
1922 Weimar, Berlin — El Lissitzky
1923 Paris
1924 Nancy
1925 Berlin – Unter den Linden
Paris – Exposition des Arts Décoratifs
1926 Strassbourg

1917–1927
Theo van Doesburg
1883 – 1931
Theo van Doesburg
1883 – 1931

Composition VIII (The Cow), 1918

Theo van Doesburg
1883 – 1931

Rhythm of a Russian Dance, 1918

Theo van Doesburg
1883 – 1931

Composition XIII, 1918

Les Architectes du Groupe De Stijl la Galerie de l’effort moderne, 1923
Theo van Doesburg &
Cornelis van Eesteren
1883 – 1931 | 1897 – 1981

House for an artist, 1922

Theo van Doesburg & Cornelis van Eesteren
1883 – 1931 | 1897 – 1981

House for an artist, 1922

Theo van Doesburg (right) and C. van Eesteren (left)
working on their architectural models
in their studio in Paris,
September 1923
Către o construcție colectivă: (Manifestul V al Grupului "De Stijl")
Theo van Doesburg, Cornelis van Eesteren, Gerrit Rietveld
1923

Cuvântul „artă” nu ne mai spune

nimic acum. În locul lui cerem cu
autoritate construirea mediului
nostru ambiant în concordanță cu
legi creatoare bazate pe un
principiu imuabil. Aceste legi,
asemenea celor din economie,
matematică, tehnică, igienă etc.,
conduc la o nouă unitate plastică.
din Nicolae Lascu, ed., Funcțiune și Formă,
1989
Către o construcție colectivă: (Manifestul V al Grupului "De Stijl")
Theo van Doesburg, Cornelis van Eesteren, Gerrit Rietveld
1923

The idea that art is an illusion

divorced from real life must be
abandoned. The word ‘Art’ means
nothing to us. We demand that it
be replaced by the construction of
our environment according to
creative laws derived from well-
defined principles. These laws,
which are akin to those of
economics, mathematics,
technology, hygiene, and so forth,
ecourage a new plastic unity.
van Doesburg in JL Cohen, The Future of
Architecture
Theo van Doesburg & Cornelis van Eesteren
1883 – 1931 | 1897 – 1981

Color design for the floor, walls and ceiling of an academic building in Amsterdam, 1923
Theo van Doesburg & Cornelis van Eesteren
1883 – 1931 | 1897 – 1981

Color design for the floor, walls and ceiling of an academic building in Amsterdam, 1923
Theo van Doesburg & Cornelis van Eesteren
1883 – 1931 | 1897 – 1981

Shopping arcade with bar-restaurant, Laan van Meerdervoort, The Hague, 1924
Theo van Doesburg &
Cornelis van Eesteren
1883 – 1931 | 1897 – 1981

Project for Unter den Linden Competition,

1925
Cornelis van Eesteren
1897 – 1981

Amsterdam Extension Plan

J. J. P. Oud
1890 – 1963

Project for a factory, Pomerand (1919)

J. J. P. Oud
1890 – 1963

Private House Allegonda (1917)

Holiday Residence De Vonk (1918)
Housing Spangen Block I & V (1920)
Housing Spangen Block VIII & IX (1920)
Housing Oud-Mathenesse (1923)
Housing Tusschendijken (1923)
Café De Unie (Reconstruction) (1925)
Housing Scheepvaartstraat (1927)
New Apostolic Church Rotterdam (1929)
Housing Kiefhoek (1930)
J. J. P. Oud
1890 – 1963

Housing Spangen Block VIII & IX, 1920

J. J. P. Oud
1890 – 1963

Housing Spangen Block VIII & IX, 1920

J. J. P. Oud
1890 – 1963

Housing Spangen Block VIII & IX, 1920

J. J. P. Oud
1890 – 1963

The White Village, Oud-Mathenesse, (1923)

J. J. P. Oud
1890 – 1963

The White Village,

Oud-Mathenesse, (1923)
J. J. P. Oud
1890 – 1963

The shed of the site manager, Oud-Mathenesse, (1923)

J. J. P. Oud
1890 – 1963

The shed of the site manager, Oud-Mathenesse, (1923)

J. J. P. Oud
1890 – 1963

The shed of the site manager, Oud-Mathenesse, (1923)

J. J. P. Oud
1890 – 1963

Café de Unie, 1925

J. J. P. Oud
1890 – 1963
J. J. P. Oud
1890 – 1963
J. J. P. Oud
1890 – 1963

Hoek van Holland, 1924-26

J. J. P. Oud
1890 – 1963

Hoek van Holland, 1924-26

J. J. P. Oud
1890 – 1963

Hoek van Holland, 1924-26

J. J. P. Oud
1890 – 1963

Housing Kiefhoek, 1930

J. J. P. Oud
1890 – 1963

Housing Kiefhoek, 1930

J. J. P. Oud
1890 – 1963

Housing Kiefhoek, 1930

J. J. P. Oud
1890 – 1963

Housing Kiefhoek, 1930

J. J. P. Oud
1890 – 1963

Housing Kiefhoek, 1930

Theo van Doesburg
1883 – 1931

Contra-Composition with Dissonances XVI, 1925

Theo van Doesburg
“Towards a Plastic Architecture” (1924)
Translated from the Dutch by Hans L.C. Jaffé.
In De Stijl. (H.N. Abrams. New York:1971).
•••
1. Form. The basis for a sound development of architecture (and of art in general) is to
overcome every idea of form, in the sense of preconceived type.
Instead of taking as a model earlier types of style and, in so doing, imitating earlier
styles, it is necessary to pose the problem of architecture completely afresh.
2. The new architecture is elementary, that is, it is developed from the elements of
building, in the widest sense. These elements, such as function, mass, plane, time,
space, light, color, material, etc., are at the same time elements of plasticism.
3. The new architecture is economical, i.e., it organizes its elementary means as
efficiently and economically as possible, without wasting means or material.
4. The new architecture is functional, i.e., it is developed from the accurate assessment
of practical requirements that it lays down in a clear ground plan.
5. The new architecture is formless and yet determinate, i.e., it does not recognize any
preconceived formal frame-work; any mold in which are cast the functional spaces
arising from practical dwelling requirements.
In contrast with all previous styles, the new architectural method does not recognize any
self-contained type, any basic form.
Theo van Doesburg
“Towards a Plastic Architecture” (1924)

6. The new architecture has freed the concept of monumentality from notions of large
and small (since the word ‘monumental’ has been misused it has been replaced by the
word ‘plastic’). The new architecture has demonstrated that everything stems from
relationship, the relationship of opposites.
7. The new architecture does not recognize a single passive moment. It has conquered
the opening (in the wall). The window possesses an active significance as openness in
opposition to the closed character of the wall plane. Nowhere does there appear simply
a hole or a void, everything is strictly determined by its contrast. (Compare the various
counter-constructions in which the elements comprising architecture — plane, line and
mass — have been placed loosely in a three-dimensional relationship.)
8. The plan. The new architecture has disrupted the wall and, in so doing, destroyed the
division between inside and outside.
Walls are no longer load-bearing; they have been reduced to points of support. As a
result, a new open plan has been created, differing completely from the Classical plan in
that internal and external space are interpenetrating.
9. The new architecture is open. The whole consists of a single space, which is
subdivided according to functional requirements. This subdivision is effected by means
of separating planes (interior) or sheltering planes (exterior).
Theo van Doesburg
“Towards a Plastic Architecture” (1924)

10. Space and time. The new architecture takes account not only of space, but also of
time as an accent of architecture. The unity of time and space gives the appearance of
architecture a new and completely plastic aspect …
11. The new architecture is anti-cubic, i.e., it does not strive to contain the different
functional space cells in a single closed cube, but it throws the functional space … out
from the center of the cube, so that height, width and depth plus time become a
completely new plastic expression in open spaces.
In this way architecture … acquires a more or less floating aspect which, so to speak,
runs counter to the natural force of gravity.
12. Symmetry and repetition. The new architecture has destroyed both monotonous
repetition and the rigid similarity of two halves, the mirror image, symmetry. It does
not recognize repetition in time, the street wall or standardization. A group of buildings
is as much a whole as is a detached house. The same laws apply to the building group
and to the town as to the detached house. Against symmetry the new architecture sets
the balanced relationship of unequal parts, i.e., of parts which, because of their different
functional character, differ in position, dimension, proportion and location.
The equal importance of these parts derives from the equilibrium of inequality and not
from equality. The new architecture has also made ‘front’ and ‘back,’ ‘right’ and
possibly also ‘above’ and ‘below’ equal in value.
Theo van Doesburg
“Towards a Plastic Architecture” (1924)

13. In contrast to the frontality sanctified by a rigid static concept of life, the new
architecture offers a plastic wealth of multi-faceted temporal and spatial effects.
14. Color. The new architecture has destroyed painting as a separate, imaginary
expression of harmony, whether secondary through representation or primary through
color planes.
...
15. The new architecture is anti-decorative. Color (and the color-shy must try to
realize this!) is not decorative or ornamental, but an organic element of architectural
expression.
16. Architecture as a synthesis of the new plasticism. In the new architecture, building
is understood as a part, the sum of all the arts, in their most elementary manifestation, as
their essence. It offers the possibility of thinking in four dimensions, i.e., the plastic
architect, under which heading I also include the painter, has to construct in the new
field, time-space.
Since the new architecture does not permit any imagination (in the form of free painting
or sculpture), the intention is to create from the outset a harmonic whole with all
essential means, so that each architectural element plays a part in creating, on a
practical and logical basis, a maximum of plastic expression without, at the same time,
doing damage to the practical requirements.
Paris 1924 [From De Stijl, Vol. VI, No. 6/7, pp. 78-83]
Theo van Doesburg (with Jean Arp and Sophie Tauber-Arp)
1883 – 1931

Café L’Aubette, Strassbourg, 1926-1928

Theo van Doesburg
1883 – 1931
Gerrit Rietveld
1888 – 1964

1917 Chair Red and Blue

Gerrit Rietveld
1888 – 1964

1919 Dining Chair

Gerrit Rietveld
1888 – 1964

1919 Sideboard / Servantă

Gerrit Rietveld
1888 – 1964

1923 The Berlin Chair

Gerrit Rietveld
1888 – 1964

1922-4 Beach cart

Gerrit Rietveld
1888 – 1964
Gerrit Rietveld
1888 – 1964

Schröder House, 1924

Gerrit Rietveld
1888 – 1964
Gerrit Rietveld
1888 – 1964
Gerrit Rietveld
1888 – 1964

Schröder House, 1924

Gerrit Rietveld
1888 – 1964

Schröder House, 1924

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zyZZktZgamI
Min 1:40
Frederick John Kiesler
1890 – 1965

City in Space (1925)

Frederick John Kiesler
1890 – 1965
Frederick John Kiesler
1890 – 1965
Frederick John Kiesler
1890 – 1965

Manifesto in the 10/11 issue of De Stijl, Vol. 6

https://thecharnelhouse.org/2013/11/19/frederick-kiesler-city-of-space-1925/

And our cities? Walls, walls, walls.

Let us have no more walls, no more shutting up body and soul in barracks, this whole
barrack-culture with or without decoration. What we want is:
Transformation of global space into cities
To release ourselves from the earth, abandonment of the static axis
No walls, no foundations
A system of tension in open space
The provision of new possibilities of living and thereby of requirements that will
transform society.