The domestic 1970s
In the 1970s, many architects had had enough of mass housing built according to modernist principles that were perceived as impersonal and cold. Architects started building on a small scale. Security, social contact and contact with nature became key concepts. Large parts of Zoetermeer were built in this style: Meerzicht-West, Buytenwegh, De Leyens and Seghwaert.
Many architects criticized modernist urban planning and architecture as early as the 1950s. In the Netherlands, the internationally famous architect Aldo van Eyck was one such person. But it wasn't until the early 1970s that things changed radically. People had to return to nature, in a home and living environment where not everything looks the same, but which is recognizable and varied.
'Brown and slanted'
Streets and buildings had to exude homeliness. Architects paid close attention to the daily use of a building. For example, houses were given staircases to the front door with space underneath for firewood, spacious carports with a terrace on top, sitting pits, bay windows to the kitchen - to promote meetings et cetera. The houses were given hoods and pitched roofs, often in unusual shapes and in combination with terraces and extensions.
The facades were of 'warm' brown brick, with wooden parts in dark earth colors. 'Brown and slanted,' is how this movement can be summarized, which is also widely known as 'New Truttiness.'
The 1970s were also the glory days of participation and resident participation in (urban) architectural design. In the 1970s, urban renewal took off in the old inner-city neighborhoods, where small-scale development flourished in part thanks to large subsidies.
Structuralism
The so-called structuralism in architecture is closely related to small-scale building. The structuralists believed that a building should enable human activities and promote social interaction. Buildings built according to structuralist principles often consist of several smaller units that together form a structure, such as a honeycomb.
Examples
