At the beginning of the 20th century, two progressive groups debated the future direction of Dutch architecture and design. The De Stijl School was spearheaded by Theo van Doesburg, along with Piet Mondrian, and emphasized rectangular blocks and minimal decoration. The Amsterdam School originated with Eduard Cuypers, and was led by the architects Michel de Klerk, Piet Kramer, and Johan van der Mey. It emphasized an architecture that was a synthetic whole, blending harmoniously a variety of materials, handicrafts, and ornament.
Erich Mendelsohn, a German expressionist architect, saw the polarity of these two factions as “the opposition of a cool and analytic objectivity [De Stijl] to an emotional and romantic individualism [Amsterdam School]” (Hoffmann, Frank Lloyd Wright: the Complete 1925 Wendingen Series, vi).
The Amsterdam School’s adherents, such as H.Th. Wijdeveld and H.P. Berlage, viewed architecture as an artistic pursuit and not simply a practical one, tapping into its expressionist capabilities.
- Wendingen vol. 4 no. 12, 1921, The New Rijks Academy Building in Amsterdam.
- Wendingen vol. 3 no. 10, 1920, Erich Mendelsohn, cover designed by H.Th. Wijdeveld.
- Wendingen vol. 2 no. 4, 1919, Architecture.
- Wendingen vol. 8 no. 6/7, 1927, Dutch Architecture.