Rietveld’ s Universe—and Beyond
Robbert van Strien
“How should I feel? I feel defeated—a lost man, who believed he still had
a very long journey ahead of him, but has suddenly found himself here at
what seems to be the end of the line.”1
With these words, designer and architect Gerrit Thomas Rietveld
(1888–1964) accepted his Honorary Doctorate from Delft University
of Technology for his impressive oeuvre in 1964. From his acceptance
speech, we can deduce some information regarding Rietveld’s own
thoughts on his works, ambitions, and success. As architectural
historian Rob Dettingmeijer argues, toward the end of his life
Rietveld became more and more aware that he was going to be
forever linked to two works he made at the beginning of his career—
the Red-Blue Chair, 1918, and the Rietveld-Schröder House, 1924—
despite the many great projects he realized in the fol owing decades.2
We can conclude that Rietveld felt there was still much to be done
as an architect; indeed, his acceptance speech at Delft University
1 “Hoe moet ik me voelen? Ik voel me
verslagen een verloren man, die meent
was titled “The real Nieuwe Bouwen has yet to begin.”3 We can also
nog heel ver te moeten gaan, schijnt hier
sense his reluctance to retire and, perhaps, a personal annoyance
plotseling op een soort eindstation te
with the unavoidable end of his life. Five months later, a day after
staan.” Fragment of a short acceptance
his 76th birthday, Rietveld passed away after suffering a heart attack.
speech delivered by Gerrit Rietveld on
His obituary in the Haagse Post states: “On Thursday the 25th of
January 11, 1964. A transcript of the
speech, in Dutch, can be found in the
June, [...], he was still working away ambitiously at his architecture
digital archive of the Foundation Rietveld
bureau [...] in Utrecht.”4
Schröder Archive, kept by the Centraal
In 2010, 46 years after Rietveld perplexedly observed he was
Museum: http://collectie.rietveldjaar.nl
nearing the end of the line, his heritage was celebrated extensively
(accessed June 14,2011).
in Hol and. The year was of icial y baptized a “Rietveld Year,” and
2 Dettingmeijer 2010, p.35. Rietveld and
exhibitions, symposia, and festivities dealing with the carpenter-
the Writing of Architecture History, in
Rietveld’s Universe, 2010.
turned-architect were organized in a.o. Utrecht, Amsterdam, and
3 “Het echte Nieuwe Bouwen moet nog
Eindhoven. At the heart of all these activities was the exhibition,
beginnen.” The “Nieuwe Bouwen” is a
“Rietveld’s Universe,” in the Centraal Museum in Utrecht.5 In this
Dutch functionalist movement, roughly
essay, I not only review “Rietveld’s Universe” and give an outline
translated as “new constructing.”
of the side-activities related to the exhibition, but also briefly show
4 An excerpt of the obituary is included in
Van Zijl 2010 (a), 186.
the role Rietveld’s oeuvre now plays in contemporary Dutch design.
5 Rietveld’s Universum, from October 20,
2010 until January 30, 2011, Centraal
Rietveld’s Universe...
Museum Utrecht, in collaboration with
Rietveld’s Universe was a direct follow-up to an earlier exhibition in
the Dutch Institute for Architecture (NAi),
the Centraal Museum in Utrecht in 1992, Gerrit Rietveld 1888–1964.6
the Technical University of Delft, and the
The goal of the 1992 exhibition was to give a definitive overview
University of Utrecht.
6 Gerrit Rietveld 1888–1964, from
of the complete works of Rietveld; meanwhile, its successor tried
November 28, 1992 until February 21,
to contextualize this oeuvre. A direct link was also made to a yet
1993, Centraal Museum Utrecht, in
earlier exhibition: The audio-tour of Rietveld’s Universe is a voice-
collaboration with the Nederlandse
© 2011 Massachusetts Institute of Technology
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Design Issues: Volume 27, Number 3 Summer 2011
recording of Gerrit Rietveld, guiding his public through the 1958
exhibition, “Rietveld: Contribution to the renewal of architecture,”
a retrospective initiated by Rietveld himself.7
The most recent exhibition was consistently planned to bring
the public as close to Rietveld as possible. In addition to his virtual
presence as an audio-tour, the curators tried to bring Rietveld to
life in a number of ways. For one, the works on display were not
the final products and maquettes one might expect; rather, the
7 Rietveld. Bijdrage tot vernieuwing der
bouwkunst, 1958–9, Stedelijk Museum,
Centraal Museum showed early sketches, simple models, try-outs,
Amsterdam. This retrospective was held
and experiments, focusing on the process of his “creative genius.”8
in honor of Rietveld’s seventieth birthday.
Furthermore, the works of other architects and artists that served
Dettingmeijer 2010, 21.
to place Rietveld in a framework of his contemporary peers were
8 To quote main curator Ida van Zijl, during
selected not for their historical relevance, but for their actual
the press preview of Rietveld’s Universe.
9 Man on Horseback (1918) by Van der
presence in Rietveld’s life. The only two paintings shown in Utrecht,
Leck, Colour-study for Maison Particulière
for instance, both hung on the wall in Rietveld’s house at a certain
(1923) by Van Doesburg.
time: works by Bart van der Leck and Theo van Doesburg (and not,
10 Van Zijl during the press preview of
one should note, the unavoidable Mondriaan).9 To complete the
Rietveld’s Universe.
picture, the exhibition was subtly but thoroughly punctuated with
11 Van Zijl 2010 (a), 160. The exhibitions
life-sized photos, movies, and musical fragments from various time
were shown in the Stedelijk Museum
in Amsterdam, the Venice Biennial, and
periods in Rietveld’s life (e.g., the reconstruction of Dutch cities after
the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) in
World War II).
New York. After New York, the exhibition
Being this close to the old master—“almost joining him at
travelled to Richmond, VA. After this
the dinner table”10—got most intriguing in the final, third room of
successful exhibition, initiated by the
the exhibition. Here, the curators showed how Rietveld became a
MOMA, a number of different exhibits on
De Stijl were shown in the 1950s among
somewhat tragic hostage to his own works made in the early years
other countries, including Uruguay and
of his career, under the auspices of De Stijl. This early modern
Italy.
movement in Holland consisted of a rather loosely connected band of
12 On the audio-tour of the exhibition,
abstract painters, sculptors, designers, and architects affiliated with
which gives an intimate and rather
the periodical De Stijl, which was headed by the aforementioned Van
charming encounter with Rietveld
Doesburg. The movement had been more or less fading away after
(there’s an unexpected comical quality
in his statements), the then 71-year-old
its first appearance on the scene in the 1920s, but it became very
Rietveld explains how he became a
popular after World War II, due mainly to an exhibition on De Stijl
member of De Stijl more or less by
in Amsterdam (1951), Venice (1952), and New York (1951–2).11 As a
accident, a year-and-a-half after Van
result of this increasing popularity, Rietveld began to be regarded
Doesburg founded the group.
solely as a De Stijl architect, even though he himself had considered
13 Or so the rumor has it...
14 Van Zijl 2010 (a), 160.
that chapter of his career to be closed for decades.12 This identity led
15 Van Zijl 2010 (b), 244–9.
to the rather bizarre story that Rietveld was once asked to design
16 And indeed, Rietveld is now popularly
a “real Rietveld” by an dissatisfied client in the 1950s.13 Anecdotes
known in his country of origin for his
aside, “Rietveld’s Universe” clearly shows how Rietveld revisited
early works. In the “Canon of Dutch
his former style in the last parts of his career; Van Zijl points out
history,” a book published recently in
that Rietveld was pragmatically adapting a kind of neo-De Stijl that
an effort to counter the increasing lack
of national-historic knowledge among
appealed to his clients.14 Examples of this stylistic revisit can be found
younger generations, De Stijl is featured
in the Dutch Pavilion on the Biennial grounds in Venice (1953–4), in
as the only artistic entry in the book.
the Sonsbeek Pavilion in Arnhem (1955), and in the Steltman chair
A prominent part of this entry covers
(1963), originally designed for Steltman Jeweller’s in The Hague.15
the work of Rietveld, showing both the
Rietveld presumably felt a little disregarded to be praised solely for
Red-Blue Chair and the Rietveld-Schröder
House. See Graddesz Hellinga 2007,
his De Stijl works, but he seemed to have accepted it nonetheless.16
139–41.
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Design Issues: Volume 27, Number 3 Summer 2011
... and Beyond.
The Rietveld Year was the kick-off of a four-year campaign devised
by the city of Utrecht to boost Rietveld, who was born there and
lived there throughout his life.17 In addition to the exhibition in
the Centraal Museum, other activities were organized to renew
Rietveld’s heritage in the city of Utrecht and the rest of the country.
17 A brief outline of the plan, also available
The iPhone-application, Rietveld’s Architecture, for instance,
in english, www.rietveldjaar.nl (accessed
checks your current location and gives you a list of nearby buildings
April 28, 2011).
made by Rietveld. All entries are accompanied by a short description,
18 As it turns out, I have walked many times
past a house designed by Rietveld on my
some pictures, and the location on the map.18
way to the house of my parents-in-law,
Another project is the song, “The Sitdown,” by the Utrecht
without knowing it. The app is available
band C-mon and Kipsky, and the video clip made to accompany the
in Apple’s app-store.
song.19 The song was supposedly inspired by Rietveld’s furniture,
19 The video can be found on the website,
and in the video clip some of his chairs are prominently shown as
www.rietveldjaar.nl (accessed April 28,
2011) or on YouTube.
attributes in an odd, multi-cultural game of musical chairs. After the
20 See the website of the band, www.c-
opening of “Rietveld’s Universe,” the band toured Holland with a
monandkypski.nl (accessed April 28,
special mini-tour called “C-mon and Kypski plays Musical Chairs”;
2011). C-mon and Kypski are well known
they jokingly announced they were playing “in Style.”20
for the video clip of an earlier song,
At the kick-off of the Rietveld year, “Rietveld-krentenbollen”
“More is Less,” which was directed by
were handed out—a pastry considered to be typically Dutch and
graphic designers Roel Wouters and
Jonathan Puckey.
apparently Rietveld’s favorite. Furthermore, two books on Rietveld
21 See the list of consulted books at the end
were published: one connected to the exhibition in Utrecht and the
of this article.
other a rich biography by Ida van Zijl.21
22 In this ”Werkplaats Rietveld,” visitors
Close to the Centraal Museum, a workshop was equipped to
can make models of the villa Brandt-
allow visitors (primarily children) to build models of a few Rietveld
Corstius, the Birza-chair, and of
course the Red-Blue Chair. Visitors are
designs; special master classes were organized for adults who
encouraged to pose with their creations,
wanted to make a 1:1 copy of a Rietveld piece of furniture.22 First
and all pictures are streamed to a screen
published in 1986 and reprinted in 2001, the popular book, How to
in Rietveld’s Universe and can be found
Construct Rietveld Furniture, has re-entered bookstores in the wake
on the website www.rietveldjaar.nl
of the Rietveld year.23 In the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, a
(accessed April 28, 2011).
specialist symposium was held focusing solely on Rietveld’s few
23 See the consulted books at the end of
this article for details.
aluminum chairs. Plans for a new Rietveld Park in the city of Utrecht
24 The Rietveld Park was proposed in
were presented in 2009, but it is not clear at this point whether this
March 2009 by Pauline Terreehorst
park wil actual y be realized.24 And final y, the entire archive of the
in her study, “De Stad van Rietveld”
Foundation Rietveld Schröder, containing 8,000 objects, has been
(Rietveld’s City), and the proposition
made available online.25
was featured in a few newspapers in
the Netherlands. See, for instance, the
Most of the initiatives mentioned (which make up only a part
archive of De Volkskrant: http://www.
of all the activities connected to the Rietveld year!) are aimed at a
volkskrant.nl/vk/nl/2676/Cultuur/article/
sizeable public and try in some way to correct the image of Rietveld
detail/319905/2009/03/11/Utrecht-
as the author of just the Red-Blue Chair and the Rietveld-Schröder
heeft-Rietveld-maar-nog-geen-geld-om-
house and, where necessary, even to make the public aware of the
de-naam-te-exploiteren.dhtml (accessed
existence of Rietveld. To quote Pauline Terreehorst, former director
April 28, 2011). The article refers to
the successful rebranding of the city of
of the Centraal Museum: “The plan is to make Gerrit Rietveld the
Glasgow through the cultural heritage of
icon of Utrecht. Much still has to be done to do so, because too few
Charles Rennie Mackintosh, and the ten
people know who he was.”26
thousands of new tourists a Rietveld Park
However, there’s something paradoxical about this attempt
could bring to Utrecht.
to change the perception of Rietveld’s oeuvre. Contemporary design
25 At http://collectie.rietveldjaar.nl/english
(accessed April 28, 2011).
from the Netherlands has taken the design world by storm over
Design Issues: Volume 27, Number 3 Summer 2011
105
the past few decades, and in the numerous attempts to ground this
design approach as a specific national style—“Dutchness”—Rietveld
is often propagated as one of the first “Dutch Designers” (if not the
first)—the first to be praised internationally for highly unconven-
tional designs in a clear modern style. We can see this attitude clearly
in the well-known celebration of Dutch design, False Flat: Why Dutch
Design Is So Good, by Aaron Betsky and Adam Eeuwens, written in
the heyday of Dutch design. Rietveld’s early work is mentioned as a
crucial point in the development that led to the international success
of design from the Netherlands.27 Both the Red-Blue Chair and the
Rietveld-Schröder house are featured, but no mention is made of any
other project from Rietveld’s career.
A great example of this selective history can also be found in
the ongoing debate over what designer can be considered Rietveld’s
contemporary successor. In the entry on Rietveld in Designers in The
Netherlands, a reference book published in 2003, two modern-day
designers are proposed: Richard Hutten and Piet Hein Eek.28 The
former is well known for his aesthetic, meaningful minimalism; the
latter for his trademark use of carpentry skills. In a special edition
of Items Live initiated by Items, the Dutch magazine on design, and
organized on the occasion of the Rietveld year, Richard Hutten
was the only designer featured in a panel discussion on Rietveld’s
meaning today.29 And in an interview with an editor of the website
design.nl, a number of curators and policymakers connected to the
Rietveld year were asked whom they considered to be a modern-day
Rietveld; Piet Hein Eek and Joris Laarman were mentioned.30
Interestingly, the works of these designers, and the few others that
are named in relation to Rietveld, share their respective character-
istics with Rietveld’s early works: simple but prominent aesthetics,
an “honest” set of carpenters’ skills, and a love of experimenting
with forms and materials.
Rietveld, the carpenter, who made use of simple crafts to
26 “Ja, dat is het plan, om Gerrit Rietveld
develop unique pieces of furniture, has become a protagonist in the
icoon te maken van Utrecht. En daar
narrative of Dutch design. So has Rietveld, the young architect, who
moet nog heel veel voor gebeuren, want
brilliantly made use of an artistic ideology to build a radically new
te weinig mensen weten wie hij was.”
house. But Rietveld the decent and pragmatic functionalist, who
Terreehorst, in an interview with the
main Dutch news station, NOS, on March
designed a great number of public buildings, villas, and houses,
12, 2009. The interview can be found in
reached the end of the line many years ago. We may doubt whether
the archive of the NOS: http://nos.nl/
the splendid exhibition Rietveld’s Universe will be able to broaden
audio/22197-rietveldpark-in-aanbouw-in-
the common knowledge of Rietveld’s oeuvre, as it aims to do.
utrecht.html (accessed April 28, 2011).
Because this aim is counteracted by a persistent picture of Rietveld
27 Betsky and Eeuwen 2004, 156–64.
that remembers only his early works and neglects his development
28 De Rijk (ed.) 2003, 334–5.
29 Items Live #6, September 1, 2010.
thereafter, the exhibition may again revitalize the interest in just two
30 The interviews can be found on the
works: a beautiful chair and an amazing building.
website, http://www.dutchdesigndouble.
com (accessed April 28, 2011), and were
featured in the promotional magazine
accompanying Dutch Design Double,
another Rietveld-year–related activity.
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Design Issues: Volume 27, Number 3 Summer 2011
References:
Betsky, Aaron and Eeuwens, Adam; Design NL. De kracht van Dutch Design, Houten, Unieboek
2008 (Translation of the English original False Flat. Why Dutch Design is So Good, published
by Phaidon Press Limited in 2004).
Dettingmeijer, Rob; van Thoor, Marie-Thérèse and van Zijl, Ida; Rietvelds Universe, Rotterdam,
NAi Publishers 2010, containing:
Dettingmeijer, Rob; Rietveld and the Writing of Architecture History, 2010
van Zijl, Ida (b); De Stijl and Styles, 2010.
Drijver, Peter and Niemeijer, Johannes; How to construct Rietveld furniture, Bussum, Uitgeverij
Thoth 2001.
Graddesz Hellinga, Gerben; Geschiedenis van Nederland. De canon van ons Vaderlands Verleden,
Zutphen, Walburg Pers 2007.
Küper, Marijke and van Zijl, Ida; Gerrit Th. Rietveld 1888–1964. The Complete Works, Utrecht,
Centraal Museum 1992.
de Rijk, Timo (ed.); Designers in Nederland. Een eeuw productvormgeving, Amsterdam, Ludion
2003.
Simon Thomas, Mienke; Goed in Vorm. Honderd jaar ontwerpen in Nederland, Rotterdam,
Uitgeverij 010 2008 (published in English as Dutch Design: A History by Reaktion Books in
2008).
van Zijl, Ida (a); Gerrit Rietveld, London, Phaidon Press Limited 2010.
Consulted web pages:
http://www.rietveldyear.com
http://collectie.rietveldjaar.nl
Other:
Selection of press-releases on occasion of the Rietveld year, provided by the Centraal Museum,
Utrecht
Rietveld Magazine, program book of the Rietveld year
Dutch Design Double, program book of Dutch Design Double, an event overlapping the Rietveld
year activities
Design Issues: Volume 27, Number 3 Summer 2011
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