As a dedication to the necessary move away from cultural essentialism, this research explores one of its prominent counter-concepts, cultural hybridity, by combining the following research...Show moreAs a dedication to the necessary move away from cultural essentialism, this research explores one of its prominent counter-concepts, cultural hybridity, by combining the following research questions; What is meant by the concept of cultural hybridity? How does this concept apply to Kengo Kuma's (隈研吾) (1954-) life and his architecture? Labeling Kuma’s architecture as a continuation of an essential Japanese timeline through claims about the embeddedness of a ‘Japaneseness’, despite the relatively recent invention hereof after the Meiji revolution, could be legitimizing stereotyping of the past, and is questionable. When applying the concept of cultural hybridity one can acknowledge that the formation of Kuma’s architecture is influenced by numerous intercultural flows. It has been informed by practices and philosophies from in- and outside the Japanese island region, and is underlied by an entanglement of sub- and trans-national—as well as personal—influences.Show less
Master thesis | Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology (MSc)
open access
This research presents an historical-ethnographic case-study of ‘Buurland’: a collaborative housing community in Utrecht. By using various audio-visual and ethnographic methods I explore how...Show moreThis research presents an historical-ethnographic case-study of ‘Buurland’: a collaborative housing community in Utrecht. By using various audio-visual and ethnographic methods I explore how Buurland became the community it is now and how this communal living is lived and experienced by different ‘Buurlanders’. The focus of this research is on processes of re-design and place-making and the factors that allowed this re-design to occur. The temporality of the place, and the attitude and close ties of the initiating group prove to be important in this process. Furthermore, drawing upon discourses on architecture and communal living, I argue that the specific design of the housing blocks fosters social interactions between neighbors. In addition, Buurland’s case-study shows how lack of policy in a residential area leads to creative communal practices organized by neighbors. The yearly ‘Zwemfest’ is a key communal practice, which forms a binding ritual among the members of the community. In 2023 the housing blocks of Buurland will be demolished and make place for social housing appartements and mid-market rental housing. The aim of housing corporation Mitros is to ‘create’ a new community with a similar communal character. The question remains if Mitros will succeed in doing so. The outcomes of this research are presented in an article, ‘Making Buurland’, and in an ethnographic film, ‘Buurland, a Land Ruled by Neighbors’.Show less
In the last two to three decades, throughout the world, urban and architectural spaces have been losing their identities over cities, driven mainly by commercial and economic interests....Show moreIn the last two to three decades, throughout the world, urban and architectural spaces have been losing their identities over cities, driven mainly by commercial and economic interests. Nevertheless, a number of artists have been escaping from their own traditional sphere of activity and exploring questions about space, the main tool of architects. These artists have been creating innovative hybrid works of art-and-architecture that highlight the singularity of places. Furthermore, they have also been focusing on the spectator’s bodily experiences using a phenomenological approach on their artworks. Recognizing these issues, this research opens discussions on how the adoption of phenomenological aspects in the creative process of art-and-architecture can contribute to an embodied experience through the artist Olafur Eliasson’s constructed work Fjordenhus (2018), in Vejle, Denmark, in partnership with the architect Sebastian Behmann. The main argument is that works embedded in a phenomenological bias can serve as a tool for resuscitation and vitality of architectural spaces in a relationship between architecture, space, and body. This study aims to contribute to the recent debates, concerning the tenuous limit of the interdisciplinary fields of visual art and architecture, with the participation of an artist in the conceptual process of an architectural project.Show less
The thesis focuses on the design and construction of the museum under museum director Frans Haks (1938-2006). It examines the reactions of the various participants in the project and on how the...Show moreThe thesis focuses on the design and construction of the museum under museum director Frans Haks (1938-2006). It examines the reactions of the various participants in the project and on how the museum was received before and after its construction among city residents, art critics, the city council, architects and the museum director. This research studies how the museum serves as a contact zone for the various participants, its collection and the building itself. Moreover, after completion how does the permanent collection reflect the exterior of the building? Does the building dominate the artwork collection of the museum?Show less
In deze thesis wordt de ontwikkeling van de Italiaanse plattelandsvilla onder Medici invloed uiteengezet. Dat gebeurt door middel van een studie naar de sociale, politieke en economische context...Show moreIn deze thesis wordt de ontwikkeling van de Italiaanse plattelandsvilla onder Medici invloed uiteengezet. Dat gebeurt door middel van een studie naar de sociale, politieke en economische context waarin de Italiaanse villa op het Florentijnse platteland ontstond en transformeerde. Na de beschrijving van die context wordt de praktijk geanalyseerd met behulp van drie casussen; de villa's van Petraia, Poggio a Caiano en Poggio Imperiale. Hierbij wordt uitvoerig gebruik gemaakt van literatuurstudie, analyse van archiefmateriaal evenals veld- en bouwkundige analyses.Show less
Bachelor thesis | South and Southeast Asian Studies (BA)
closed access
This thesis focusses on the architectural design of a meditation path as a memorial for the Buddha, the cankama. The research examines how the architectural elements and the design of the cankama...Show moreThis thesis focusses on the architectural design of a meditation path as a memorial for the Buddha, the cankama. The research examines how the architectural elements and the design of the cankama fits into its time. This is done by comparing the structure to another important building of the early Buddhist period, the bodhigrha.Show less
This thesis focuses on the period at the end of the nineteenth century when knowledge of the colonized cultures and their histories became an integral part of European imperial policies. In the...Show moreThis thesis focuses on the period at the end of the nineteenth century when knowledge of the colonized cultures and their histories became an integral part of European imperial policies. In the search for tools legitimizing their overseas venture, architecture turned out to be one of the most visual and lasting tools for boosting such efforts. It is precisely by exploring this aspect of empire-building through architecture that my thesis attempts to redress the lacunae of historical research on colonial architecture as a measure for studying colonial history. Conventional historiography has largely neglected this aspect of empire-building, leaving much of it for architects, urbanists and art historians to deal with. Most of the scholarly contributions to colonial architecture have not yet been able to sufficiently expose the underlying imperial designs or the socio-cultural processes behind such building projects. In this thesis, I have made attempts to trace these processes and examine them from a comparative perspective using Foucault’s power/knowledge dimension. By pitching the three former Asian colonies of British-India, Dutch-Indies and French-Indochina next to each other and analysing the hybrid architecture found in their main public buildings, the ways in which the colonial government tried to impress the people through their building styles can be revealed. They resorted to the incorporation of often randomly mixed local architectural elements into buildings which looked European otherwise. This resulted in buildings depicting hybrid architectural styles. Such designs reflected a self-proclaimed European mastery in managing knowledge of the colonized cultures. In trying to claim their legitimacy as new rulers, colonial governments went to great lengths, using the visual qualities of architecture to shield a relatively weak system. The erection of confident and mighty stone facades, however, did little to bury the lingering orientalist prejudices and the inherent unequal status of the colonizers and the colonized. In fact, the knowledge on local histories generated by the colonizers helped create local identities that gave a boost to the upcoming nationalistic movements. But there were interesting differences among the colonies though, that this comparative exercise laid bare. The nuances manifested in the different colonies in terms of the willingness to spend financial resources, the often conflicting objectives between colonial institutions, the effects of shifting colonial policies and the paradoxical underlying principles that defined those policies, and other contextual factors, led to differences in imperial policies and their consequent architectural plans. By probing into these differences as well as by highlighting the similarities cutting across all the three colonies, my thesis contributes to understanding the varying shades of colonialism through the seemingly silent yet starkly telling structures.Show less
This thesis contains the results of my research on the topic of the Austrian town of Hallstatt and its Chinese replica Hallstatt see. My research will introduce China’s predilection for replicating...Show moreThis thesis contains the results of my research on the topic of the Austrian town of Hallstatt and its Chinese replica Hallstatt see. My research will introduce China’s predilection for replicating some of the biggest architectural achievements of the West by examining the case of Hallstatt. The main goal of this research will be to find out to what extent the Chinese copy town has influenced Hallstatt to date, regarding economy, tourism, atmosphere and quality of life. In that regard I especially focus on how the residents of the original Hallstatt have reacted to the fact that their town has been copied in China without consultation or permission. Furthermore, this thesis will discuss the history of copying in China, the emerging ‘duplitecture’ (copied architecture) trend in China and the Chinese meanings associated with the copy - with the aim of providing a complete overview of the copy phenomenon. Methodically, I will gather information by conducting empirical research in the form of an online questionnaire, which will be submitted to the residents of the Hallstatt area. Apart from that a lot of attention will be devoted to theory and the academic debate concerning the topic.Show less
This thesis investigates the reasons for the reappearance of late modernist utopian architectural projects in recent artist films. Three films by three different artists (Martha Rosler, Dorit...Show moreThis thesis investigates the reasons for the reappearance of late modernist utopian architectural projects in recent artist films. Three films by three different artists (Martha Rosler, Dorit Margreiter and Patrick Keiller) have been selected for their critical use of post-war architecture in film or video and the way they look specifically at suggestions of revolutionary social changes to the concept of the house. In each chapter one film or video is examined in relation to the architectural project(s) it discusses, specifically with regards to the intentions of the architect. Rosler, Margreiter and Keiller show three ways of reflecting upon the way we think about late modernist housing, a type of housing that was extremely ambitious in attempting to change the way we think about shelter and social communities, and is, at least stylistically, still of great influence to the architectural projects that are built today. All three artists have a distinct political awareness that appears in the way they discuss architecture. Consisting of structures that consolidate ideology, architecture is fascinating for the profound influence it has on our everyday life. I argue that the return of modernist utopias in the collective cultural imagination shows a need for a cautiously hopeful attitude towards a future that moves beyond the so-called end of history. These three artists look towards futures that were suggested in the recent past, futures that have been long since dismissed, and try to find elements that may be salvaged from their way of looking towards structural social change that might be of use for us today in combating the effects of neo-liberal influence on everyday life. Because of its contingent, disembodied and fragmented nature, film proves to be the ideal medium for investigation and can be seen as creating its own version of radically subjective utopia in each case study.Show less
Research master thesis | Archaeology (research) (MA/MSc)
open access
The research presented in this thesis focusses on the architectural remains at Koroneia, recorded during the survey of the site. The research has two main aims: firstly to categorise the finds in a...Show moreThe research presented in this thesis focusses on the architectural remains at Koroneia, recorded during the survey of the site. The research has two main aims: firstly to categorise the finds in a workable manner in order to create a base file from which the analyses of the material are made. The second aim is to analyse the architecture to reconstruct the ancient city in the various periods of time in which it existed. In other words, the architecture encountered at Koroneia is used as an archaeological proxy to investigate an ancient city, but also the methodology of using this type of material to do this type of research is studied. The first aim is achieved by creating an interactive digital map of the site in which all the data are combined and as such a research tool is created. The second aim is achieved by creating a broad frame in which the material is studied. An extensive background study on architecture through time as well as a broad historical overview of Greece and the region in which Koroneia is situated form two sides of the frame that is used. The intensive manner of survey that was applied to the site in regard to architecture is unique and therefore this thesis is also used to evaluate this methodology. The results of the study definitely prove that this type of study provides reliable information with which the development of a city can be researched. This research shows that Koroneia went through various phases of growth and contraction, often contemporary with nearby cities and/or larger regional developments. It will form a vital comparison with the analysis of the spread of ceramics across the site in each phase of its existence, ongoing work. Although the results show that this study was successful, further research into the use of architecture as an archaeological proxy is possible and advisable. It is clear that more can be discerned if a larger scale is applied to the material, as most of the architectural styles and changes are not formed on a city-level, but rather on a regional, or even larger, scale. More elaborate comparisons within the region of Boeotia as well as with other regions like Attica, Thessaly, but also in other Mediterranean regions outside Greece, could greatly enhance our understanding. Furthermore, more detailed studies of the individual styles encountered may also result in more elaborate ideas on the architecture and this will further enhance our understanding of the past.Show less
Samenvatting. In deze scriptie wordt onderzoek gedaan naar ontwikkelingen in en de betekenis van veranderingen in 18e-eeuwse architectuur en architectuurschilderkunst in interieurs in Parijs. De...Show moreSamenvatting. In deze scriptie wordt onderzoek gedaan naar ontwikkelingen in en de betekenis van veranderingen in 18e-eeuwse architectuur en architectuurschilderkunst in interieurs in Parijs. De uitzonderlijke architectuurprojecten van Germain Boffrand en Victor Louis vormen de leidraad in een breder betoog over architectuur en ornament en de keuzevrijheid in het variëren in bouwelementen bij het interieur en exterieur van gebouwen na 1750. De nadrukkelijke gerichtheid van Franse architecten op Italiaanse bouwkunst gaf met de toename van kennis over de toepassing van vrije kunsten in Rome en Noord-Italië een nieuwe impuls aan de vormgeving van Parijse interieurs, waarbij artistieke opvattingen en politieke drijfveren hand in hand gingen. De Académie Française in Rome, waar talrijke Franse architecten en schilders hun professionaliteit vergrootten in jaren durende studies van klassieke bouwkunst en ornament, vervulde een belangrijke rol als ambassade voor de kunsten. Het hof van Lodewijk XV en de Académie Royale d’Architècture waren er goed vertegenwoordigd en het weerspiegelde de Franse wens aan Parijs ooit de allure van Rome te kunnen geven. De kunsten waren belangrijk voor de grandeur van de stad Parijs en behoud van de machtspositie van het hof, terwijl vrijwel gelijktijdig door het opkomend verlichtingsdenken de ontwikkeling van de stadsinrichting ter discussie stond bij een steeds beter geȉnformeerd publiek. De stroom van publicaties in de gedrukte pers en het beschikbaar komen van verzamelde prentdrukwerken waren daarbij cruciaal. Een avantgarde van architecten en kunstschilders nam het voortouw in de op de klassieke bouwkunst gebaseerde verandering in decoratie binnen gebouwen in Parijs, waarbij kleinschalige bouwprojecten zich nadrukkelijk leenden voor experimenten van architect en decorateur. De architect Louis en de schilders Charles Natoire en Gabriel Briard hadden tijdens hun verblijf in Rome zeker kennisgemaakt met Giambattista Piranesi, wiens atelier nabij de Académie Française gevestigd was. In diens gravures van de stad Rome is de fantasierijkdom zichtbaar welke zijn naam vestigde als pleitbezorger van de vrije inventie binnen de architectuur. In het late werk van de ornamentschilder Paolo Antonio Brunetti zijn elementen uit Piranesi’s prenten van fantastische architectuur duidelijk aanwezig. In Parijs werd halverwege de 18e eeuw heftig gedebatteerd onder architecten over nieuwe grootschalige architectuur voor de stad en kwam onder andere het door Jacques- Francois Blondel verdedigde traditionele bouwconcept ter discussie. In de luwte van dit debat werkten Boffrand en Louis aan enkele uitzonderlijke bouwprojecten, waarbij Franse architecten en figuratief-schilders samenwerkten met Italiaanse decorschilders in een poging een nieuw podium te verschaffen aan kunstenaars in het tijdens de Bourbon monarchie verwaarloosde kunstklimaat op het terrein van preservatie en bijeenhouden van collecties. De introductie van een toegankelijke kunstgalerij in het Romeinse Palazzo was waarschijnlijk ook opgemerkt door deze Franse kunstenaars en de door Boffrand en Louis in een unieke mise-en-scène gerealiseerde kapelschilderingen van de Chapelle des Enfants Trouvés en de Chapelle des ȃmes du Purgatoire kunnen worden gezien als een opmaat voor het tentoonstellen in een museale setting. De interesse voor deze ongewone interieurarchitectuur blijkt zowel uit essays van de hand van de architectuurcriticus Marc-Antoine 55 Laugier en tijdgenoten als uit artikelen in persberichten. Het illusionistisch effect van de muurschildering in de kapellen werd hooggewaardeerd. Het figuratieve werk van Natoire en Briard kwam ermee in het middelpunt van de belangstelling te staan. De bijdrage van Italiaanse ornamentschilders aan belangrijke architectuur in Parijs is erg onderbelicht gebleven in de kunsthistorische literatuur. Dit is allereerst het gevolg van de geringe belangstelling bij kunstkenners voor ornamentschilderkunst in interieurs bij architectuur, anderzijds het gevolg van de door Haussmann uitgevoerde grootschalige sloop van 17e- en 18e-eeuwse paleizen en panden in Parijs in de 19e eeuw, toen de waardering voor kunsthistorie als studie van belang werd. In deze scriptie wordt het werk van Paolo Antonio Brunetti en zijn vader in Parijs uitvoerig beschreven en in beeld gebracht voor zover het nog bestaat. De superieure wijze van de implementatie van het architecturale kader in geschilderde kapelinterieurs verraad de grote kennis en kunde die generaties Italiaanse ornamentschilders bezaten en die thans voornamelijk in Noord-Italië nog is aan te treffen. De door de ornamentschilders toegepaste trompe-l’oeil schildertechniek beschrijf ik vanaf het gepopulariseerde gebruik in luxueuze Parijse Hȏtels omstreeks 1730 tot aan de sobere decors in de kerkkapellen omstreeks 1760, waarbij de invloed van het classicisme op de muurschilderkunst geleidelijk meer zichtbaar wordt. De verandering in smaak en waardering voor ornamentschildering op wanden is een gevolg van de reeks aan ontwikkelingen die zich halverwege de 18e eeuw voltrokken. In deze scriptie wordt uitgaande van kunsthistorische literatuur en gedeeltelijk uit door directe observatie verkregen beeldmateriaal zeer uitvoerig ingegaan op het transitieproces dat plaatsvond; het juist exposeren van kunst vormde een belangrijke uitdaging voor architecten en beeldend kunstenaars. Het zoeken naar een nieuwe balans in decoraties van interieur en exterieur vond het meest succesvol plaats in het kleinschalige experiment van het tijdelijke samenwerkingsverband tussen architect en decorateur; een transitie in vormgeving en stijl volgde in een reactie op de overdaad aan Barokke architectuur en Rococo-elementen binnen stadspaleizen, in een herwaardering en gebruik van antieke architecturale elementen in het interieur én door innovaties in het tonen van Beeldende Kunst in beter publiekstoegankelijke ruimten. Het werk in Parijs van Paolo Brunetti en zijn vader Gaetano Brunetti is zo goed mogelijk in woord en beeld beschreven op basis van archiefmateriaal en foto’s van nog bestaande muurschilderkunst. Van verloren gegaan werk zijn er korte beschrijvingen die ingaan op de architecturale en sculpturale waarde van het wandillusionisme in met name het Château de Bellevue en het Hôtel de Soubise-Rohan. De schilderijen van dochters van Lodewijk XV van de hand van Adélaïde Labille–Guiard geven een indruk van vergelijkbare classicistische interieurs en vestigen de aandacht op de rol van matronage in de kunst. Als bewoners hadden vrouwen een grote invloed op de uitvoering van interieurdecoraties. In de luxueuze Hȏtels van Parijs convenieerde het wandillusionisme goed in het architecturaal kaderwerk van balkons, overlopen en trappenhuizen, waarbij de open-wand quadratuur werd toegepast. In de kapelschildering van de Sainte-Marguerite greep Brunetti terug op gesloten-wand quadratuur, die sinds Vitruvius’ diskwalificatie van het wandillusionisme in Pompeȉ, herondekt in 1745, niet meer zo succesvol was toegepast.Show less
This Master Thesis is written for the master Arts and Culture at Leiden University, with the specialization Early Modern and Medieval Art. In 2013, the canals of Amster-dam celebrated their 400th...Show moreThis Master Thesis is written for the master Arts and Culture at Leiden University, with the specialization Early Modern and Medieval Art. In 2013, the canals of Amster-dam celebrated their 400th birthday, a fact that inspired several authors in publishing books on this subject, most of them discussing several houses on the canals. This Thesis focuses on one canal house in Amsterdam, with address Amstel 218. This specific canal house is nowadays the location of one of Holland's largest and most important private art collections, the Six Collection. This collection has been located on Amstel 218 since 1915, and this study handles the period before this time. The chosen period is 1665-1800, from the moment the house was built until the end of the eighteenth century. This focus on the eighteenth century derives from, first of all, the fact that the Dutch seventeenth century or Golden Age has been rewarded much more attention in the existing (art)historical literature. Next to this, in the literature that does focus on the eighteenth century, a strong opinion is visible deeming this century less interesting from cultural historical viewpoint than its predecessor. This Thesis aims to bring focus to this period and hopefully uncover the lives of the people that owned a canal house in Amsterdam. The aim is to find out who lived in such a house, and to complete the face of these people, questions are asked such as: what did these people do professionally, were they born in a rich milieu or were they self made rich? What did their social surrounding look like, both professionally and in terms of family and friends and what were their interests, what did they do for recreation and education. To answer these questions, original eighteenth century archival documents are investigated to see what these home-owners did and what possessions they had. The goal of this Thesis is to give a face to these people, and see how the studied per-sons fit into the view that exists in current literature on the eighteenth century. This study will be carried out with the help from terms as formulated by French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu. These three terms are introduced in his book 'Distinction', that mainly deals with the topic of social stratification. The formulated terms are social, cultural and economic capital and are important in distinguishing a persons personal properties on a social, cultural and economical level. Abbreviated, social capital consists of the entire social network that a person has, both professionally and personally. Cultural capital is the collection of ones educational properties, together with for instance musical or creative talents, or the ability to speak different languages. Economic capital is the entire concrete possession of money, property and other goods or affairs that can instantly be translated into monetary value. These three terms are inextricably connected, because the growth in one specific area can influence that of the others. For example, expansion of economic capital can provide the owner with more social status. The other way around, social status or connections can provide jobs or other financial support and thus influence the economic capital. The first chapter elaborated these terms further, as well as it discussed Bourdieus influence on (art)historical literature. It also discussed the work of histori-ans Maarten Prak and Thera Wijsenbeek-Olthuis, whose literature on the Dutch eighteenth century is very important in this Thesis’ aim to draw an image of the lives of people in this period. ` The second chapter discussed the house itself and the entire history of its inhabitants. Amstel 218 was built in circa 1665, and archival documents show who owned the house from that day until today. As well as the history of the inhabitants, the chapter discussed all known architectural adjustments that the house has seen through the ages. This chapter unveiled that there were large differences in the duration of the ownership. Some owners stayed for six years, while others could last for thirty. In terms of the architectural history of the house, the extent to which the owners made adjustments to the house also differed greatly. The third chapter presented all the information found in archival documents, per owner. It discussed marriage, children, professional functions and religion of these owners, all discovered in original sources. Differences became clear in all aspects. While everyone got married, some families remained childless where others had five children. Amongst the owners were roman-catholics, Calvinists and a Baptist. The chapter discussed what these religious viewpoints meant at the time, as well as what their jobs represented. Several of the inhabitants were merchants, others had functions with the VOC and one of them worked as an auctioneer. This chapter also reviewed the information about their financial situation, derived from testaments or other financial documents. The fourth chapter discussed the lives of these people in their social historical context, guided by Bourdieus terms. In this chapter, it becomes clear that these people are exemplary of the social historical context, as formulated by different historians. The eighteenth century was defined by interest in science, a great divide between the poor and the rich, a longing for peace and quiet outside of the city and a great care for the exposition of status. Based on the original sources is concluded that these owners probably suited their time. This Thesis has tried to sketch an image of the lives of the people that lived in a grand canal house in Amsterdam, in the eighteenth century. Based on archival documents, we have learned what these people did for a living, what their social net-work could look like and what they had in terms of possessions. Although these people came from different social standings, they all owned the same house at some point. The sources disclosed that these people had more in common than just the house, for they shared some of the same interests and possessions, such as almoner ship, literature, religion, a love for the countryside and, most of all, the tendency to show off their social, cultural and economical status.Show less
