Redecorating

A cube house is a house in the shape of a tilted cube on a pole, known as stilt house or tree house. In the seventies there are cube houses built by the Dutch architectPiet Blom in Helmond and Rotterdam . The basic idea, which is being built on columns, so that the space under the buildings can remain public, inspired by Le Corbusier .

Contents

 * 1 Houses
 * 2 The underlying concept
 * 3 Helmond
 * 4 Rotterdam
 * 5 Discussion

Houses
The cube house Blom are three levels: at the bottom of the so-called street house with the kitchen and the living room, between the sky house with space for studying and bedrooms, and the top of the sukkah, a three-sided pyramid with room for a conservatory, a balcony or a modest garden. In the hexagonal column on which the house rests, are the entrance and the stairwell.

The underlying concept
In the 70s of the 20th century did architects with the participation of the residents and other users make hospitable residential areas in response to a gray scale and modernity of the architecture of the reconstruction after WWII . Piet Blom, structuralist and adept of Aldo van Eyck assumed that large-scale construction work on man's size had to be constructed by them to build small-scale recognizable elements.

Helmond
Polygon Journal of the pile dwellings in 1976

The first three cube houses were in 1974 and 1975 built on the Europaweg in Helmond, as a sample of a larger project that was realized in the subsequent years. The project had the status "experimental" and could thus claim extra funding from the government .In the first instance, the interest was high and widespread. In an American magazine design was described in November 1975 as "resembling huge dice "and Helmonds newspaper reported in December about twenty candidates for the three cubes. Halfway through 1976, though, the interest died down and there were not enough buyers were found for all the stilt houses. The 18 properties of the sequel project surrounded the theater 's Playhouse, which they formed an architectural whole. The theater was composed of 37 cubes and contained three rooms. The main hall had a capacity of 430 seats. The accompanying theater was called Blom & Sanders the architect Blom and the artist Har Sanders, the two founding fathers of the special building complex.

In May or June 1974 the first spa went into the ground. On December 3, the construction work reached the highest point of the first pile dwelling, also in traditional market an important symbolic event. The supporting columns and the floors were done in reinforced concrete, the tilted cube consists of a wooden frame which inside and outside is finished with cement / wood fiber boards . In a publicity stunt on an idea by the architect gave professional pleasers on March 29, 1975 a demonstration " wallpaper on sloped walls "in the new homes. On 28 October1977, finally followed the official opening of the theater building in the presence of Princess Beatrix with the premiere of the musical Take Helmond example.

The architecture of the theater was variously appreciated by the end users. According Youp van 't Hek the room was not conducive to good ''drama:. "Nice theater Particularly theater, but also inconvenient The architecture also leads a bit off You always have a setting in there Well a nice decor though.... The first time I was stunned by the special. Really beautiful. The second time it was accustom and third time it was almost irritating, I longed for a dark black box'' ". Also Jenny Arean was critical, but it prevailed in itspraise: ". What a beauty, this unique room made ​​sure I was a fan of Har Sanders is a playful but beautiful theater I have to say it was a clumsy theater. and sometimes it's really magic. " [1]

On 29 December 2011 the theater was destroyed by a fire that also affected the neighboring cube houses. [2]

Rotterdam
The 38 cube houses above the Blaak near the Old Port in Rotterdam were built between 1982 and 1984, following the initial presentation of the plan in 1978. The design is a variation on the Helmond cube house. The viaduct at one high official name Overblaak, but the whole complex is known as the Blaakse Forest . The complex comprises the cube houses also some larger cubes, a residential tower known as Pencil and a residential building. The name of the complex refers to the vision of the architect, which each house a tree represents the entire complex and a forest . The idea was a kind of village in the big city, a safe environment in which various functions were accommodated.Shops, businesses, schools and children's playroom down the pedestrian walking area and live there. The interaction between the private and public life, according to the idea are particularly large due to the angled windows in the houses.

In addition to the village in the city was Overblaak urban architecture intended as the primary connection for pedestrians between the Centre and the Old Port. This route, however, proved to be too cumbersome still allowing pedestrians to cross the busy thoroughfare Blaak and Blom intended liveliness on the Overblaak Passage was forthcoming. In 2009 the two big cubes on the south side were transformed into a Stayokay hostel with 250 beds, making 25 years after the construction of the cubes by Blom cherished liveliness in the hiking is still achieved. For the large cube on the north side already empty for several years it is developing plans for a residential building with common facilities for vulnerable groups. Between the Cube Houses are small shops and the Chess Museum to find.

The cube houses are privately owned and inhabited. It is unknown whether the course is different from the conventional housing market. Because of its location above a busyfreeway all booths are designed as closed rooms with tilt windows . The larger cubes house an entertainment center, offices and studios. One of the houses, the Show Cube, acts as a public museum about life in and furnish houses on stilts. [3]

Discussion
Among architects Blom mastery is not denied, but his creations are controversial. The architecture has not been followed widely in professional circles disapproved quite general and his concept of living in trees.Nevertheless, the location in Rotterdam is one of the more relaxing and enjoyable places in the city. As a link between the Kolk and the Old Port underscores the street the historic significance of the area. The cube houses also attract many tourists from abroad, where they traditionally known as a model for the modern architecture of the city, because it is not high rise is pronounced but progressive. The experimental walking street is integral with the Spaansekade, which Blom brick vormgaf as a Mediterranean fishing village. The platform above a sidewalk at the Old Port is formed by a balustrade of stone columns. "It seems to be the epitome of bad taste that Blom somewhere some historical ornaments has picked up, and this has included in his building to enhance the picturesque effect. The railing is old and in a sense authentic. It is the only remnant of a the most modern and technically advanced buildings of the nineteenth century in Rotterdam, Plan C ".