Haarlem Primary School
Netherlands
Transformation / 2015-2016
Building upon architecture
Every architectural design carries the seed of a new world. But architecture is never a completely new beginning. All architecture builds on what already is. Building is always the transformation of a world that is already there. Architecture reforms. The aim of any architectural intervention is to improve what is already there, to supplement what is lacking, to repair what is not working. To meet unfulfilled wishes, to give shape to desires and needs. By changing, renewing, reorganising. Not by starting all over again.
Exacting additions
Building upon, and onward can be done in countless ways. At Serge Schoemaker Architects, it starts with the recognition that reform requires open-mindedness and accuracy. Open-mindedness to recognise the valuable qualities and possibilities of what is; accuracy to make what is being reformed part of a greater whole. All this requires not only architectural expertise and craftsmanship, but also a highly developed aesthetic intelligence. A keen eye, a sense of beauty, and a precise hand.
Spatial continuity
Just as the architecture of Serge Schoemaker Architects manages to give the past a place in the present (and vice versa), the work also has a spatial continuity. Transitions from interior to building and from building to environment are designed with the same attention and sense of detail. This gives furniture and interiors an architectural character; buildings the sophistication of a piece of furniture.
Architecture and building
Architecture and construction are closely related to Serge Schoemaker Architects. Just as a graphic designer cannot suffice with indicating how text and illustrations are put on a page, but also needs to know how a book is printed and bound, an architect must know the possibilities (and impossibilities) of building. A thorough knowledge of building forms the self-evident basis for the architectural designs of Serge Schoemaker Architects. Making a design is directly connected with making a building.
Sustained attention
For Serge Schoemaker Architects there is an overlap between the customisation of the design and the manufacturing of the execution. The realisation is directly in line with the design. The ‘what’ and the ‘how’ of making are intimately intertwined. The optimal outcome is achieved through the involvement of designers in the entire process, from initial idea to delivery, and close collaboration with all parties involved, from clients to builders.
Radically understated
The agency bears the founder’s name. Serge Schoemaker’s design attitude is directional and determines the signature of the office, which is radically understated. Yet, it is the addition ‘Architects’, in plural, that indicates that his approach and ideas are shared by the whole team. The office creates architecture that is supported by a personal approach, leading to buildings full of character: tangible, atmospheric, elegant.
Building permit granted for villa in St. Gallen, Switzerland
October 14, 2024
Good news from Switzerland! We have received the building permit for the construction of this sophisticated house which we will realise on the edge of a steep river valley in the St. Gallen canton of Switzerland. The two levels of the villa provide very different living atmospheres: intimate and sheltered below, and spacious and airy above. The Minergie-certified house will be built according to Swiss energy saving standards, with a high-quality building envelope, controlled air exchange and solar panels. Construction works start in 2025.
Country villa transformation in Tienhoven completed
September 10, 2024
Over a period of three years, this detached country villa in Tienhoven was gradually transformed by Serge Schoemaker Architects. Both the exterior and interior of the main house and the outbuildings underwent a complete metamorphosis. The rural character of the property was preserved during the renovation and merged with carefully designed interventions. The result is a country house that meets all contemporary requirements and where old and new are intertwined to form a striking new whole.
Under construction: Renovation of a national monument in Utrecht
September 2, 2024
Serge Schoemaker Architects is currently working on the renovation and conversion of this special national monument in Utrecht, designed by the Dutch architect Petrus Johannes Houtzagers. The mansion, dating from 1898, has a floor area of 450 m2 and is part of Houtzagers’ picturesque block of houses near Wilhelminapark in Utrecht East. These monumental houses were built at the end of the nineteenth century to offer the wealthy of that time an alternative to the increasingly busy city center.
New project: Transformation of a 19th-century loft in Amsterdam
August 22, 2024
The practice has been commissioned to renovate a unique Amsterdam loft. With an open layout and six-metre-high windows, the exquisite apartment overlooks the canal of the Lauriergracht. The loft is located in the former monastery complex ‘De Voorzienigheid’. At the back, the building is connected to a chapel, built by Adrianus Bleijs at the end of the nineteenth century. The canal house is a national monument and became well-known due to the famous book Max Havelaar by Dutch writer Multatuli, in which the address served as the fictional house of the protagonist. The facade plaque with “Last & Co, Makelaars in Koffij” still refers to this.
Light artwork Syndesmos at Fort Hoofddorp completed
July 11, 2024
Syndesmos, the Greek word for connection, is the name of our newest light artwork. The permanent installation sits on the pillars of the former bridge in the canal of Fort Hoofddorp. The light sculpture reinterprets the former connection to the fort island and visualizes the dynamic relationship of the UNESCO site with both the past and the future. We developed the light sculpture in close collaboration with artist Siba Sahabi. The artwork was commissioned by the municipality of Haarlemmermeer and was financially supported by the Province of North Holland.
Art performance by Siba Sahabi at our construction site in Utrecht
May 8, 2024
What a pleasure it was to see how our construction site in Utrecht served as the stage for an art performance today. Against the unpolished backdrop of our renovation, the performance ‘Laban’ by artist Siba Sahabi took place, consisting of both sculptures and dancers. For a day, the construction workers made way for the talented dancers Miri Lee, Christian Guerematchi and Dereck Cayla. The on-site performance was complemented by a soundscape created by Rutger Zuydervelt.The project was made possible by a contribution from the Creative Industries Fund.
Amsterdam Canal House listed for Heritage Sustainability Award
May 1, 2024
Our Amsterdam Canal House is listed for the “Heritage Sustainability Award 2024”, an award celebrating the most inspirational and sustainable renovations of monuments in the Netherlands. The award is an initiative of the Cultural Heritage Agency, the National Restoration Fund and the Nederland Monumentenland foundation. If you also think our project is worthy of this sustainability award, please give us your vote at the website of the National Restoration Fund before June 30th!
Alley of Light on show at Royal Light Festival in Apeldoorn
March 13, 2024
Today, the mayor of Apeldoorn, Ton Heerts, opened the Royal Light Festival 2024. During this festival, our art installation “Alley of Light” can be seen in the monumental Grote Kerk in Apeldoorn. Following exhibitions in Amsterdam, Norrköping, Shenzhen, Riga and Lugano, this time the 19-meter-high interior space of this 1842 church serves as the backdrop for our light artwork. Alley of Light can be visited in the Grote Kerk of Apeldoorn, between 19:00-22:30 hours, from March 13 to March 17.
Extension of a 1950s home in Amsterdam completed
January 23, 2024
In the L-shaped extension of this 1950s home in Amsterdam, Serge Schoemaker Architects has strengthened the relationship between the interior and exterior spaces and optimized it to create more living space and daylight. This project consisted of an initial brief to modernise the extension of the backyard and led to a complete metamorphosis of the first floor. Thanks to carefully chosen materials, a sophisticated interplay of lines and the L-shaped extension, the residents have felt like they are in a completely new city location since the renovation.
New York publisher Rizzoli features our Bussum Garden Studio
January 1, 2024
In its book “The Home Office Reimagined”, New York publisher Rizzoli features twenty-five pavilions, sheds and studios from around the globe. “Innovative home offices that are inventive, accessible, and often wonderfully serene.” We are happy to share that our sculptural wooden Bussum Garden Studio (2014) is one of the selected projects for this forthcoming hardcover publication. Texts are by authors Oscar Riera Owed and James Moore McCown which describe the tiny houses as “a worldwide adventure in architectural experimentation and originality”.
German magazine Bauwelt features transformation of Fort Hoofddorp
December 15, 2023
We are honoured to be included in this special thematic edition of Bauwelt, the leading German magazine for architecture. The December issue features several adaptive reuse projects dealing with former bunkers, such as the enormous St. Pauli bunker in Hamburg as well as our transformation of Fort Hoofddorp. In the article “Von der Sichtbarwerdung”, Bauwelt editor Josepha Landes describes how this reuse project in Hoofddorp has put both the site and our Amsterdam office on the map.