(abridged version Bonas Essay) Pierre Cuypers, period 1850-1865 Petrus Josuphus Hubertus Cuypers was born in Roermond on May 16, 1827. Pierre received his first drawing lessons from his father, but at the Royal Collegium, drawing was also taught, twice a week by Hendrik Linssen. The subject was not compulsory, but could be chosen and consisted of practicing line drawing, building orders, hand drawing and ornamentation. Drawings by students were exhibited once a year in the Town Hall and remained on display for three days. Victor de Stuers reported that Cuypers' drawing results were such that he worked as Linssen's assistant for some time. The Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp Pierre Cuypers stayed in Antwerp from 1845 to 1849 and studied at the Academy of Fine Arts for architect and furniture designer. For his practical education, he worked at the offices of the architects P. Dens and Ferdinand Beckmans, respectively. The latter also provided architectural education at the Academy. From 1841 there were five departments at the Academy of Fine Arts, namely painting, sculpture, graphic arts, shipbuilding and architecture. Architectural education, like the other disciplines, was divided into three levels: 'élémental', 'moyen' and 'university'. The predominant style at the Academy was eclectic-classical, but by the mid-1930s neo-Gothicism had been introduced to the Antwerp Academy by Ferdinand Berckmans. Antwerp, under the enthusiastic leadership of Berckmans, even grew to become one of the centers of neo-Gothicism. Pierre Cuypers did not take part in the drawing lessons during his first year in Antwerp, because they largely corresponded to the lessons he had already taken in Roermond with Hendrik Linssen. However, he did work in architectural practice, probably as a draftsman, with architect G. Dens, who was an assistant teacher at the Academy. In his second year of study, Pierre took the arts and crafts course with Fr. Durlet, which consisted of decoration and carpentry. Elsewhere in Europe, the craft trade was often not yet recognized, so it can be said that Antwerp was ahead of other academies. In 1848, during Cuypers' third year of study, the subjects of monumental building and dwelling design, woodcarving and furniture making were taught. The latter was certainly not Cuypers' strong suit, as he received last place in the assessment with his furniture designs. After four years there was the possibility of taking final exams at the Academy, but this was not compulsory and so many students did not participate. For them it sufficed to take classes for one or more years. Without a diploma, however, it was not possible to apply for the position of city architect, for example. On May 6, 1849, he graduated from the Academy in Antwerp and his designs were awarded the Prix d'Excellence. The art workshops On Oct. 31, 1852, the studio for "sacred sculpture" was established in Roermond by city architect Pierre Cuypers, textile manufacturer and dealer in church supplies François Stoltzenberg and sculptor Eduard Fr. Georges. Partly due to the restoration of the episcopal hierarchy, the Cuypers & Stoltzenberg studio was a huge success. What also certainly contributed to the good business was the fact that Roermond was an episcopal city, so there was an extra large market for church attributes. Cuypers himself, however, was the most important condition for the success of the studios. His somewhat authoritarian commercial vision and enormous commitment to his business were the driving force behind the art workshops from the beginning. The ambitious sculptor's workshop was new to the Netherlands, for not a sculptor but an architect determined what would be made. Sculpture was subordinate to architecture and the architect took the most important position in determining the design and placement of the sculptures. The significance of the workshop for Roermond was enormous, not only artistically but also economically. Nineteen sculptors started in 1852 and, in addition to neo-Gothic, work was done in all styles. They looked at early medieval Italian art, for example, but if a client wanted, they were just as happy to work in a neo-Baroque style. A whole series of companies in the field of arts and crafts then established themselves in Roermond, for organs, glass, furniture, sculpture and paraments, among others. The principle of training within the workshop was based on medieval principles, but was also found in Belgium and Germany during this period. Within the workshop, crafts and trades often passed from father to son. The workshop was internationally known and could easily obtain apprentice boys; the training was apparently so well known that some even came from Germany. This created a closed group of well-trained workers who served not only Cuypers but also other architects. The period 1850-1865 The significance that Cuypers attributed to historic buildings formed a common thread throughout his oeuvre. Again and again he was inspired by historical examples and there was a constant competition, in which he believed he could improve and surpass his examples. For him, the Munsterkerk was the counterpart of Viollet-le-Duc's ideal cathedral, one of the finest examples of medieval church construction. Several decades later, Cuypers emphasized that since the construction of the Munsterkerk, Roermond had become a center of artistic development. In his search for the ideal city church, which, for example, had to be able to accommodate many believers on a relatively small plot, he applied the floor plan of the Munsterkerk in modified form several times. In the year 1865, Pierre Cuypers moved his building office from Roermond to Amsterdam. The art workshops remained in Roermond. Amsterdam was the obvious choice, as a more secular and centrally located environment and, moreover, it was the home of his friend Alberdingk Thijm, who had recommended the move to him. His great role model Viollet-le-Duc had also advised him the move. Cuypers was a southerner who looked strangely at the Dutch Calvinist climate; however, he arrived at a time when Catholics were becoming more socially agitated. The unsuitability of the old hidden churches on the one hand and urban expansion on the other gave rise to the construction of new churches. Cuypers' gigantic building activity doubled the number of Amsterdam construction workers between 1859 and 1889 and resulted in six churches, among others, an important architectural and urban planning achievement for Amsterdam. Slot The decision to move from Roermond to Amsterdam proved to be the right move and gave a positive impetus to Cuypers' career. Among other things, his stay in the capital would result in the construction of no less than six neo-Gothic churches. Moreover, he soon began to develop plans for the neighborhood he had arrived in, which would eventually lead to the realization of Vondelstraat. Soon he came into contact with many prominent Amsterdammers and it was during this period that he met Victor E.L. de Stuers, who would later prove to be of great importance for the further course of his career as an architect. Consequently, his national fame rose enormously from the 1970s onward. During the first fifteen years of his career, Pierre Cuypers played an important role within the construction and restoration of Catholic churches, especially in the southern part of the Netherlands. His material contribution to the religious arts was further enhanced by the studio for "sacred arts" he had opened in Roermond in 1852. Yet there are no identifiable reasons to assume that Cuypers himself was deeply religious. What is certain is that the architect was aware of the value of historical memories provided by church and civic Monuments of History and Art. However, the conception of history and the historical aspect one wanted to emphasize determined the method of restoration. This view - much maligned in the twentieth century - allowed for historicizing additions and changes that transformed the monument into a three-dimensional history piece. Consequently, according to Cuypers and his great example Viollet-le-Duc, restoration meant bringing a building into a condition that "never appeared in life," an ideal, superior appearance. Restoration thus developed into a nineteenth-century invention and took on a new meaning: the nature of the interventions was determined by the historical value attached to a building. Throughout his life, Cuypers was engaged in a competition with the past. In the following decades he would attempt to demonstrate the social engineering of the past, taking his own designs as proof. Education: Royal Academy of Antwerp/1845-1849 Additional positions: Roermond/city architect/1851;Vondel Commission/member/1865;Amsterdamsch Leesgezelschap 'De Vioolstruik'/member/1870 (about);College of State Advisors on Monuments of History and Art/member/1874;Architect of State Museum Buildings/advisor/1877;Normal School for Drawing Teachers/teacher/1880 (about);School of Arts and Crafts/teacher/1880 (about);Amsterdam City Council/Member/1890 (about);Commission for the supervision of secondary education/Councilmember/1890;Commission for the assistance of Public Works/Councilmember/1891;Commission for the preparation and publication of an inventory for a description of the Dutch monuments of history and art/Chairman/1903-1918;State Commission for the care of monuments/Chairman/1918 Honors: Prix d'Excellence Antwerp/1848;Architect Diocese of Haarlem/1865;Architect of State Museum Buildings/1877