(Bonas Essay by T. Claassen; abridged version) Introduction In 1964, Paul De Ley began studying architecture at the Academy of Architecture in Amsterdam. He developed into a socially committed architect. In 1973 he founded his own architectural firm. While studying at the academy, Paul De Ley became closely involved in neighborhood actions in Amsterdam's inner city. Together with Jouke van den Bout, he gave an important impulse to "Building for the neighborhood" with a housing project on the Bickerseiland and helped make urban renewal a political issue in The Hague. Their success meant a real cultural change for the municipality of Amsterdam and an example for other Amsterdam neighborhoods, as well as elsewhere in the country. Even from abroad there was interest in these new ideas. From now on, social themes would be reflected in architectural design. The concept of "resident participation" was added to the architect's vocabulary. At the Academy, De Ley had come into contact with Theo Bosch, and through Bosch he ended up at Aldo van Eyck's office, where "the story of another thought" offered an answer to current problems such as large scale and anonymity and the disturbed relationship between man and his environment. The themes that played a role at this office can be seen recurring with De Ley, whose oeuvre consists almost entirely of housing: encounter, human scale, mixing of functions, flexibility and contextuality. Paul De Ley clearly felt inspired by the work and design of Theo Bosch and Lucien Lafour, both of whom, like himself, came from Aldo van Eyck's office, the "school of Van Eyck. They mutually gained much inspiration from each other and grew into a recognizable group of architects with details such as overhanging cornices, sunken balconies, stuccoed facades and large round bay windows, but above all meeting places as added value to their buildings. Contextuality and continuity was their common "drive" with the goal of improving inner-city living. For De Ley, social commitment was one of the main drivers of his work. Youth and education Paul De Ley was born on September 14, 1943 in Hilversum into a family of teachers, the son of head teacher Martinus Ludovicus De Ley and Christina Jannetje van Eeuwen, who was a teacher until her marriage. Paul suffered greatly from asthmatic bronchitis as a child and was then taught at home by his mother. His poor health played a role in the choice for further education after elementary school. At first that became MULO. Soon the switch was made to the Municipal HBS in Hilversum. In the fourth year of the HBS his behavior led to escalating conflicts. The HBS was left early to study at the HTS in Utrecht. It became architecture. This choice was not yet fully justified. Only in the practical year of the HTS, where he became acquainted with the daily practice of the construction world, he became enthusiastic and his choice for architecture was definitely determined. After HTS, Paul De Ley attended the Academy of Architecture in Amsterdam (1964-1971). That meant working at an architectural firm during the day and going to the Academy in the evenings. The legacy of 'Forum' Both at the Academy and at the various architectural firms where he worked, Paul De Ley encountered a new architectural approach. It addressed themes such as urban identity, human scale and flexibility. A configurative design approach used geometric grid patterns to shape the complex urban fabric. In practice, this meant using recognizable and repeatable structures to shape the great diversity of the city. These configurational views were propagated by the new Forum editorial board, which headed this journal from 1959 -1963 and became known as the Forum Group. Some of the editors taught at the Academy of Architecture, where the first editorial board meetings were also held. Some of De Ley's coursework shows that students were introduced to configurative design. This design method would largely define the architectural climate in the Netherlands in the 1960s and 1970s. There was even talk of a new architectural movement, called the "New Amsterdam School," but usually referred to by the term "structuralism. Paul De Ley worked at Aldo van Eyck's Architectural Bureau from 1969-1973. This was the beginning of an important period, mainly because of the views, which Van Eyck had about the content of the profession of architect: attention for continuity and contextuality, for the structure of the traditional city , for livable cities with a human scale. Here it was essential to combine functions such as living and working. 'Building for the Neighborhood' In 1969, the Groene Amsterdammer had held an ideas competition for a use for the Paleis op de Dam to become the Council House of Amsterdam. For two students at the Academy of Architecture, Paul De Ley and Jouke van den Bout, this was a challenge and at the same time the reason to start working together. Not so much to put the Palace back on the map as a city hall, but to use the discussion about it as a platform and to be able to air their ideas about governing a large city. In their design with the motto "The High Hat" - for which they received an honorable mention - their favorite themes were decentralization and devolution. Their collaboration further resulted in a joint graduation plan and the resulting housing plan for Bickerseiland. Starting in 1970, Paul De Ley and Jouke van den Bout, together with local residents, worked on a new zoning plan. Initially, this was their graduation plan. But realization did not take long. All this took place against a background of ongoing controversies between municipal departments. Political disputes and official tug-of-war hindered a decisive approach. Getting approval for the plan in this tense situation was quite an art. On February 1, 1975, the grand opening of the eighteen houses under the housing law took place, marking the first realization of a plan with the motto "Building for the neighborhood". On September 27, 1975, the first pile was driven for the second new construction project with 19 dwellings and 1 commercial space, just down the Bickersgracht, designed by Paul De Ley. From that design, Paul De Ley and Jouke van den Bout went their separate ways. From the second phase of construction on the Bickers Island, Paul De Ley worked as an independent architect. As an independent firm, Architectenbureau Paul De Ley existed from 1973 to 2003. From 2003, De Ley, together with Fenna Oorthuys, ran the firm De Ley and Oorthuys Architects. The White Village, an "away game in Rotterdam. In 1985, the city of Rotterdam took the decision to demolish J.J.P. Oud's White Village. The decision was inevitable. The close-knit group of residents initially opposed the decision. They campaigned under the slogan "The White Village Forever" . They wanted to continue living in their village, but finally agreed to demolition in exchange for housing that would meet today's requirements. They had great influence on the new construction plans from the beginning thanks to a far-reaching public participation process. In 1992, Ouds Witte Dorp was replaced by a design by Paul De Ley. Room for quality 'What we need are many good, small architectural firms, with each architect wonderfully busy behind his drawing board doing personal work. No architecture factories,' said Aldo Van Eyck. For Paul de Ley, this statement was particularly true. His office has always remained small. That was partly a conscious choice. He liked to keep his office small in order to keep every drawing and every change under control. Everything was drawn out, every detail was studied and the entire building process from design to completion was kept in his own hands as much as possible. Although Paul De Ley's oeuvre has remained comparatively small, its significance is significant. Paul De Ley is about a different way of looking at the city, with an eye for the context of urban planning infill and, above all, with an eye for the interests of the city's residents. Education: Public Primary Education Fabritiusschool Hilversum/1949-1955;MULO Education Rembrandt Mulo Hilversum/1955-1956;Municipal HBS Hilversum/1956-1960;Higher Technical School Department of Architecture Utrecht/1960-1964;Academy of Architecture (evening course) Amsterdam/1964-1972(graduation project: Westelijke Eilanden Amsterdam i.c.w. Jouke v.d. Bout) Additional positions: Academy of Architecture Amsterdam/Guest lectureship/years '80;Commission of Building Condition 's-Gravenhage/Member/1992-1996;Rietveld Academy Amsterdam/Teacher/1996-1998;Commission of Building Condition and Monuments Hilversum/Member/2000-2005;architecture competition elementary school Information Center School Building (ICS)/juroree/1988;Idea competition building Valkenburg along IJtunnelweg/juroree/1976 Archives: NAi/LEYP