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Abstract

This article examines the development of Dutch modern architecture from the perspective of the changing role of form in architectural creation. The fields of ‘building’ and ‘design’ were not inherently connected. The relationship between the two was installed and intensified in the first decennia of the 20th century. But at a certain moment specialization took place even if architects often still occupied themselves with daily objects. This laid the seeds for the transformation of the role of form in architectural creation. After the second world war the emphasis was placed on the reconstruction of the cities that were damaged by the war and on the housing for the masses. Formal issues were hardly of any great importance. Only in the nineties the attitude changed and form as a result of design (rather than building) became again a major issue for architects who relied on the capabilities of the engineer in order to realize their projects. The general question is: to which degree design has taken over architectural creation and architecture has become the result of design? One things is clear: lines of continuity and discontinuity colour the course of Dutch architecture.