Petrus Josephus Hubertus "Pierre" Cuypers (16 May 1827 – 3 March 1921) was a Dutch
architect
An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...
Rijksmuseum
The Rijksmuseum () is the national museum of the Netherlands dedicated to Dutch arts and history and is located in Amsterdam. The museum is located at the Museum Square in the borough of Amsterdam South, close to the Van Gogh Museum, the ...
(1876–1885), both in
Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...
. More representative for his oeuvre, however, are numerous churches, of which he designed more than 100. Moreover, he restored many monuments.
Biography
Cuypers was born in
Roermond
Roermond (; li, Remunj or ) is a city, municipality, and diocese in the Limburg province of the Netherlands. Roermond is a historically important town on the lower Roer on the east bank of the river Meuse. It received town rights in 1231. Ro ...
, the son of a church painter, and grew up in surroundings in which interest for art was encouraged. After he studied at the urban college in Roermond, he moved to
Antwerp
Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,
Ferdinand Berckmans
Ferdinand is a Germanic name composed of the elements "protection", "peace" (PIE "to love, to make peace") or alternatively "journey, travel", Proto-Germanic , abstract noun from root "to fare, travel" (PIE , "to lead, pass over"), and "co ...
, all pioneers of the
neo-Gothic architecture
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
in
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...
. Cuypers was a good student; in 1849, he gained the ''Prix d'Excellence'' of the academy.
After a tour in the German
Rhineland
The Rhineland (german: Rheinland; french: Rhénanie; nl, Rijnland; ksh, Rhingland; Latinised name: ''Rhenania'') is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly its middle section.
Term
Historically, the Rhinelands ...
, he returned to Roermond, where he was appointed a town architect in 1851. In 1852, he opened a workshop where ecclesiastical art was manufactured.
Cuypers' ecclesiastical work was initially strongly influenced by 13th century French architecture and by the writings of his friends
Eugène Viollet-le-Duc
Eugène Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc (; 27 January 181417 September 1879) was a French architect and author who restored many prominent medieval landmarks in France, including those which had been damaged or abandoned during the French Revolution. H ...
and J. A. Alberdingk Thijm. Cuypers built many churches throughout the Netherlands, in which the French influence played a prominent role. Highlights from these first period are the Lambert's Church in
Veghel
Veghel () is a town and a former municipality in the southern Netherlands. On 1 January 2017 Veghel, together with Schijndel and Sint-Oedenrode, merged into a new municipality called Meierijstad creating the largest municipality of the provi ...
and the in
Eindhoven
Eindhoven () is a city and municipality in the Netherlands, located in the southern province of North Brabant of which it is its largest. With a population of 238,326 on 1 January 2022,Joseph Cuypers in much of his work.
Cuypers led many restorations. His conceptions concerning restorations has been frequently criticized; restoration often implied that the building was awfully damaged, but Cuypers tried to satisfy an idealized image of the style or the idea how the original builders had intended a building to be rather than to preserve the architectural evolution of the building. An early example of this is the extensive restoration of the Munster Church in
Roermond
Roermond (; li, Remunj or ) is a city, municipality, and diocese in the Limburg province of the Netherlands. Roermond is a historically important town on the lower Roer on the east bank of the river Meuse. It received town rights in 1231. Ro ...
, where Cuypers replaced original towers with new ones. From 1875 he led the restoration of the eastern front of the
, which he executed according to his own plans in Romanesque style. In doing so, he created as an opposite pole to the western tower group the high, gothic likely eastern tower helmet, replacing a bell floor and the Moller iron cupola.
Pierre Cuypers was the uncle of Eduard Cuypers who trained in his practice as a young man. Other relatives who became architects are his grandsons
Pierre Cuypers jr.
Pierre is a masculine given name. It is a French form of the name Peter. Pierre originally meant "rock" or "stone" in French (derived from the Greek word πέτρος (''petros'') meaning "stone, rock", via Latin "petra"). It is a translation ...
and
Theo Taen
Theo is a given name and a hypocorism.
Greek origin
Many names beginning with the root "Theo-" derive from the Ancient Greek word ''theos'' (''θεός''), which means god, for example:
*Feminine names: Thea, Theodora, Theodosia, Theophania, ...
.
Cuypers was a practising
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
* Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
* Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...
and a member of the
Lay Dominicans
The Third Order of Saint Dominic ( la, Tertius Ordo Praedicatorum; abbreviated TOP), also referred to as the Lay Fraternities of Saint Dominic or Lay Dominicans since 1972, is a Roman Catholic third order affiliated with the Dominican Order.
La ...
. As such, he was buried in the Dominican habit. He died in his home town of Roermond, aged 93.
Bibliography
*A. J. C. van Leeuwen, ''Pierre Cuypers architect (1827–1921)'', Zwolle-Amersfoort-Zeist, 2007.
*H. Berens (ed.), ''P.J.H. Cuypers (1827–1921). Het complete werk'', Rotterdam, Nederlands Architectuurinstituut, 2007.
*A. J. C. van Leeuwen, ''De maakbaarheid van het verleden. P. J. H. Cuypers als restauratiearchitect'', Zeist-Zwolle, 1995.
Special festivities in connection with the "Cuypers year"
The year 2007-2008 has been proclaimed "Cuypersjaar" (Cuypers year) in the Netherlands. A great number of activities and exhibitions are organized around this theme including an exhibition on Cuypers' architecture at the
Netherlands Architecture Institute
The Netherlands Architecture Institute (NAI) was a cultural institute for architecture and urban development, which comprised a museum, an archive plus library and a platform for lectures and debates. The NAI was established in 1988 and was ba ...
in
Rotterdam
Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte (river), Rotte'') is the second largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the Prov ...
and
Maastricht
Maastricht ( , , ; li, Mestreech ; french: Maestricht ; es, Mastrique ) is a city and a municipality in the southeastern Netherlands. It is the capital and largest city of the province of Limburg. Maastricht is located on both sides of the ...
.
File:Pierre Cuypers statue.jpg, Pierre Cuypers statue (by
August Falise
Augustinus Franciscus Henri Falise (26 January 1875 in Wageningen – 7 January 1936) was a Dutch sculptor and medailleur (minter of medals). Next to smaller sculptures he designed large monuments of public figures in stone or messing which are s ...
Roermond
Roermond (; li, Remunj or ) is a city, municipality, and diocese in the Limburg province of the Netherlands. Roermond is a historically important town on the lower Roer on the east bank of the river Meuse. It received town rights in 1231. Ro ...
Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...
(Netherlands)
File:Kasteel de Haar met slotgracht, juli 2003.JPG, Castle de Haar,
Haarzuilens
Haarzuilens is a village in the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is a part of the municipality of Utrecht, and lies about 12 km west from the city centre of Utrecht. It was a separate municipality until 1954, when it was joined to the municipa ...
(Netherlands)
File:Roermondmunster.jpg,
Munsterkerk
The Munsterkerk (''Munster'') is a 13th-century church dedicated to Our Lady in the Dutch town of Roermond. Its remarkable front towers are 55 meter in height.
The Munsterkerk is one of the most important examples of Late Romanesque architectur ...
St. Joseph Cathedral, Groningen
The St. Joseph Cathedral ( nl, Sint-Jozef kathedraal)
is the cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Groningen-Leeuwarden in the city of Groningen in the Netherlands.
Description
The parish church of St. Joseph (''Sint-Jozef''), was designed ...
(Netherlands)
File:Mainzer Dom Ostfassade.jpg, Eastern front of the
. The central tower dates back to Cuypers work in 1875.
File:De Arnhemsche reukwater-fontein op de wereldtentoonstelling in Philadelphia.jpg, Perfume fountain for the Dutch contribution to the
Centennial Exposition
The Centennial International Exhibition of 1876, the first official World's Fair to be held in the United States, was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from May 10 to November 10, 1876, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the signing of the ...