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A photo of Leendert van der Vlugt by an Anonymous photographer –

Top 10 Remarkable Facts about Leendert van der Vlugt

Leendert Cornelis van der Vlugt was born on 13 April 1894 and died on 25 April 1936. Cornelis was a Dutch architect in Rotterdam. He worked in the architect’s office of Brinkman & Van der Vlugt.

Leendert was responsible for the architecture of the Van Nelle Factory. This is when he was in the architect’s office of Brinkman & Van der Vlugt. In the article are the top ten remarkable facts about Leendert van der Vlugt.

1. Leendert van der Vlugt was married twice

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Of course Leendert van der Vlugt did not die a sngle man. Instead, he was married twice in his lifetime before he died in 1936. However, the exact dates and years of his marriage are not known.

His first wife was Jennij Hendrika Middelburg, daughter of Lodewijk Peter Middelburg and Jansje Hendrina Koenderink. His second wife was Elisabeth Cornelia Magdalena van der Vlugt, daughter of daughter of Pieter Jacob Kleykamp and Agatha Elisabeth Ringlever.

2. Van Nelle Factory is a listed monument of the UNESCO World Heritage Site

Van Nelle Factory photo by Carel L. de Vogel / Anefo –

Leendert van der Vlugt was responsible for the architecture of the Van Nelle Factory. The former Van Nelle Factory on the Schie in Rotterdam is considered a prime example of the International Style based upon constructivist architecture.

It has been a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2014. Soon after it was built, prominent architects described the factory as “the most beautiful spectacle of the modern age. Leendert van der Vlugt is credited for the World Heritage site architecture.

3. Leendert van der Vlugt became co-director of the architectural office after its boss died

A photo of Michiel Brinkman by an Unknown Author –

In 1925 after the death of the Rotterdam architect Michiel Brinkman, notable for his Justus van Effen housing block complex in Spangenoon, his son Johannes Brinkman, a constructional engineer, took over the architectural office.

Johannes Brinkman made Leendert van der Vlugt co-director. The new practice was called J.A. Brinkman & L.C. van der Vlugt.

4. Leendert van der Vlugt died of Hodgkin lymphoma

Leendert van der Vlugt passed on in 1936 after being diagnosed with Hodgkin’s disease. Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is a type of lymphoma, in which cancer originates from a specific type of white blood cell called lymphocytes as described by Thomas Hodgkin.

The activities of the Brinkman & Van der Vlugt office lasted only about ten years because of the death of Leendert van der Vlugt.

5. There are misleading attributions of his work since his death

A photo of Mart Stam by an Unkown Author –

Since the death of Leendert van der Vlugt, there has been a misleading attribution of his work. In all books of architectural history, credit for the design of his buildings has gone to J.A. Brinkman & L.C. van der Vlugt, or sometimes together with Mart Stam.

Attributions of this kind suggest that J.A. Brinkman was the creative mind in the practice. Jacob Bakema has dealt with this question in his small book “L.C. van der Vlugt”. The fact that Leendert van der Vlugt was the creative architect and not Johannes Brinkman is indicated by the following quotations from Bakema’s booklet.

6. Leendert van der Vlugt was a gem in the mordern world architecturer

In Le Corbusier’s comment about the death of Leendert van der Vlugt on 30 May 1936, he said that With the death of Van der Vlugt, modern architecture loses one of its best representatives.

He said that he was familiar with Van der Vlugt’s outstanding achievements like the Van Nelle Factory in Rotterdam. He said that not many words are there in the modern world that can rival the Van Nelle Factory.

He added that the fact that the world could not see Van der Vlugt anymore and could no longer witness the development of his outstanding talent was extremely regrettable.

7. Who brought the influence of Russian Constructivism evident in the Van Nelle Factory

In Mart Stam’s idea about the attributions of Van der Vlugt, he said that he worked in the Brinkman & Van der Vlugt office as a design draughtsman. He didn’t care much for the curved building of the office section, but Van der Vlugt was in charge of the project. He gave the instructions.

Mart Stam was an assistant in the office and was partly involved in the design of this project. Therefore the aspect of Constructivism may have come from Mart Stam. So, Van der Vlugt is not the one who used Russian Constructivism to design the factory.

Take note that the fascinating rounded architectural forms in the office tract and the roof structure, are attributable to Leendert van der Vlugt.

8. There are Authorship Complications about Leendert van der Vlugt and Mart Stam

Weissenhof Estate aerial photo by

The Complication Authorship is about the Weissenhof Estate, a housing estate built for the 1927 Deutscher Werkbund exhibition in Stuttgart, Germany. It was an international showcase of modern architecture’s aspiration to provide cheap, simple, efficient, and good-quality housing.

The question arises, whether Leendert van der Vlugt or Mart Stam, who is the more experienced of the two architects? And did any of them hand in the design of the houses in Stuttgart?

The great elegance one finds in them is also evident in buildings by Leendert van der Vlugt, but not in the later works of Mart Stam.

9. Leendert van der Vlugt is one of the most overlooked figures of 1920s European architecture

Bergpolderflat photo by O E P at Dutch Wikipedia –

According to Graham Livesey, “the figure of L.C. van der Vlugt remains one of the most overlooked figures of 1920s European architecture.” Graham Livesey is a Professor in the Master of Architecture Program (School of Architecture, Planning, and Landscape) where he teaches design, architectural history, and urban design theory.

Why does Graham Livesey credit Leendert van der Vlugt as the most overlooked figure in European architecture in the 1920s? Van der Vlugt designed Feijenoord Stadium in Rotterdam, Bergpolderflat in Rotterdam, (in collaboration with Willem van Tijen) and many other modern buildings.

10. Stadion Feijenoord was designed by Leendert van der Vlugt

Stadio Feijenoord photo by FeyenoordR’dam1908 –

Stadion Feijenoord more commonly known by its nickname De Kuip is a stadium in Rotterdam, Netherlands. It was completed in 1937. The name is derived from the Feijenoord district in Rotterdam, and the club with the same name (Feyenoord).

The stadium’s original capacity was 64,000. In 1949, it was expanded to 69,000, and in 1994 it was converted to a 51,117-seat all-seater. In 1999, a significant amount of restoration and interior work took place at the stadium before its use as a venue in the UEFA Euro 2000 tournament.

Leendert van der Vlugt was responsible for the design of all this scheme. From 1925 onwards, design responsibility can best be formulated as Leendert van der Vlugt (Brinkman & Van der Vlugt). Leendert van der Vlugt was not responsible for expansion of the stadium in 1949.