ROTTERDAM.- On 10 October 2024, the architect and urban planner Jo Coenen and the Nieuwe Instituut celebrated the official transfer of the office archive of Jo Coenen & Co to the National Collection for Dutch Architecture and Urban Planning, which is managed by the Nieuwe Instituut.

The acquisition of this archive fulfils a long-standing wish of the Nieuwe Instituut: Jo Coenen is a leading architect with an extensive and varied oeuvre, of which a number of models and files are already in the National Collection. Coenen is also the architect of the building that houses the Nieuwe Instituut and the National Collection (designed between 1988 and 1993 as the Netherlands Architecture Institute).

An insight into 50 years of social developments

The archive contains more than 400 architectural and urban design projects carried out by Jo Coenen & Co between 1970 and 2020. Because almost everything has been preserved, the archive offers an in-depth insight into the design process and the practice of one of the leading architects in the Netherlands. In addition to design drawings and models, the archive also contains a wealth of documentation on 50 years of social developments; such as the rise of collaboration with private parties, the internationalisation of architecture and the digitisation of design practice.

The inclusion of the archive in the National Collection is not only an important asset for researchers and students, but also offers numerous opportunities to make Jo Coenen’s work accessible to a wide national and international audience, for example through exhibitions, digitisation or online presentations.

Aric Chen, General and Artistic Director of the Nieuwe Instituut: “We are delighted to acquire the office archive of Jo Coenen, a leading architect, former Government Architect and, of course, the designer of the building that houses the Nieuwe Instituut and the National Collection itself. His work is known in the Netherlands and far beyond, and is a source of inspiration for many. We look forward to making the archive accessible to professionals and the general public.”

Personal archive

This initial acquisition consists mainly of the office archive of Jo Coenen & Co. In a second phase, Coenen’s personal archive will be acquired, with documentation of his teaching positions, professorships, travels, lectures and other activities.

A part of the office archive will be loaned immediately to the Centre Céramique in Maastricht, Jo Coenen’s base, for a period of 10 years. This concerns the designs relating to the province of Limburg and Europe. During this period, the archive will form part of a research programme at Maastricht University.

Jo Coenen

Jo Coenen (1949) is a leading architect, urban planner and former Chief Government Architect (2000-2004), known for projects such as the redevelopment of the former Céramique factory site in Maastricht, the urban design of the KNSM island in Amsterdam, the Municipal Office Delft, the master plan for the Vaillantlaan in The Hague and the public libraries in Amsterdam and Heerlen.

As a graduate of Eindhoven University of Technology, he was part of the so-called Eindhoven School. This group of architects, including Wiel Arets, Bert Dirrix, John Körmerling, Sjoerd Soeters and Rudy Uytenhaak, was characterised by a broad cultural approach to the profession. Coenen himself regularly referred to his work as ‘architectural-urban planning’: both disciplines were given equal status in the design, without losing their autonomy.

The 1980s saw an increase in the influence of developers, contractors, suppliers and builders on design. Within this field of forces, Coenen, like a conductor, kept a tight grip on all the parties involved in the design and construction process. The increasing digitisation of architectural practice presented him with an opportunity to maintain and strengthen this grip through new digital design methods.