realization 2024
Wehe-den Hoorn (The Netherlands)
Design: Gerard de Hoop (Studio Volop)
Next to the N361 at the roundabout at Wehe-Den Hoorn, there is a folly, artwork called Tiggel. A work of art that is an ode to the modern red brick of Groningen clay, which plays such an important role in the architectural history of this province.
Commissioned by: Province of Groningen & House of Design
Contractor: Macadam
Engineering firm: Nepocon
Masons: Keizer Staingoud
Lighting: Lichtpunt
For more info about the project N361, see website: studiovolop.nl
Bricks from Groningen
After the introduction of the monastery bricks in the Middle Ages, more and more buildings in the province were built from baked bricks of Groningen clay. Monasteries and churches, but also farms and stone houses. The monastery brick has a typical orange-red color after baking, and this color became the defining image of the appearance of the region.
When the population grew strongly in the middle of the 19th century, the demand for bricks also increased enormously. The artisanal production process of bricks became increasingly mechanized. This development went hand in hand with increasing industrialization worldwide.
Where the original monastery bricks were still produced manually in different sizes and shades of colour (by baking), modern bricks were increasingly standardised and used on a large scale, also in cheaper (social) housing. The artwork is an ode to this brick, and its important role in the history, prosperity and prosperity of the province of Groningen.
Architecture
With the arrival of the standard brick, large-scale application in architecture was also possible. At the end of the 19th century, some 80 brick factories in the province of Groningen produced more than 60 million bricks for (social) housing, churches, schools and public buildings.
At the beginning of the 20th century, a derivative architectural style of the Amsterdamse School was widely used, of which we can still find countless examples throughout the city and province.
Well-known architects from that period included Siebe Jan Bouma and Egbert Reitsma. Both were also members of the artists’ association De Ploeg. This is also a nice link with the future Ploegcentrum in Wehe-den Hoorn.
Typical of this architecture is the expressionist building style, in which interlocking volumes were executed in red brick masonry bonds.
3D-viewer
TIGGEL
The artwork entitled TIGGEL is a tribute to this standard red brick and the expressionist architecture that flourished at the beginning of the 20th century. ‘Tiggel’ is derived from the old Groningen word ‘Tiggeln’, which means brick-making.
Four volumes -in the proportions of the standard brick- stack into each other, and are gradually lifted, creating an interesting architectural composition.
As with buildings built in this expressionist style, the interplay of the volumes results in a changing surface division in the various views. One sees a different, new contour each time, in which proportion and geometry play an important role.
The ‘skin’ of the artwork consists of broken bricks. This artwork welcomes and provides shelter for various species of fauna, including nest boxes for sparrows, swifts and starlings. In addition, there are openings, such as butt joints for bats.
photo: Janna Bathoorn
Location of TIGGEL – Wehe-den Hoorn