Recap: Launch Almere Architecture City

Almere Architecture City: new city guide offers comprehensive look at Almere as ‘New Town’

On Saturday 30 November, Almere presented the long-awaited city guide Almere Architecture City, an in-depth and visual exploration of Almere as a ‘New Town’ based on the 100 best projects. The launch took place in a well-filled film room of De Nieuwe Bibliotheek with 80 interested parties, including local architects, culture and city lovers. The first copy of the guide was received by Mayor Hein van der Loo, who spoke highly of the book’s importance for the city.

The guide, written by Almere architectural historians Odette Breijinck and Ans van Berkum, offers residents and visitors alike a comprehensive and accessible look at Almere’s architecture and urban design. From the early urban growth in the 1970s to the modern developments of recent decades, Almere Architecture City provides a unique overview of how the city developed into the extraordinary urban landscape it is today. It proves itself as the capital of Post 65 architecture. This importance was underlined by the words of Susan Lammers, director of the National Cultural Heritage Agency.

Mayor Hein van der Loo praised the initiators of the project and stressed the importance of Almere Architecture City for the city. ‘This book is not only a valuable guide to the city, but also a reminder of the vision that underpinned Almere as a “New Town”. It is a must-read for anyone interested in Almere’s growth and development.’

The city guide is an initiative of Breijinck and Van Berkum, who have used their knowledge of the city and their passion for architecture to create a clear and visually appealing book. The photographs by Almere photographers Hans Jan Dürr and Geert van der Wijk delight the eye. The book was published by nai010 publishers, which sold out all first copies immediately that afternoon.

The good news for Almere residents and those interested is that the book is on sale this week at the local VVV on De Diagonaal in Almere. Director Nik Smit stressed the importance of the book’s arrival because the city attracts many architecture lovers. He was therefore pleased that the book ushered in this festive month.

Almere Architecture City offers a wealth of information for both architecture lovers and those who want to know more about Almere in general. The book invites you to see Almere not just as a ‘new city’, but as a dynamic and constantly changing urban landscape, which tells its own story through the buildings and public spaces that characterise it.