“My great-grandfather, whom I never knew, has gradually grown dearer to me as I’ve read what has been written about him and learned about the circumstances in which he must have lived and worked. It has become Jos’s story, following his journey from a budding architect to a man roughly my current age. At the same time, it has also become a reflection on my own life.”

Architect Jos Viérin (1872–1949) played a leading role in the reconstruction of the Devastated Regions. After World War I, it was decided to rebuild the towns and villages on the front lines that had been razed to the ground exactly as they were. That is why Diksmuide, Ypres, Nieuwpoort, and Lampernisse still exhibit such a remarkable sense of unity today.

For a long time, post-war reconstruction architecture was maligned, partly due to the influence of modernism. Philippe Viérin (noAarchitecten) sets out to explore the meaning of reconstruction. What drove his great-grandfather? Was the reconstruction a success or a failure?

This quest compels him to clarify his own vision of architecture.

Public Space

ISBN 9789491789236

——

Place – Philippe Viérin