Giuseppe Giolitti

AMSTERDAM AND THE DROOM IN BAKSTEEN Urban rambles in the Mecca of Social Housing Giuseppe Giolitti

This is an Amsterdam guidebook with a difference, for lovers of urban explorations, far from the tourist crowds. Eschewing the usual sightseeing fare, it aims to acquaint readers with a side of the Dutch capital that most guidebooks barely touch on: the Amsterdam of Hendrik Berlage and Michel De Klerk and their architectural "dream in brick" a project that sought to give the city's workers "beautiful homes" that would stand as "monuments to the struggle of the working classes". This dream, brought to fruition through a bold program of urban renewal undertaken at the beginning of the 20th century, profoundly transformed the face of the city, turning Amsterdam into a monument to 20th-century urban planning and a "mecca" for social housing. The six itineraries described in this guide, all of which are situated outside of the city centre, accompany the reader around some of the key locations designed by the architects of the Amsterdam School - a movement whose highly distinctive interpretation of social housing was founded upon the belief that "for the labourer who has lived for so long without beauty, nothing is beautiful enough".