District house Deurne

Eduard Van Steenbergen

Antwerp, Deurne, Maurice Dequeeckerplein 1

1956 – 1964

District house Deurne

Deurne and Eduard Van Steenbergen, always a good combination! It is not so long ago that I wrote a blog post about another realization of him in Deurne: the Atheneum. The two buildings are also within walking distance of each other. During an ‘Open Monumentendag’ I could discover the building together with a guide, worth it!

Shape

The building consists of several parts: there is an exhibition space on the side. The front building with two storeys contains the representative part, where among other things is the wedding hall. At the center is a tower with a height of 39 meters. At the back is the administrative part, which consists of five floors. Everything is grouped around an open courtyard with a fountain.

Design

It is a design by Eduard senior, but the implementation was led by Eduard junior. The first stone was laid on October 20, 1956. The plans date back to 1948. Eduard dies in 1952 and the mayor asked Eduard’s son, who is also an architect, to further develop the design. The inauguration took place on December 14, 1964.

Green

The building was placed by Van Steenbergen in the middle of the available land of 13,000 m². Far enough away so not to disturb the possible ceremonies. It also marks the start of the Rivierenhof, a natural parc.

Art

The district house consists of a concrete skeleton, clad in white natural stone. The entrance area has a different color: black. The interior largely came from De Coene from Kortrijk, just like another district house in Antwerp: Merksem. The interior of the council chamber is still completely intact and comes from De Coene. The mayor’s cabinet contains Barcelona chairs by Mies Van der Rohe. Other artists were also invited to decorate the building. For example, there is a contemporary painting in the wedding room.