Pierre Cuypers Original Statue Back in Place in Roermond, Unveiling on May 16

The original statue of Pierre Cuypers, one of Holland’s most famous architects, is back in place. The statue will be unveiled on May 16 in the Teeken School he designed in his hometown, Roermond.

“When we heard that the real Pierre was still there and even available, we thought: we have to go after him,” says director Huub Narinx of the Limburg Employers’ Association. L1 News. “In such a beautiful building with authentic elements, you need an authentic look.”

Pierre Cuypers was a very prolific architect (1827-1921) who stood out not only in Limburg, but throughout the Netherlands for his architectural style. Experts talk about it ‘romantic neo-Gothic’: large buildings with high towers, vaults, pinnacles and many decorations.

Famous handmade buildings include the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, Amsterdam Central Station, St. Vitus Church in Hilversum and De Haar Castle near Utrecht. In Roermond he built, among other things, the Cuypershuis and the Teeken School.

Cuypers’ grandson made the bust when the architect celebrated his 90th birthday in 1917. The statue was first placed at the top of a staircase, in total, the Photo school for useful and visual art in the center of Roermond. That was no coincidence. Cuypers was closely associated with the school and held several positions in the educational institution.

The Teeken School was combined with Dr. The Catholic School Community in the early 1960s. Cooper. When that school moved in 1990, the image moved with it. But it was badly damaged by a fall in 2012. As it was too expensive to restore the statue (immediately), it ended up in the Cuypershuis storage facility in Roermond.

In the meantime, the Teeken School underwent major renovations. When the building was completed, a bronze plaster statue of the architect was placed in the staircase. “Many people don’t even know that image was not original,” says Huub Narinx.

The plaster statue was an eyesore to him. Simply because the Limburg Employers’ Association now owns the old Teeken School and uses it as an office building.

“It’s an amazing hall with a unique staircase,” says Narinx. “The bust is so obvious that we always thought it was a shame that there was a plaster version.” So Narinx decided to look for the original.

That search yielded results quickly. The school turned out to be on loan to the Cuyperiana heritage foundation. The original foundation was given to that foundation.

Together with Cuyperiana, the Limburg Employers’ Association removed the body from the depot and it was returned. He is now back in the stairs, although the general public will have to wait to see what he looks like now. The statue will be unveiled on May 16, Cuypers’ birthday. “There’s a page over it now,” says Narinx. “We didn’t think we did that Ozze Pierre he could leave it undetected until then.”