Designed by Michel de Klerk, completed 1920 Amsterdam, the Netherlands The Eigen Haard Housing Estate in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, consists of three blocks of housing in the Spaarndammerbuurt, a residential district for workers that occupies approximately 54 acres in the northwest part of Amsterdam. Designed by Michel de Klerk (1884–1923) between 1914 and 1920, this complex has been recognized as his finest achievement in the field of housing, depicting his Expressionist style and ultimately becoming one of the symbolic structures of the Amsterdam School. Inspired by contemporary ideas that can be traced to the teachings of H.P.Berlage (1856–1934), de Klerk was committed to the basic Berlage credo of “truth in Encyclopedia of 20th-century architecture 740 architecture” as expressed through the unity of spatial organization and material use. In opposition to the abstract Cubism of the De Stijl movement, Berlage emphasized experimentation with the artistic potential of practical soluti...