Leendert van der Vlugt was one of the most important architects of the Nieuwe Bouwen movement. Apart from Huis Sonneveld, he designed a number of other functionalist houses in Rotterdam, and a special meeting room for the theosophical association in Amsterdam. But his best-known buildings were probably the Van Nelle coffee, tea and tobacco factory, which can still be seen from the train to Amsterdam, and De Kuip, the stadium of the Feyenoord soccer club. These projects were not all his own work. His masterpieces were designed in collaboration with the architect J.A. Brinkman, with whom he formed a partnership in 1925. When the two of them began work on the Van Nelle factory, part of their brief was that it should still look modern in 25 years' time. But most importantly, it must be an ideal place to work, both in terms of productivity and working conditions. The latter was particularly unusual. The client believed strongly that the factory should be well lit and relaxing, and the workers should be able to see outside. Brinkman and Van der Vlugt met this objective by using modern materials and large amounts of windows. The Feyenoord stadium dates from the end of Van der Vlugt's life. He was commissioned to design a building with a capacity of 60,000 spectators in 1934. Two years later, when this vast steel construction was completed, he died at the age of only 42.
The next room on this tour is the dining room, number 7.