The Turnhout School

In the 1960s, late modernist architecture appeared on the Belgian streetscape. This was also the case in Turnhout. Several architects made their mark there: Paul Neefs, Atelier Vanhout & Schellekens and the practice of Lou Jansen and Rudi Schiltz. Their work is known as ‘the Turnhout School’ and is considered among the finest of the Golden Sixties in Flanders.

Architecture in the Golden Sixties offers an insight into the uniqueness of this period and takes a look behind the scenes of architecture. The studies, travels, relationships with clients and mutual collaborations: the architects’ full lives are covered in detail. Using more than 500 plans and photographs, the distinctiveness and evolution of their architecture are explained. The book traces step by step how larger projects, such as the Parkwijk, the Sint-Victor primary school and the Warande cultural centre, came about through collaboration.