Illustration Danyan Liu The Bijlmer in Amsterdam should get a major makeover. An approach that would make the modernist neighbourhood greener and “softer”. Rewilding Bijlmer is the name of this vision presented by WUR lecturer Danyan Liu at the Amsterdam Museum. She is one of the selected participants in Refreshing Amsterdam#3; Imagine the future
Liu (Landscape Architecture and Spatial Planning), born and raised in China, knows what she is talking about. She lived in the Bijlmer for a year and a half, residing in Zandkasteel, the former ING headquarter. From her window, she observed the neighbourhood and its residents. ‘A very unique place, very diverse with many people of color. Very different from Delft, where I studied.’
White bank staff
‘At the same time, it is also where ING and all these other companies have their offices,’ she says. ‘On weekdays, white bank staff and corporate employees dominate the public space. In the evening it’s quiet and you only see the local residents. While during the weekends people in the neighborhood of Zuidoost come to the Bijlmer for recreation. A very distinct dynamic’, Liu says, ‘New developments like rental apartments, rooftop bar, pokebowl and retail stores mainly serve the real estate developers, while the public space is neglected.’
Couldn’t it be different, Liu wondered. In her attempt to change, she began to delve into the history of the Bijlmer. ‘I wanted to understand why the neighbourhood was built the way it was. She researched the Bijlmermeer, the land reclamation and ultimately the construction in the modernist style of the influential architect Le Corbusier. She listened to the interviews of the alderman and architects who were there at the cradle the neighbourhood.
‘The modernists saw the city as a machine’, Liu explains. ‘Everything had to be functional, like in a machine. Traffic flows were separated. In that rational and masculine approach – many of the architects were men – little attention was paid to feeling and experience. One forgot that people want to meet and interact in public spaces. That’s what I mean by softness. Can we make the Bijlmer feel soft again?’
One forgot that people want to meet and interact in public spaces
Danyan Liu, Landscapearchitecture
Somewhere during her project, which started as a hobby, she stumbled upon the open call to participate in the museum’s exhibition. Her submission is one of twenty ‘dreams’ that are chosen and can be seen alongside the work of professional artists. That ‘seeing’ concerns the explanation of her ideas. Liu drew up five principles for the ‘rewilding’ of the Bijlmer.
Embrace diversity
These principles are at odds with the rigidity of the modernists. According to Liu, the Bijlmer is not a machine but an organism that lives and changes. Embrace diversity and make room for minorities. Designing the Bijlmer softly so that children can play outside, women feel safe on the streets, the elderly can meet each other, and the homeless can rest on a bench.
This vision has not been elaborated into a design. Liu: ‘A design represents just one of many possible futures. I don’t want to limit those possibilities by highlighting just one. I created collages that bring my ideas together. Quick and dirty. And apparently it comes across and resonates. From the first reactions after the opening, I notice that people understand my vision.’
