Gerrit van Arkel

Gerrit A. van Arkel (Loenen aan de Vecht, April 3 1858 - Abcoude, July 11 1918) was a Dutch architect who designed many of Amsterdam's most prominent Jugendstil (Art Nouveau) buildings.

Van Arkel's Jugendstil buildings in Amsterdam include:
* The Asscher diamond factory on Tolstraat (1907), where the world's largest diamond, the Cullinan Diamond, was cut.
* The Diamond Exchange on Weesperplein square (1911)
* The Helios building on Spui square (1895/1896).
* The Astoria office building of the Eerste Hollandsche Levensverzekerings Bank on Keizersgracht canal (1904/1905)
* The office building of The Marine Insurance Company Limited on the Rokin (1901).
* The bakery of D.C. Stähle on Spuistraat (1898).

Van Arkel moved to Amsterdam in 1883 to become an architect. His designs initially mixed neogothic and neorenaissance styles but, from about 1894, he adopted a sobre version of Jugendstil (Art Nouveau). This sobre style of Jugendstil, influenced by the work of H. P. Berlage, was known as the "Nieuwe Stijl" ("New Style").

Van Arkel designs are characterized by the frequent use of bay windows and loggias, as well as asymmetrically placed balconies, towers and domes.

His design for the Helios building won third prize at the architectural competition of the 1900 World's Fair in Paris. Twelve of his buildings in Amsterdam were designated national monuments in 2001. The Asscher diamond factory has also been nominated for national monument status, and another 17 buildings in Amsterdam have been nominated to become municipal monuments.

Sources

* [http://www.bma.amsterdam.nl/adam/nl/bouwm/ark.html Amsterdam Bureau of Monuments & Archeology] (Dutch) with photos
* [http://www.jhm.nl/amsterdam_eng.aspx?ID=16 Jewish Historical Museum]
* [http://www.dbnl.org/tekst/_jaa003191901_01/_jaa003191901_01_0010.htm Jaarboek van de Maatschappij der Nederlandse Letterkunde, 1919] (Dutch)