On holiday in a modern monument

You wouldn't say it, but the super-tight designed white bungalow on the Korfwaterweg in Petten is 80 years old.

The house is a design by Gerrit Rietveld, who often caused a stir in Dutch architecture with his quirky designs. He designed the house for the equally quirky Brandt Corstius family.

Aaf Brandt Corstius likes to say that she spends her holidays in her grandparents' holiday home. The holiday home that her grandfather and grandmother had built by Rietveld, for 3000 guilders (just under 1500 euros) She enjoys the shock that that brings when she casually drops that combination.

Bungalow with lift

It is therefore a special house that Rietveld designed. It was his first bungalow and knows many typical Rietveld details. Between kitchen and living room is a sliding door, shelves and wardrobes are rotatable and sinks have a folding top that serves as a desk when closed. Special is also a lift that reaches into the dune circle, for the cool storage of food.

But even this special holiday home must have it's special environment. Aaf Brandt Corstius writes in her column in de Volkskrant: ‘If you are a child, you have little or no appreciation for Rietveld’s design vision. Then it is especially important that a summer cottage is located in a magical triangle of beach, forest and miniature golf course, which is exactly the case here. ‘ The area around the house is now a protected natural area.

After 80 years the maintenance costs turned out to be too high and the family donated the house to association Hendrick de Keyser. This organization is committed to the preservation of architecturally or historically important buildings.