Author: Padovan Richard

Place: Amsterdam

Publisher: Architectura and Natura Press

Year: 1994

Pages: 260

ISBN: 90-71570-40-1

Source: Donated by Charles Correa Associates

Subject: Architecture

Sub-Subject: Modern Architecture

Keyword: Human Proportion, Bibliography

Classification: 720.284

Shelf: C4R2

Accession No: B696

Contents: Preface Chap 1: Introduction: A Voice Crying in the Wilderness Part One: Looking Chapt 2: Leiden 1904-16: The Necessary and the Essential Chap 3: Poelgeest 1916-23: Nature, Art and Inspiration Chap 4: Delft 1921-27: Architecture and Society Chap 5: Oosterhout 1927-39: The Plastic Number Chap 6: Leiden and Breda 1939-48: Solid and Void Chap 7: Den Bosch 1948-56: The Whole and Its Parts Part II: Making Chap 8: Vaals 1956-70: The Beginning of the Second Phase Chap 9: Waasmunster 1970-82: Inside and Outside Chap 10: Tomelilla 1982-91: The Beginning of a Third Phase Chap 11: Three Attempts at a Conclusion Appendix A: The Plastic number and the ratio 1:2 Appendix B: The Plastic number and the Modulor Appendix C: The Plastic number and human proportion Bibliography Index

Abstract: *Dom Hans Van Der Laan: Modern Primitive* examines the life and work of Dutch Benedictine monk, architect, and theorist Dom Hans Van Der Laan (1904–1991). Divided into two parts, *Looking* and *Making*, the book traces his intellectual evolution and architectural practice, focusing on his development of the “Plastic Number”—a mathematical ratio influencing his designs. It explores his contributions to sacred architecture and his designs in Vaals, Waasmunster, and Tomelilla. The appendices delve into his use of the Plastic Number in relation to human proportions and other ratios. The work positions Van Der Laan as a pivotal figure in modernist architecture, blending classical principles with contemporary forms.