Adrianus Cyriacus Bleijs (29 March 1842,

Hoorn Hoorn () is a city and municipality in the northwest of the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It is the largest town and the traditional capital of the region of West Friesland. Hoorn is located on the Markermeer, 20 kilometers ( ...

- 12 January 1912,

Kerkdriel Kerkdriel is a town in the Dutch province of Gelderland. It is a part of the municipality of Maasdriel, and lies about 8 km north of 's-Hertogenbosch. The town of Kerkdriel had 6,765 inhabitants, on 1 January 2019. The approximate built-up ar ...

) also known as A.C. Bleijs or, incorrectly, as A.C. Bleys, was a

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

and

painter Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...

who is primarily known for designing several

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

churches.

Life

Bleijs was born in Hoorn as the son of Johannes and Johanna Krijgsman Bleijs. His father was a master carpenter who built several houses in that town. Bleijs was trained in architectural skills by architect B. Blanken and engineer H. Linse. In November 1859 he moved to

Roermond Roermond (; li, Remunj or ) is a city, municipality, and diocese in the Limburg province of the Netherlands. Roermond is a historically important town on the lower Roer on the east bank of the river Meuse. It received town rights in 1231. Roer ...

to join

P.J.H. Cuypers Petrus Josephus Hubertus "Pierre" Cuypers (16 May 1827 – 3 March 1921) was a Dutch architect. His name is most frequently associated with the Amsterdam Central Station (1881–1889) and the Rijksmuseum (1876–1885), both in Amsterdam. ...

’ firm."A.C. Bleijs", Archinform
/ref> After a conflict with Cuypers in 1861, for which he refused to apologize, he was forced to leave Cuypers’ firm, although Bleijs later denied this was the reason for his departure. Cuypers was a great proponent of the neo-Gothic, while Bleijs was interested in a variety of styles.Schrickx-Guinée, Trudi. "Adrianus Cyriacus Bleijs (1842-1912)", Oud Hoorn, July 20, 2014
/ref> He went to Antwerp to pursue his further education at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, where in 1862 he was the first winner of the Premier Prix d'Excellence for architecture and where he graduated in 1864. After graduation he returned to Hoorn and started his own office. In 1867 he married Bregitta Maria Witte; they had twelve children. In the early years, he received few assignments, but after 1870 the number of commissions increased. These were of a very diverse nature: he designed houses, warehouses, factories, residential and commercial buildings, churches, schools, asylums, cemeteries, a concert and theater hall, etc. Bleijs developed into the expert in the field of shop architecture. From 1876 to 1880 he served as a regent for a Roman Catholic orphanage in Hoorn. In 1880 he moved to

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

, where he became a board member of the architects' association in 1887. He also became a board member of 'Arti et Amicitiae ', an association of visual artists and art lovers, and served on the Amsterdam city council. Pijnacker1

After ca. 1900 no further assignments came, and he was grieving the loss of his son Alexander, who he had intended to succeed him. In 1903 Bleijs closed his office and became a civil servant in

's-Hertogenbosch s-Hertogenbosch (), colloquially known as Den Bosch (), is a city and municipality in the Netherlands with a population of 157,486. It is the capital of the province of North Brabant and its fourth largest by population. The city is south of th ...

. He was an inspector for public health, in charge of compliance with the legal provisions regarding public housing in North Brabant, Gelderland and Limburg. He died in

and after a funeral mass at the St. Nicholas Church in Amsterdam. He was buried at the Catholic cemetery De Liefde.

Style

For a Catholic architect of that period, Bleijs was unusually eclectic. He did not limit himself to the dominant neo-Gothic style but designed several churches in neo-Romanesque and neo-Renaissance style as well, despite the latter style being controversial in Catholic circles for its supposedly Protestant character. He also designed several neoclassical villas, and mansions in second-Empire style, a style that was in vogue during his student years in Antwerp. Sometimes he drew several designs in different styles for an assignment, from which the client could choose. Other times he combined elements from various style periods in one design (eclectic style). Besides fourteen churches he designed, among other things, two Amsterdam hospitals. His best known work is the St. Nicolas Church in Amsterdam. Among his students were such notable architects as Willem Kromhout and

Jan Stuyt Jan Stuyt (21 August 1868, Purmerend - 11 July 1934, The Hague) was a Dutch architect. Childhood and Education Stuyt was born the son of a cattle farmer. Due to the headmaster of his school, he was employed in 1883 at the office of Adrianus B ...

Works

* Sint-Dionysiuskerk, Heerhugowaard (1868) demolished 1963 * St. Cunerakerk, Nibbixwoud (1875) * SS. Cyriacus and Franciscus Church and rectory, Hoorn (1880) * St. Nicolas Church, Amsterdam (1887) *

Church of Saint John the Baptist (Pijnacker) The church of Saint John the Baptist (or as written by the parish H. Joannes de Dooper or as a variant in Dutch Sint Johannes de Doper) is a Roman Catholic church in Pijnacker in the Netherlands. The church is cruciform and built in the neo-Roman ...

(1892) * Sint Willibrorduskerk, Rhoon (1893) * St. Elizabeth Asylum, Amsterdam File:Reproductie van tekening in St.Nic.kerk - Amsterdam - 20013632 - RCE.jpg, Architectural drawings, St. Nicholas Church File:Nibbixwoud-St. Cunerakerk.jpg, St. Cunerakerk, Nibbixwoud File:Rhoon, de Sint Willibrorduskerk foto2 2015-08-02 16.11.jpg, Sint Willibrorduskerk, Rhoon File:Sint-Dionysiuskerk in Heerhugowaard (1868-1963).jpg, Sint-Dionysiuskerk, Heerhugowaard

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bleijs, Adrianus 1842 births 1912 deaths Dutch architects Dutch ecclesiastical architects 19th-century Dutch painters Dutch male painters People from Hoorn 20th-century Dutch painters 19th-century Dutch male artists 20th-century Dutch male artists