Leendert Viervant de Jonge (Leendert Viervant the Younger) (

Arnhem Arnhem ( or ; german: Arnheim; South Guelderish: ''Èrnem'') is a city and municipality situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands about 55 km south east of Utrecht. It is the capital of the province of Gelderland, located on both banks of ...

, 5 March 1752 – 4 July 1801,

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 ...

),Genealogieonline.nl
on Leendert Viervant. was a Dutch

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 cabinet builder. Viervant stemmed from a family of architects,Netherlands Architecture Institute
on the family Viervant. cabinet builders and stonemasons. His father, Hendrik Viervant, was the son of cabinet builder and stonemason Leendert Viervant the Elder and married Catharina Maria Otten, the sister of the neoclassical architect

Jacob Otten Husly Jacob Otten Husly (16 November 1738 – 11 January 1796) was an 18th-century architect from the Northern Netherlands. Biography He was born in Doetinchem to Albert Otten and Anna Hendrica Huslij, and added his mother's surname to his name from ...

. Also Hendrik's brother, Anthonie Viervant, was a cabinet maker and Anthonie's son Roelof Viervant designed garden pavillons and facades. All these family members have designed some buildings in 18th century Netherlands.Arneym
historical website about the city of Arnhem, on the family Viervant. Thanks to his family background, Viervant had a good basis to work from. Born and raised in the provincial city of Arnhem, he studied to become an architect with his uncle Husly. In 1768 he was entered into the stonemason guild of Amsterdam, where he lived and worked. He lived at the

Amstel The Amstel () is a river in the province of North Holland in the Netherlands. It flows from the Aarkanaal and Drecht in Nieuwveen northwards, passing Uithoorn, Amstelveen, and Ouderkerk aan de Amstel, to the IJ in Amsterdam. Annually, the riv ...

and later near

Hoge Sluis Hoge may refer to: People Surname * Dean Hoge (1937–2008), American sociologist * Enos D. Hoge (1831-1916), American judge, lawyer, and territorial legislator * James F. Hoge, Jr. (born 1935), American foreign Policy expert * Jane Currie Bla ...

(1784–1790). In 1791 he was forced to let his inventory be liquidated, because he couldn't fulfill his financial obligations any longer – finally he was able to come to arrangements with his

creditor A creditor or lender is a party (e.g., person, organization, company, or government) that has a claim on the services of a second party. It is a person or institution to whom money is owed. The first party, in general, has provided some property ...

s. According to his uncle Husly, Viervant couldn't handle money, and he lived a wild life.Teylers Museum
on Leendert Viervant the Younger (Dutch) In 1798 he became one of the three directors at the ''City and Public Works Department'' of the City Amsterdam, after his predecessor had to leave because of his support of the Orange family (this was between the revolution and the inclusion in the French Empire).

Work

Viervant was the architect of several buildings throughout the Netherlands. He was taught by his uncle Husly, and had a for that period typical neoclassical style. Short after his entry in the stonemason guild of Amsterdam in 1768, he got an assignment by the churchmasters of the Oude Kerk (''Old Church'') for a Bardiglio Marmere schoosteenmantel met holle stijlen en ornament in het midden voor f 180'' (a Bardiglio marmer chimney mantel with hollow styles and an ornament in the middle for 180

guilder Guilder is the English translation of the Dutch and German ''gulden'', originally shortened from Middle High German ''guldin pfenninc'' "gold penny". This was the term that became current in the southern and western parts of the Holy Roman Empir ...

s). From 1772 to 1776 he worked on the

town hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...

Weesp Weesp () is a city, an urban area in the municipality of Amsterdam and a former municipality in the province of North Holland, Netherlands. It had a population of in . It lies on the river Vecht and next to the Amsterdam–Rhine Canal in an are ...

. In 1779 he is asked by the

Teylers Stichting The Teylers Stichting (English: Teylers Foundation) is a Dutch foundation founded with the heritage of the Dutch 18th century cloth merchant and banker Pieter Teyler van der Hulst to support the people in need and encourage worship, science and art ...

to design the

Oval Room The Oval Room in the Teylers Museum was the first part of the museum (though it was not called a museum yet) that was opened in 1784. It could be entered through the garden of the fundatiehuis, the former home of Pieter Teyler van der Hulst. The ...

, the

Teylers astronomical observatory The Teylers astronomical observatory (Dutch: Teylers Sterrenwacht) is an astronomical observatory built in 1784 on the roof of the Oval Room (Teylers), Oval Room of the Teylers Museum in Haarlem.

and a significant part of the interior of the

Teylers Museum Teylers Museum () is an art, natural history, and science museum in Haarlem, Netherlands. Established in 1778, Teylers Museum was founded as a centre for contemporary art and science. The historic centre of the museum is the neoclassical Oval R ...

(works began in 1784). Here he could also use his family background of cabinet makers, designing amongst others the cabinets in the Oval Room and the lower part of the Big Electrostatic generator. In his works on the Teylers Museum, he based himself amongst others on work of the architects François de Neufforge,

Michelangelo Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (; 6 March 1475 – 18 February 1564), known as Michelangelo (), was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Born in the Republic of Florence, his work was insp ...

and Artus Quellinus. Viervant received some 9500

s, and was with that amount probably one of the best paid architects in the Netherlands at the time. His uncle Husly designed several of the ceiling decorations in the Oval Room. He also works on other projects for this foundation, including the

Teylers Hofje The Teylershofje is a hofje in Haarlem, Netherlands with 24 houses. History of the foundation The current hofje was built in 1787 from the legacy of Pieter Teyler van der Hulst, just like the Teylers Museum close to it. Pieter Teyler van der H ...

, all in

Haarlem Haarlem (; predecessor of ''Harlem'' in English) is a city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland. Haarlem is situated at the northern edge of the Randstad, one of the most populated metropoli ...

.Teylers Museum
digital 'bouwtekeningen' In the Regents' Room of

, there is a large group portrait by

Wybrand Hendriks Wybrand Hendriks (June 24, 1744, Amsterdam – January 28, 1831, Haarlem) was a Dutch painter, primarily known for his portraits, and the concierge of the Teylers Museum. Biography Wybrand Hendriks was born in a sculptor family, as the son of ...

, showing the first five Directors of

sitting around a table, together with their accountant Koenraad Hovens and their architect: Leendert Viervant. In 1787 he designed the current Kalverstraat 8 for the patriotic society, but the building was stopped soon because the society was abolished. This does however show his involvement with the patriotic circles, which would later make him director of the City and Public Works Department.Boezaard, A. / Zantkuyl, H.
Oud Hoorn 1993 p.80-87
Het cultuur-historisch pand Grote Oost 22 en zijn bewoners Also Viervant is believed to be the designer of the south entrance of the Oude Kerk in Amsterdam.

References and footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Viervant, Leendert, Younger 18th-century Dutch architects Neoclassical architects 1752 births 1801 deaths People from Arnhem Teylers Museum