Jugendstil

Let's talk more about De Liefde's Centraal Apotheek's building style. The building was designed by architect R. Rijksen, The particular architectural style he used is called 'Art Nouveau' or 'Jugendstil' which comprised quite a short time frame (1890-1915) in architectural history. Still, 230 Jugendstil buildings exist in Utrecht (Van Hulten et al, 1992, p. 9) - De Liefde's Centraal Apotheek being the most well-known one (Van Hulten et al, 1992, p. 33).

The development of this style was a reaction to the surge of neo-styles in the nineteenth century, all of which rested upon the imitation of previous architectural movements, such as Classicism, the Gothic period and the Renaissance. The proponents of the Jugendstil movement deliberately wanted to create something new (Hulten et al, 1992, p. 15-16). The main inspiration for their style was nature; and especially the organic, long and sinuous lines found in it. From this idea, each country developed their own national variants of the Jugendstil style (Van Hulten et al, 1992, p. 13-14).

In Utrecht and the Netherlands, the Jugendstil buildings were based on simple geometric forms and decorations. De Liefde's Centraal Apotheek is a good representation of these qualities. The most notable features are its overall asymmetry, the hexagonal turret on the top right and the horse-shoe shaped loggia that stretches over the second and the first floor of the building (Van Hulten et al, 1992, p. 33-34) (Fig. 2).

Johan de Liefde and his pharmacy Johan de Liefde (1860-1923) was a publisher for 'Het Utrechtsch Nieuwschblad', who did anything and everything to promote the newspaper. For example, in the Spring of 1893 he let 'sandwichmen', people with huge advertising boards hanging from the shoulders, parade the Utrecht streets. Behind them, horses and wagons followed. On the latter, a miniature press stuck out. This spectacle was frowned upon by some Utrecht residents. At the same time, however, his hardworking nature was well-respected by many.

In 1903, Johan went yet a step further in advertising his newspaper. On the 14th of March, he announced the Utrechtsch Nieuwschblad Ziekenfonds (Utrecht Newspaper Health Insurance Fund) which included De Liefde's Centraal Apotheek. The fund was meant for the unprivileged citizens of Utrecht, but also offered free medical help to its staff and to the ones subscribed to the newspaper. All the pills and drinks were temporarily located in the anteroom of Drift 23, the newspaper's headquarters, but the pharmacy moved to Voorstraat 6 in 1905 (Fig. 3). To promote the pharmacy, he published a beautiful calendar in 1905 which was offered to the subscribers of the newspaper (Fig. 4). After the First World War, De Liefde's Centraal Apotheek became independent under improved social legislation. However, its name would always remain tied to Johan de Liefde (De Jongh, 1993, p. 3-4).

Below, you will find some pictures that will help you visualize what De Liefde's Centraal Apotheek looked like before it was re-purposed. You can see the front desk on Figure 5, and the laboratory on Figure 6.

First aid Whenever anyone got ill, or had injured themselves in twentieth-century Neude, the first place they were brought to was precisely De Liefde's Centraal Apotheek. There, they would receive first aid care before being sent home, or brought to the hospital. Reportedly, someone was even pronounced dead in the pharmacy (Het Utrechtsch Nieuwschblad, 1912). Het Utrechtsch Nieuwschblad was full of stories reporting incidents like people being run over or getting hit by trams (Het Utrechtsch Nieuwschblad, 1913; Het Utrechts Nieuwschblad 1913) (Appendix); accidents that would still be common in the busy Neude of today. It is funny how this same building that used to be of such central importance in twentieth-century people's lives now has a far less urgent function; shopping!

Sources

• De Jongh, A. (1993). De Liefde: UN nuttig voor ons en het algemeen. Honderd jaar Utrechts Nieuwsblad. Wegener: B.V. Utrechts Nieuwsblad.
• Van Hulten, B., Schouten, Y., Wessel, E. (1992). Jugendstil in Utrecht. Utrecht: Uitgeverij Matrijs.
• Nichting, B.J. (1977) Utrecht: De Neude rond. Utrecht: Weekblad Groot Utrecht.
• Revenge. (2019). About Us. Retrieved from: https://therevenge.nl/pages/about-us.
• Politienieuws. (1913-10-15). [Newspaper] Het Utrechts Nieuwschblad, Het Utrechts Archief, Utrecht.
• Politienieuws. (1913-08-16). [Newspaper] Het Utrechts Nieuwschblad, Het Utrechts Archief, Utrecht.
• Plotselinge dood. (1912-10-28) [Newspaper] Het Utrechtsch Nieuwschblad, Het Utrechts Archief, Utrecht.

Appendix

Excerpts from Het Utrechtsch Nieuwschblad:

“A nine-year-old boy from the Oranjestraat jumped on the Zeister tram yesterday. On the Neude, the boy jumped off the tram, quickly walked off from behind it and collided with the tram going into the opposite direction. With serious injuries to the face and internal bruising the boy was taken and carried into De Liefde’s Centraal apotheek. After being bandaged there for the time being, he was transported to the government clinic for further medical treatment.” (Het Utrechtsch Nieuwschblad, 1913).

"In the Potterstraat, a 10-year-old boy was run over by a cyclist. He suffered a head injury and was brought into De Liefde’s Centraal Apotheek in a unconscious state." (Het Utrechtsch Nieuwschblad, 1913).

"Yesterday afternoon a rare sudden death took place here. A 22-year-old girl miss van S. from Zeist came riding into the city. In the Potterstraat at the Neude she felt unwell. She stepped off her bicycle and immediately fell on the street. Unfortunately, when she was carried into De Liefde’s Centraal Apotheek, it appeared she had already passed. Dr. Olland, who was immediately called up, could only pronounce her dead, which was caused by heart failure. The body was transferred on a stretcher to the main police station." (Het Utrechtsch Nieuwschblad, 1912).