Het Nieuw Instituut opened in January 2013. It is the result of a merger of the Netherlands Architecture Institute, Premsela, Netherlands Institute for Design and Fashion and Virtual Platform. Now it is an institution that focuses on design, architecture and digital culture.
Het Nieuwe Instituut
Architecture in cities goes beyond the ‘appearance’ of buildings. In this day and age, we see that the health of the inhabitants in cities where people are close to each other is increasingly essential. The sustainability of materials and energy supplies is more significant than ever before. Migration and climate change are issues you can’t ignore. Het Nieuwe Instituut is investigating these issues together with architects. Another function they have is to maintain the State Archives for Dutch Architecture and Urban planning. This archive is one hundred and fifty years of history of Dutch Architecture and Urban planning. The public sees the answers through exhibitions, lectures and workshops.
Design and Digital Culture is part of people who are participating in the digital age. Everyone who creates a profile online thinks about the design of it. The New Institute looks at the influences of new technologies and ideas on design. Exhibitions show possible developments in the design of our digital culture. The history of this development will always be part of exhibitions. This institute offers a rich collection of insights into modern art.
In the Study Center, everyone can consult the Dutch National Collection for Dutch Architecture and Urban planning. This collection contains photographs, drawings and models of Dutch architects and urban planners. In the library, you can find books and journals about architecture and everything the New Institute is working on.
The museum’s Research & Development department investigates the different angles of looking at culture. As a follow-up to this, it is also looking at other ways of presenting culture to the public.
Every year, Het Nieuwe Instituut attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors to the museum and activities such as the Thursday Night Live. This proves that the museum adds value to Rotterdam’s cultural society, despite its young age.
What more has Het Nieuwe Instituut to offer?
In the Bookstore, you can buy books related to exhibitions. The shop opens 1 hour before the museum opens at 10:00 am, there will always be people to answer questions about the books. In the Nieuwe Cafe, you can eat something or have a drink outside on the terrace.
The museum ticket also gives free entrance to Huis Sonneveld. This house was built in 1933 in the style of the Nieuwe Bouwen and is in excellent condition. The house is a hundred meters walk from The New Institute.