Back to School with...Office Winhov #1
SESSION #1: REPURPOSING ICONIC POST65 PUBLIC BUILDINGS
The first out of three Back to School with... series evenings curated by Office Winhov on repurposing Post65 collective buildings, with Inez Tan & Uri Gilad (Office Winhov), Wijnand Galema and Albert Takashi Richters (Powerhouse). Taking place on Tuesday 24 March 2026, 18:00 - 22:00
A package for all three evenings is available for 45 euro. Tickets for the separate evenings are 17,50 euro. All tickets include a simple dinner prior to the event.
For this edition of Back to School with..., the Independent School for the City has invited Office Winhov to curate a lecture series on the transformation of public and cultural buildings designed and constructed between 1965 and 1990. Now approximately fifty years old, many of these structures no longer meet contemporary standards for sustainability and comfort. At the same time, the dismantling of the welfare state has eroded the financial foundations that once supported the social programme in these buildings. Also, many post65 buildings were built light-framed, using materials and structures that are often more difficult to restore and sustain. This combination of factors often motivates municipalities or building owners nowadays to demolition them and make way for something new. Yet from both a sustainability perspective as well as a cultural-historical point of view, there are strong arguments for preserving these buildings and giving them a second life.
The series will both look at the challenges of repurposing post65 architecture as well as their cultural value. It will investigate how these buildings, through careful design, can once again become icons of a renewed social infrastructure, responding to the social and cultural needs of today.
REPURPOSING ICONIC POST65 PUBLIC BUILDINGS
This first evening focuses on the more iconic buildings of the post65 period. These structures were often designed using unique and experimental architectural approaches, which made them highly distinctive and emblematic, but at the same time difficult to repurpose.
About the speakers
Wijnand Galema conducts research into the history of architecture, urban planning, and landscape architecture. He studied Art and Architectural History at the University of Groningen and has built up extensive experience over the past 25 years. The built environment of the twentieth century—particularly that of the post-war decades (Reconstruction and Post-1965)—forms the core focus of his work. Galema is the initiator of the Netwerk Post ’65 Rotterdam, which aims to generate greater attention and awareness for this recent heritage. Connecting cultural-historical values to contemporary issues is his main driving force.
Albert Takashi Richters is a partner at Powerhouse Company, focusing on concept and vision development, with a keen interest in design. He studied architecture at Delft University of Technology. Albert strongly believes in the importance of maintaining an open dialogue of understanding and communication.
Session #1 - Tuesday 24 March 2026
18:00 – 19:00 Doors open and dinner served
19:00 – 19:10 Welcome by Independent School for the City
19:10 – 19:40 Introduction by Inez Tan and Uri Gilad of Office Winhov
19:40 – 20:10 Presentation by Wijnand Galema about the historic value of the Dutch Royal Library (Koninklijke Bibliotheek)
20:10 – 20:40 Presentation by Albert Takashi Richters (Powerhouse) about repurposing the Rotterdam Public Libarary
20:40 – 21:00 Conversation with speakers and audience.