Parrot neighborhood - Drachten

We are not sure whether you will encounter real parrots in this area. What we do know is why this neighborhood around Torenstraat in Drachten is called this way: the woodwork of a number of residential houses is painted after a design from 1921 by Theo van Doesburg. Van Doesburg was the founder of the abstract art movement De Stijl, in which use of primary color predominates. The artist became friends with the shoemaker and poet Evert Rinsema from Drachten. His brother, Thijs Rinsema, was active as an artist in his spare time and also became friends with Theo van Doesburg.

Thanks to these friendships, Van Doesburg received his first major architectural assignment for middle-class houses in Drachten. Van Doesburg designed both the inside and the outside of houses around Torenstraat, using the characteristic primary colors. A group of enthusiasts of De Stijl started the Van Doesburg-Rinsemahuis Foundation and set up one of the houses in Torenstraat as a museum house in 2018. From 2019, the Van Doesburg-Rinsemahuis will be open to the public.