The Netherlands Architecture Institute (NAi) is more than just a museum. The NAi owns one of the world’s largest architectural collections, offers educational programmes, and has its own library and study hall, a bookshop with an extensive selection of books on architecture and a cosy museum café.
The NAi is located in a striking building designed by architect Jo Coenen, located on the Museumpark in Rotterdam. In more than fifteen exhibitions in five exhibition rooms, the NAi gives the public an attractive introduction to historical and contemporary architecture. The showpiece of the collection is the museum home Huis Sonneveld, a hyper-modern villa from 1933, filled with light, air, space and a surprising amount of colour. The home, based on a design by architects Brinkman & Van der Vlugt, is one of the best-preserved examples of the New Building school of architecture. The interior design, with its modern, tube-based furniture and many technical gadgets, shows what modern life looked like in 1933. An audio tour makes the experience complete!