Charles Prosper Wolff Schoemaker was a Dutch architect who designed several distinguished Art Deco buildings in Bandung, Indonesia, including the Villa Isola and Hotel Preanger. He has been described as "the Frank Lloyd Wright of Indonesia," and Wright had a considerable influence on Schoemaker's modernist designs. Although he was primarily known as an architect, he was also a painter and sculptor.
Background
Charles Prosper Wolff Schoemaker was born in Banyu Biru, Indonesia on the island of Java, where he would spend most of his life. For his secondary school education, Schoemaker was sent to the KMA (Royal Military Academy) in the Dutch city of Breda.
In 1905, he returned to the Dutch East Indies to work for the Royal Dutch East Indies Army as a military engineer. After leaving the job in 1911, he became the engineer for the Department of Civil Public Works in Batavia (present-day Jakarta), and became the Director of Public Works in 1914. From 1917 to 1918, he worked for Fa. Schlieper & Co and took a study trip to the United States with the organization, where he came into contact with the work of Frank Lloyd Wright.
Education
For his secondary school education, Schoemaker was sent to the KMA (Royal Military Academy) in the Dutch city of Breda.
Career
In 1905, he returned to the Dutch East Indies to work for the Royal Dutch East Indies Army as a military engineer. After leaving the job in 1911, he became the engineer for the Department of Civil Public Works in Batavia (present-day Jakarta), and became the Director of Public Works in 1914. From 1917 to 1918, he worked for Fa. Schlieper & Co and took a study trip to the United States with the organization, where he came into contact with the work of Frank Lloyd Wright. In 1918, in partnership with his brother Richard, Schoemaker established the architectural firm C.P. Schoemaker and Associates in Bandung. His firm blended traditional Indonesian architecture with modern European styles, incorporating traditional elements into the shapes and layouts of the buildings. In 1922, he became the professor of the Technische Hoogeschool Bandoeng (Technical College of Bandung). While professor, he mentored Sukarno, who would become the first President of the Republic of Indonesia.
Politics
Wolff Schoemaker was considered one of the best Indonesian architects of his time. Throughout his career, he explored the relationship between European designs and Indonesian vernacular expression. His work developed a new modern language of forms based on tropical conditions and principles.
Personality
He has been described as "the Frank Lloyd Wright of Indonesia," and Wright had a considerable influence on Schoemaker's modernist designs. Although he was primarily known as an architect, he was also a painter and sculptor. Schoemaker's design was influenced by indigenous Javanese philosophy; the orientation of the building is according to the north-south axis, where the building faces Mount Tangkuban Perahu to the north and the city of Bandung to the south.