Museumplein: Iamsterdam

There is a large square at the edge of the city centre of Amsterdam, it is called Museumplein (Museum square). The three largest museums of Amsterdam are located around that square: Rijksmuseum, Stedelijk Museum and Van Gogh Museum. Each museum has a different and wonderful collection, well worth your visit.

boy taking selfie on top of the letter t

Yesterday I decided to go back to the Rijksmuseum to see the exhibition Modern Times again. I had the idea that I didn't see everything the last time I went there. Read my earlier blogpost over here.

boy with hat within the letter d

I walked along the expensive shopping street P.C. Hooftstraat to gaze at their Christmas decorations and shot a few window displays. There might be a Christmas card between those images, I haven't decided yet.

dressed up on top of the letter m

Anyways, just before arriving at the Rijksmuseum I passed the Museumplein and saw all the people posing in front of the huge letters of Iamsterdam. On internet it is a portal of the city of Amsterdam and a few copies of the huge words are spread over town, undoubtedly to promote the city.

girl helping other girl on the letter a

People love to climb on top of the letters and pose for family or friends. I've taken a few photos from the front but this time I walked to the rear. It is a lot quieter there and the view is totally different and quite interesting.

girl posing in the red letter m

dressed up boy curled up in the letter a

boy and girl on top of the letter s

I think the first photo with the guy and his selfie-stick is the best, maybe I should get myself one of those before I fly off to Venice coming February!

Exhibition: The future of fashion is now

After a delicious lunch we went to the exhibition 'The future of fashion is now' in Museum Boijmans van Beuningen. The museum exhibits pieces of young designers from all over the world who have a critical view on the current fashion system with themes such as sustainability, futuristic technologies and the social values of cloths. Below are a few of the items I liked.

Anrealage (Japanse brand, 2003): 'Bone', 2 outfits, spring/summer 2013. Various fabrics and laser-cut polyester, made fluorescent.

This collection consists of cage constructions in bright, glow-in-the-dark colours.

Dress by Jum Nakao (1965 Brazil): 'A Costura do Invisível' - Sewing the Invisible, spring/summer 2004. Assemblage of vegetable paper, aluminium, glue, polypropylene and video.
Following the poetic, fairytale-like show, all the beautiful garments - which required almost a ton of paper and 700 hours of work - were ripped to shreds by the models. Nakao is concerned not with materials, but with reflecting upon our value systems.

'Waver' (2 dresses) by Shao Yen (Taiwan, 1981), autumn/winter 2010-2011. Cashmere, lycra, nylon, video.
Shao Yen studied metalworking and jewelry design, but in the 1990s was intrigued by the sculptural approach of designers like Issey Miyake. 'Waver' consists of bumps that have no relationship to the human body. The forms are inspired by waves crashing on a beach.

'Ferrofluid Dress' by Iris van Herpen (the Netherlands, 1984), autumn/winter 2014/2015, installation.
Iris van Herpen creates refined, futuristic collections with a combination of delicate handwork, digital technologies and innovative materials. The waist of the 3D-printed dress has a structure of open lines, into which ferrofluid drips from above.

'Sleep suit' (2010), by Forrest Jessee (USA, 1977), laser-cut EVA foam.
'Sleep Suit' makes it possible for the wearer to sleep wherever they are. It is a kind of a construction that is put over the body.

'Hug me' by Si Chan (China, 1989), two garments, autumn/winter 2012, nylon, lining, other materials.
During his study in London, Chan felt very isolated among his competitive fellow students. He believes that a simple hug can break through the loneliness.

Digest Design workshop (2010) by Dooling Jiang (China, 1984). Our home: Nothing is impossible for a faithful heart, faith moves mountains, 2014, installation made with Dutch stones and Chinese fabrics.

This collection formed the basis for 'Our Home', a tent installation in which the designer hopes to awaken our primary instinct for refuge and protection.

Exercises on Health, Part I, 2014. Installation by Lucia Cuba (Peru, 1980), handwoven and embroidered cotton thread in red, black, white and pink.
Cuba attempts to provide an insight into how people experience sickness and health. The garments bear the stories op people's battles with cancer. Health is intangible and is hidden in a person's spirit or body.
Until 18 January, 2015.

Exhibition: Expedition Silk Road

Last Saturday my friend Veronie and I went to the Hermitage Museum in Amsterdam. We wanted to soak in some culture and we have always been interested in the Orient and the Far East. The exhibition we visited was called Expedition Silk Road.

The weather was extremely hot and the museum was wonderfully cool because of the preservation all the artifacts. We were not allowed to take any pictures, I guess that is because many people use a flash when they photograph in a museum and that ruins the colours of the artifacts. Personally, I don't use a flash because it makes the pictures really flat and I don't want any ruining on my conscience.

I never really realised how extensive the area was of what is called the Silk Road and how many countries were linked to it: Russia, India, Afghanistan, Iran, Irak and lots of kingdoms I have never heard of before. I secretly took the picture below because I was so in awe with it.

boddhisatva with buddhas disciples Kashyapa and Ananda on his sides

On the Silk Road many objects were traded, not just silk, also silver, glass, gold and every day utensils. The Silk Road not only caused the spreading of diseases but also of Buddhism, hence the many Buddhist artifacts found along the Road and displayed in the museum. The objects were excavated by Russian expeditions in the 19th and 20th centuries.

@State Hermitage St. Petersburg

We really loved (as we are costume fans) looking at this stylish lady from the city of Kucha, in one hand she is holding a lotus flower. Her dress is in one piece and apparently that was rather unusual at the time.

The closing date of the exhibition is 5 September 2014, so there is plenty of time to go and see it.

Photography workshop: construct

My friends C, V and I went to a workshop at FOAM last Saturday; the museum organizes monthly workshops for people who would like to learn how to make interesting pictures. The theme was Construct. The idea was to take a prop and to photograph it out of its normal context so it would make the viewer think what had happened. We were sent outside on the streets for 20 minutes to do this.

Now, this is a total different way to take pictures than I normally do, so it took me some time to get in the right frame of mind. But I got the hang of it and I rather enjoyed it, it's like staging a scene in a movie.

Then we had to select two of our best pictures and we viewed all the pictures together.

And that we had a second round of photography. My friends and I took some shots inside the museum, playing with the exhibited pictures and taking them out of their context.

The best part was that when we working with the picture below, the photographer himself, Peter van der Velde, just happened to pass by and wanted to receive the image we had just made. We were so honored to have met him, it was the cherry on the cake.

Photo by Ciska Kuijper

Teylers Museum, Haarlem

Last weekend I went to the Teylers Museum in Haarlem. It's the first and oldest museum in the Netherlands and named after Pieter Teyler van der Hulst (1702-1778), a wealthy banker and silk trader in Haarlem. Living in the Age of Enlightenment, he had a great interest in the arts and science.

We were mainly interested in the building, but the collection of minerals and fossils is simply wonderful. The building reminded me of the Egyptian museum in Cairo: it has the same kind of cabinets and lighting (natural light only for the regular collection).

Below is a selection of my perceptions in the museum.

Exhibition foam II: Edward Steichen

The second exhibition we visited was about photographer Edward Steichen (1879-1973) 'In High Fashion, the Condé Nast years, 1923-1937'. During those years he worked as a fashion photographer for Vogue and Vanity Fair and he had hundreds of famous models, actors, actresses and authors in front of his camera.

There was an overwhelming number of photographs displayed; some people are still known nowadays for their looks or abilities, others are forgotten over time.

Below are some of my favorite pictures that were on display:

Actress Carlotta Monterey, 1924.

Actor Gary Cooper, 1930.

Actress Mary Heberden, 1935.

Actress Greta Garbo, 1928.

Actress Gloria Swanson, 1924

Actress Loretta Young, 1932.

Actress Marlene Dietrich, 1934.

Princess Nathalie Paley wearing sandals by Shoecraft, 1934.

Of course this has nothing to do with Contemplative photography: this has nothing to do with fresh perceptions, everything is posed. But I do like his lines and lighting, and his sometimes dramatic use of shadows.

All photographs by Edward Steichen.

Exhibition foam I: Tim Hetherington

Yesterday my friend C. and I went to the foam (Photography museum Amsterdam) to see two exhibitions: the first one was called 'Infidel' by British photographer Tim Hetherington (1970-2011). It showed several of his pictures from his series called 'Sleeping soldiers', 'Infidel' and 'Diary'. His work shows the war experience from the perspective of the individual. We see young boys sent to Afghanistan, not exactly knowing what to expect. Hetherington gives us an intimate view into their daily lives through portraits and captured moments in combat, in waiting or asleep.

I loved the closeness, it almost felt I was there. I also experienced the close bond of these men amongst each other. A lot of the pictures were taken when the guys were relaxed, not posing. And to get so close, the photographer sometimes used this cell phone, like the guys did themselves.

All photographs by Tim Hetherington.

Highlights of the Rijksmuseum

For the yearly outing yesterday of the supportive staff of the university, we went to the Rijksmuseum. We had a tour of the museum for an hour, showing us a few highlights of the collection.

Above the Virgin as Mater Dolorosa (Our Lady of Sorrows). Attributed to Pietro Torrigliani, soutern Netherlands, c. 1507-1520. Made of terra cotta with old, in part original polychromy.
I like the shadows on her face. The lighting of this terra cotta bust was done with a lot of care and skill.

The original wall and ceiling decorations were uncovered from under mutiple layers of white paint.

Stained glass with the images of Dutch artists.

Our feet on the original mosaic floor, which was recovered from beneath a wooden floor.

Visitor taking a picture of the 'Night Watch' (1642), by Rembrandt. This is by far the most famous painting exhibited in the Rijksmuseum.

Religious art: three ladies from the middle ages.

Detail of 'Officers and bowman of burrow VIII in Amsterdam' (1639), by B. van der Helst. I fell for the striking colours.