Art Museums in Amsterdam

“I’ve become like one of those people I hate, the sort who go to the museum and, instead of looking at the magnificent Brueghel, take a picture of it, reducing it from art to proof. It’s not “Look what Brueghel did, painted this masterpiece” but “Look what I did, went to Rotterdam and stood in front of a Brueghel painting!” David Sedaris

The best place to start exploring art in Amsterdam is the Rijksmuseum.

Many of Johannes Vermeer’s paintings are housed in the Rijksmuseum and though Girl With A Pearl Earring is in the Hague there is a lot to see. Several Rembrandt paintings are there including Night Watch. There are many rooms devoted to Dutch painters. Allow a few hours.

The passageway at the Rijksmuseum has the best outdoor acoustics in the city. Many professional musicians come there to practice. It is definitely worth a walk through.

The Van Gogh Museum is a crowd pleaser . Visit during the week to avoid the crowds.

However, it’s still worth wading through floods of tourists for a chance to get up close to so many recognizable works of art crafted by such a complicated fascinating man.

Sex sells . Easy Virtue explores artists’ fascination with prostitution in Paris in the second half of the 19th and start of the 20th centuries.

It was curated at the Musee D’Orsay in Paris and is now showing at the Van Gogh museum till June. It is confrontational, interesting and beautiful. It is filled with unanswered questions, double standards, hints and clues. Amsterdam with its red light district is a good city for this exhibition.

The Stedelijk Museum is also located in Museumplein with the Rijksmuseum and the Van Gogh museum and is usually overshadowed by them . All three museums are worth visiting because they represent different aspects of Dutch art. The Stedelijk focuses on modern artistic movements and is definitely worth a visit.

If you are a photography fan or not, the Foam Museum is a cool place to go. They always have fascinating exhibitions and change them often.

It is a large and interesting space with a great gallery and bookstore. It could be one of the best photography museums in Europe.

The Rembrandt House Museum consists of a seventeenth century house, his studio and a modern shop.

He painted many of his masterpieces here.

The rooms have all been refurbished with art and furnishings of that period. The museum also own most of Rembrandt/s etchings and many are on display.

The Moco Museum just opened in Amsterdam with an exhibition of work by   Andy Warhol and Banksy.

It is located also in Museumplein and is hoping to reach a larger younger audience. It opened the day I left and I really wanted to see this.

There is a lot of art in Amsterdam. So do some research and decide where you want to go or randomly walk into a museum or gallery that looks interesting. You won’t be disappointed.

Fly safe,

JAZ