Art and Culture in the Jordaan

The Jordaan was build at the large expansion of Amsterdam in early 17th century, as a district for the working class and emigrants. The population increase during the next centuries was enormously, caused by the stream political refugees like protestant Fleming, Spanish and Portuguese Jews and French Huguenots who mainly settled in the Jordaan. It was a poor district with small houses and slums, every little room stuffed with families and lots of children. The entire area was one ghetto with open sewers, canals served for both transport and sewer, and no running water. Around 1900 there lived about 80 thousand people, nowadays about 20 thousand.

Rembrandt
The famous 17th century Dutch writer Joost van den Vondel and photographer Breitner lived in the Jordaan. Artists, like the painter Rembrandt van Rijn in his lesser successful period, also came living in the Jordaan because of the low rents. The house of Rembrandt was on the Rozengracht (Rose canal, still a real canal these days). His studio was on the Bloemgracht (Flower canal). The famous painter was buried in a poor mans grave in the Westerkerk (West church).

Monument Care
During the seventieth of the 20th century the city council had serious plans to mainly demolish big parts of the district and replace them for large ugly blocks of modern buildings. There where many protests against this idea. City protectors, such as Monument Care, where against the loss of the historical town and the people of the Jordaan feared for large rent increases. Thanks to this resistance the plan was modified, there came small-scale projects which would repair the neighborhood, without damaging its original character.
Strolling
A large renovation was started. By then the district was discovered by a new generation occupants: artists, students, and young entrepreneurs. The old inhabitants moved to other neighborhoods and cities like Almere. Partly by these new inhabitants the Jordaan has changed from a slum area to a district for artist, still living on low rent, and the rich who bought the very expensive renovated houses. Nowadays the Jordaan is compared to the rest of the town an oasis of peace with a labyrinth of narrow streets and little canals, nice for strolling around courtyards, art studios, and monumental buildings with stone tablets, old-fashioned ‘brown’ pubs, boutiques or galleries.

Markets
There are also some markets in this area. Saturdays you will find the Lindenmarkt (Lime market), a general market, on the Lindengracht (Lime canal) and a biological food market on the Noordermarkt (North market). Mondays you have a flea market at the Noordermarkt and a market on the Westerstraat (West street) with nice fabrics. On the Noordermarkt you can visit the Noorderkerk (North church), designed by Hendrick de Keyser in the 17th century.

Noorderkerk
Many people think that the Westerkerk (West church) on the Westermarkt is the main church of the Jordaan. It’s true that you can hear its carillon and see the beautiful Westertoren (West tower) everywhere in the neighborhood and that the Jordaanfestival is located on his square, but the church is actually located just outside the Jordaan. So the main church of the Jordaan is the Noorderkerk. The Noorderkerk was built in the northern part in 1620-1623 by Hendrick de Keyser and his son Pieter. The church is still in use as a Protestant church, and like the Westerkerk open to everyone, especially during concerts.

Art studios
Hundreds of artist discovered the Jordaan in the 70th because of the low rent of houses in these little streets. The lucky ones are renting a studio in one of these beautiful inner courtyards of the neighborhood. Every two years the artist organize a so called ‘open studio event’. During these days visitors can have a look in the ‘kitchens’ of the artist. There is also a permanent ornamental route called ‘Jewels in the Jordaan’. Past charming alleyways and picturesque canals it leads to gold- and silversmiths.

Courtyards
The Jordaan has a high concentration of hofjes (inner courtyards), beautiful yards with little houses, many of them with restored houses and peaceful gardens. These courtyards were build by rich people for older women; a kind of charity and protection. Beginning of the 70th most of these courtyards was in a very bad shape, like the rest of the neighborhood. After there restoration they were discovered by artist, students and still some older people with special privileges because of a church membership. Some of the courtyards are closed to the public, and only opened on special days called ‘open monuments days’. But if you do come across one of the entrances, and it is unlocked, most residents won’t mind if you sneak a quiet peek. During the summer some of these yards are opened on Sundays during free concerts called ‘hofjesconcerts’.

Stone tablets
Many houses in the Jordaan have a stone tablet, a stone sign that shows the profession or family sign of the inhabitants. For instance a butcher showed a pig and a tailor a pair of scissors, carved in a stone above the entry. During a walk it’s a pleasure to observe those beautiful, when renovated colorful, antique signs. The first stone tablets are made in the 16th century, when citizens were ordered to use these tablets instead of big wooden gables that obstructed the traffic in these narrow streets.
Museums
Most of the museums in the Jordaan are small. You have the Pianola museum with old mechanical pianos, a literature museum of Theo Thijssen, a houseboat museum, and a fluorescent museum called Electric Lady Land. Just on the boarder of the Jordaan you can find the Anne Frank House on the Prinsengracht (Prince canal).

Jewish Historical Museum

The Jewish Historical Museum was established 70 years ago, and from 1932 till 1987 it was housed in the medieval Weigh House, in the Nieuwmarkt. In 1987, the museum moved to the restored complex of synagogues at Jonas Daniël Meijerplein, just off the Waterlooplein.

Originally opemed as a single room, part of the Amsterdam Historical Museum, it has grown over the years despite the efforts of the Nazis.

When Germany invaded the Netherlands in May 1940, the Jewish Historical Museum closed its doors and tried to save the collection. Objects on loan were returned to their owners and the museum collection was transferred to the Stedelijk Museum. In 1943 the Germans claimed the museum’s objects as Jewish property, and was taken by the Nazis to Germany, and most was lost or destroyed.
 
Reopened in 1955, only a fifth of the original collection remained. New objects were added from public and private collections.
 
The museum hosts art displays and other cultural events geared towards Amsterdam’s Jewish population and visitors.

Amsterdam Historical Museum

A visit to Amsterdam should include a visit to this unique museum located near the Dam Square. How can you possibly understand Amsterdam as it is now without a look at it’s fascinating history?

The Amsterdam Historical Museum moved into this building in 1975. It was formerly the municipal orphanage (founded in 1520), and a brief history of the building’s previous existence is told in and around the governors room. An interactive program about the orphanage also contains several old photos.

Exhibits of special Amsterdam historical significance are displayed here at the museum.

Info:
Open daily.

The two museum entrances can be accessed from Kalverstraat 92, Sint Luciënsteeg 27 and Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal 357. The museum is a twelve-minute walk from Amsterdam’s Central Station, via Damrak, Dam Square and Kalverstraat. Trams 4, 5, 9, 11, 14, 16, 24 and 25 also go to the museum, stopping at Spui.

Koninklijk Paleis

Open daily during the summer for tourists, the Royal Palace is not the home of any royalty, it’s a museum and venue for important state events held by the Dutch royals. Recently renovated and spruced up for the wedding of Willem-Alexander and Maxima this place is worth a visit if you haven’t been inside before.

Of note are rooms replete with their period furnishings, carvings, bas-reliefs of bizarre historical notes and artworks left behind when the royals abandoned the place.

Anne Frank House

The actual hiding place where Anne Frank and her family hid from the Nazis during World War II.

Eerie and ghostly, with lots of lessons for everyone about hatred and war. This should be visited by all who come to Amsterdam so that you understand the things that have happened here in the past, and why Amsterdam is what it is today.

Info:
Open daily from 9 am to 7 pm. Admission is € 6,50 for adults. Children less.

You can walk to the Anne Frank House from Centraal Station, Amsterdam’s main train station, in 20 minutes. You can also board tram (streetcar) number 13, 17, or 20 as well as buses number 21, 170, 171, or 172 which all go to the tram/bus stop called Westermarkt, located about a block (300 feet) from the museum’s entrance.

Visit the website: Anne Frank House

Stadsschouwburg

Theater Hall, Cafe, Internet Cafe, meeting place extraordinaire! Right on the Leidseplein – where it’s happening at night in Amsterdam with a hundred restaurants, nightclubs, bars and coffeeshops within a block or two – and of course the Melkweg and Paradiso are right nearby as well.

Phone: 020-624-2311

Amstelkring

Quaint old Dutch home on the side of a canal in the heart of the Red Light district which features a “hidden” church in the attic.

Originally built in 1629, the church was added in 1661 – 1663 during which time it was illegal to be a Catholic in Holland, hence the hidden churches you will find here and there – usually in some wealthy patrons home.

Now open to the public, the house is just as fascinating as the church.

Info:
Admission: MJK holders free, Adults &

Address:
#40 Oudezijdes Voorburgwal
Amsterdam 1012 GE

Phone: (0)20 624 66 04

EYE Filmmuseum

Four theaters, a lounge and restaurant with other meeting spaces make up the wonderful all-new Film Museum of the Netherlands. Formerly in the Vondel Park, this stunning modern architectural marvel is now across the Ij from the Central Station in Amsterdam.

The EYE collection dates back to 1946, when the first predecessor of EYE was founded: the Nederlands Historisch Filmarchief. In 1952, this became the Dutch Filmmuseum; since 2010 we are EYE.

However, EYE does not exclusively acquire and preserve films, but a range of different materials – from movie posters to projection equipment. The focus is on films and objects that say something about Dutch film culture; a copy of virtually all Dutch films that come out each year is included in the collection.

Use the map below to find your way to the new building.

Hortus Botanicus

The Hortus Botanicus is a great place to chill and wander, marvel at the gardens and enjoy life.

The Hortus Botanicus Amsterdam is perhaps one of the oldest botanical gardens in the world. This garden was established in 1638 as a “Hortus Medicus”, an herb garden for the physicians and pharmacists of Amsterdam.

The Hortus interacts with the community in a special way, offering guided tours, the services of a “plant doctor” who will diagnose your plant’s problem or identify it for you.

The showcase is the special Three Climates Greenhouse, built in 1993 and has tropical, sub-tropical and desert sections within.

The Palm Greenhouse was constructed in 1912, and houses some really unusual palm trees in high Victorian style.

Info:
Open Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. Saturday, Sunday and public holidays from 11 a.m. until 5 p.m.

From 1st November until 1st April the garden closes at 4 p.m. The Hortus is closed on 1st January and 25th December (Christmas Day).

Adult admission is 9.50 euros, but seasonal discounts apply, and reductions for children and seniors.

Theater Museum

The Netherlands Theater Museum is on the Herengracht canal in the center of Amsterdam. Housed in five classic seventeenth-century buildings, the place is just a few minutes walk from the Dam Square.

The objective of the “Theater Instituut Nederland” is to make a significant contribution to the knowledge of, and opinion about, the Dutch theatre culture in an international context.

The Theater Institute provides information, conducts research, and initiates debate in relation to the needs and interests of theater professionals, and their audiences.

Sounds a little dry, but visiting the buildings are worth it for the architecture, as well as acquiring some knowledge of Dutch theater.

Info:
The buildings and the library are open from 11 am until 5 pm weekdays, and on Saturday from 1pm to 5 pm. Admission is 8.50 guilders.

Address:
168 Herengracht
Amsterdam 1016