Exhibition — Apr 9 until Aug 28, 2016

In 2016 the Amsterdam School will return to the Stedelijk. Immerse yourself in a spectacular survey of Amsterdam School interior design: furniture, lamps, clocks, ceramics, textiles, and graphic designs such as those for wallpaper. This survey of over 500 works includes work from designers like Jaap Gidding, Michel de Klerk, Piet Kramer, Hildo Krop, and Marie Kuyken.

The architecture of the Amsterdam School is internationally renowned. It is regarded as the highly original Dutch correlative to the lively anti-rationalist design movement in Europe between the two World Wars. With this exhibition the furniture and interiors designed by the architects, sculptors and designers of the Amsterdam School get the recognition they deserve for the first time, while revealing that the expressive furnishings functioned within an exuberant, colorful environment.

The interiors contain expressive items of furniture made from unusual wood types; these furnishings also feature strong sculptural lines and sculpted details with beautiful, distinctive fastenings or upholstery in rich, dark hues. The upholstery fabrics also bring an extremely colorful palette to the interiors with gorgeous rugs, curtains, wall hangings, lampshades, tablecloths, and daybed covers with intricate patterns in bright combinations of orange, purple, red, green, brown and/or black. Ceramics, glass designs, lamps (many with stained glass) do the same.

Please to view this video.

The current exhibition is the fruit of many years of research, and a search for objects in private hands, which are also on display. The exhibition, which contains ca. 500 objects, aims to give the furniture and “interior accessories” such as lights, clocks and hearths by the Amsterdam School the international attention their design quality deserves. It also shows how the interior design is related to the visual arts in that period (for example with the colours in Jacoba van Heemskerck’s work and the expression in the sculptures by John Rädecker and Hildo Krop). 

Extra programming

EVENT, Apr 24, 2016
Lecture & Gallery Talks: De Amsterdam School and Gispen
From Dutch Bravado to Functionality
Language: Dutch
Location: Stedelijk Museum, Teijin Auditorium

PERFORMANCE, May 27 - 29 2016
Artun Alaska Arasli & Brendan Anton Jaks: The Beauty Commission
Language: English
Location:  Stedelijk Museum, Teijin Auditorium

AMSTERDAM SCHOOL - THE WORKSHOP

Make a contemporary clock in the style of the Amsterdam School in The Workshop (gallery 1.17). Buy the clock movement from the museum shop, you’ll have a timepiece at home that really works.

Instructions clock

exhibition making of on Tumblr

During the preparations of the exhibition the Stedelijk has launched a blog on which Ingeborg de Roode (curator Industrial Design Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam), Marjan Groot (University Leiden) and others that are involved in this project will report about their research on furniture of the Amsterdam School.

The blog is written in Dutch, the videos contain English subtitles.

Publication

The richly illustrated publication offers an analysis of the furniture design of the Amsterdam School, together with essays that chart the movement’s dissemination, commercial reception, international context, and abiding impact on contemporary design. Case studies on Michel de Klerk, companies that produced stained glass, and the restoration of interiors complete this fascinating survey. Edited by Ingeborg de Roode and Marjan Groot. Available from April 2016 at the museumshop and via ww.thoth.nl. 

Amsterdam School - 100th Anniversary

Early last century, the explosion of energy, creativity, new shapes and innovative materials culminated in 1916 with the opening of the prestigious Scheepvaarthuis, or Shipping House, now the Grand Hotel Amrâth. It’s also when the movement became known as the Amsterdam School. In 2016, various cultural venues throughout the capital will celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Amsterdam School with exhibitions and activities. A website has been launched with details of the program of the Amsterdam School Museum ‘Het Schip’, ARCAM Architecture Centre, Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, Grand Hotel Amrâth, and the Monuments & Archeology Department of the Municipality of Amsterdam. This special commemorative year officially kicks off in February 2016.

Audio Tour

A special audio tour has been designed for the exhibition. In a series of short interviews, experts reveal fascinating background information on objects in the exhibition. With Ingeborg de Roode, Curator Industrial Design and organizer of the exhibition, Louise de Blécourt, curator of the collection of Grand Hotel Amrâth (the Shipping House), Rhea Pots Verhagen, student at the HMC college for woodworking, furniture and interior design, Matthias Kreutzer, graphic designer (Our Polite Society) and architect Kees Doornenbal who was involved in the restoration of the Tuschinski Theater. The audio tour costs € 5 for adults and € 2.50 for under-18s. It is available in Dutch and English, and can also be purchased through E-tickets.

Guided tours

Want to see the exhibition through the eyes of a furniture-maker? Every Saturday at 14.30, our guides team up with students from the HMC furniture-making academy in Amsterdam to give a free guided tour (language: English, max. 15 persons).

BROCHURE

There is a brochure available about 100 year Amsterdam School, with an overview and a floor map of Amsterdam and highlights to visit. Download.

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Thanks

The exhibition Living in the Amsterdam School is made possible with the support of the VSB Fonds, the Stimuleringsfonds Creatieve Industrie and Kossmann.dejong exhibition architects and additional support of the Prins Bernhard Cultuurfonds, the Gravin MAOC van Bylandt Stichting and the PW Janssen Friesche Stichting.

The Stedelijk Museum would like to express its sincere thanks to principal sponsor Rabobank Amsterdam for making this exhibition possible.