travelswithalice

August 23, 2017

 

Amsterdam: The City as Art Gallery


The surprising thing is that not everyone here has become an artist.



Here, street art is exactly that: art in the street, everywhere. I don't mean graffiti or the kind that's illicit, illegal, or done on the fly, furtively, stealthily, although there must be a fair amount of that too. I refer to art that is placed in the centre of every citizen's life, regardless of social background. 




Even in bad weather, it is photogenic, painterly. And not even the ugliest opera house I've ever seen can ruin the city for me. 



The Dutch National Opera & Ballet. It may be functional, sharing space with the town hall, and accessible, standing right on the tram line, so maybe it fulfills the town elders' main requirements for a public-use building. It is however meant to house great art, opera and ballet. Yet it is butt-ugly.

If anyone were to come up with a plan for a new city and the planned city were to be like Amsterdam, look like it, work like it, it's doubtful the project would ever see the light of day. 


Amsterdam is an anomaly. It's not supposed to exist even, or to survive as long as it has, much less to succeed as well as it has. It's an impossibility. Not viable. Yet, here it is. Glorious and eminently livable.










Labels:


posted by Alice Dimalanta Jones  # August 23, 2017




<< Home

Archives

July 2005   September 2005   October 2005   April 2006   July 2006   August 2006   January 2007   February 2007   September 2007   November 2007   February 2008   September 2008   September 2009   May 2010   May 2011   September 2011   July 2012   August 2012   September 2012   October 2012   November 2012   December 2012   January 2013   February 2013   March 2013   April 2013   May 2013   June 2013   July 2013   August 2013   September 2013   October 2013   November 2013   December 2013   January 2014   February 2014   March 2014   April 2014   May 2014   June 2014   August 2014   September 2014   November 2014   December 2014   January 2015   March 2015   April 2015   May 2015   July 2015   August 2015   September 2015   October 2015   March 2016   April 2016   May 2016   June 2016   July 2016   August 2016   September 2016   October 2016   January 2017   February 2017   May 2017   June 2017   July 2017   August 2017   September 2017   February 2018   March 2018   April 2018   May 2018   June 2018   July 2018   August 2018   September 2018   October 2018   December 2018   January 2019   February 2019   March 2019   June 2019   July 2019   August 2019   October 2019   December 2019   January 2020   July 2021   August 2021   September 2021   October 2021   November 2021   December 2021   April 2022   May 2022   June 2022   July 2022   August 2022   April 2023   May 2023   June 2023   July 2023   August 2023   September 2023   October 2023   November 2023   December 2023  

This page is powered by Blogger. Isn't yours?

Subscribe to Posts [Atom]