Transformation

 

Amsterdam's city hall has undergone a complete renovation, and a first floor is being added to the surrounding flea market. To hide the construction, a fence displaying photos of the old market from the 1950s and 1960s has been erected. The photos show the old Jewish quarter, which was largely destroyed during World War II and lost many of its residents.  In the context of Amsterdam's 750th anniversary, all of this should be festively opened soon. Have you wondered what will happen to all the functions and officials that used to be there? Marriage, driver's license, and passport applications, to name a few. It's amusing to think of a city hall housing a flea market. We shall see.

Visit at World Press Photo

 And if it gets too bad

you can still keep your eyes on the building.

Unseen

 Ben Thomas (australia)

Katrin Korfmann -A bigger splash (germany)

Hans van Asch (netherlands)

Michiel Kluiters (amsterdam)

Every year (as long as finances still allow) a large photo exhibition is held in the gashouder on the westerpark grounds by photo galleries around the world under the name unseen. The intention is that they show the latest work . Must say that this year the experiments were a little less and the photography a little more conservative.Still it is inspiring to see so much different work. Very worthwhile and walked around for 4 hours. Unfortunately today is the last day again. ( Header bridge in Weesp at night)

It was a world without mobiles

 On an exhibition in the Amsterdam town archive. Children in the "Jordaan" around 1955. If I remember correct a photo by Dolf Toussaint.

This will not end well

 Bieb and I went to Nan Goldin's big retrospective at the Stedelijk Museum. We became so grim with the images on display that we left halfway through. She must indeed have led a terrible life. Although, of course, this does not detract from the value of her work but it need a strong stomach..

Resting moment

 Take a break from the amazing hustle and bustle of the city by going to Paul Kooiker's photo exhibition about fashion. The city is really overrun with tourists despite the bad weather and you won't see these here at Foam.

 Oudezijds Voorburgwal filled with stationary cars that can no longer move forward or backward and populated mostly with tourists who can now pull the hair out of their heads that they could ever be so stupid not to take public transportation into the city. The canals were not built for this in the 16th century.

Photo exhibition

 On one of the last days of the exhibition "Open for business - Magnum photographers at Commission" at Foam, I came across these portraits of Bruce Gilden made during an advertising session for Gucci. When you see so many beautiful pictures I always get inspired to take pictures again too .

That resulted in this photo just before leaving Foam. Tried to capture something of the atmosphere of those Magnum photographers in it.

Second visit photo FotoFestival Naarden

Went yesterday to see the part that was somewhat outside Naarden in an abandoned greenhouse complex nearby. My previous visit can be found here.

The nice thing was that some of the participating photographers were present to explain their own work.

 

Here is Suzanne Valkenburg with whom I had a nice conversation about her documentary series "As a bird so free", an ode to the maligned culture of caravan dwellers. Usually banished to the outskirts of the city and somehow kept out of sight, they turn out to be home to a very warm community. She is currently working on a book on the subject and is still looking for enthusiasts. Warmly recommended.

It's possible again.

 A visit to a nice exhibition like here the photo festival in Naarden

A chance meeting of Bieke Depoorter (Magnum photographer) with Agata, in a strip club in Paris, produces a fascinating series of photographs. On display in the Grote Kerk of Naarden

Also many pictures in the ramparts of Naarden fortress like here pictures from Eva Roefs who photographed the heads of prominent residents of the red light district in Amsterdam. Must say that the location sometimes made demands on the hobby photographer who tries to capture it all without flash.

A few years ago photo festival Naarden

 It didn't work out last year and it won't work out again this year. Have to wait another year otherwise we would have gone today.

Alternative Murals.

This is how it can be done. An open-air photo exhibition under a railroad viaduct in Amsterdam. Sorry don't know the photographers name. One for Sami's Colourful World here.

Brassaï at Foam

A fantastic overview of this master in street photography when that concept didn't even exist.

Born on 9 September 1899 in Brasso Hongary as Gyula Halász. When he was 3 his parents moved to Paris where his father became a professor at the Sorbonne.

In 1920 he went to Berlin where he became a correspondent for Hungarian newspapers and returned to Paris in 1924 as journalist where he would live for the rest of his life.

First as illustrations for his stories and later on more and more for the beauty of the photographic scenes and atmosphere he photographed mostly at the late hours in the night . He died in 1984 

I must say that it is such an inspirational exhibition that you as photographing visitor not can wait to use a camera yourself and what easy we have it now compared to his time but to reach that level that's still impossible.

The exhibition will last until 4 December 2019 in Foam.

Sign of the times

If we want it or not

we are wrapped in new inventions as here during a slide show on the exhibition of dutch photographer  Ed v.d. Elsken in Rotterdam. One for Signs,Signs.

Loods 6

In addition to biebs post some details of the building in which the photo exhibition of the final exam candidates of the photo academy took place.

Loods 6 is situated on the KNSM island. This was once the arrival and departure hall of the Koninklijke Nederlandsche Stoomboot Maatschappij. Since 1997, the building has been used as a collection building for artists, creative companies and special shops in the field of art, design, literature and other healthy 'content' food for body and mind. The Baggage Hall, Compass Hall and the spectacular entrance hall of Loods6 can be rented for events, exhibitions, openings, art manifestations and pop-up stores.

It was only a two day event.

but left a good impression of the stand of photography today. One for Our World Tuesday here.

Unseen 2017

Went yesterday to photo exhibition Unseen were you can find the newest photo's and photo books from around the world.

Of course the offer was overwhelming again.

Lot of photos tried to escape the 2 dimensions.

Understanding them is also not so easy.

But in the end you have an idea how photography stands today. 

From the attic

of the old town hall of Naarden (1601) during the photo festival ( pity last day yesterday)

When turning around you see this.

Ai Weiwei 2

In March 2012 Ai Weiwei placed lanterns on the surveillance cameras that surrounded his house in Beijing. The peaceful protest recalls Flower Power , an image token in 1967 on the moment when a protester against US involvement in the Vietnam War placed carnations into the rifle barrel of a National Guardsman. With great irony Ai addresses the question of surveillance in China by decorating the cameras with a symbol of the country’s festive tradition. The whole wall was further covered with an arm with an attached hand with the middle finger in different groups. You can say that it was a kind of mural here. (Exhibition in Foam)

It really covered all the walls. One for Monday Murals here.

He hello you.

Always nice to be confronted with one of the strong ladies of Helmut Newton in a more than life-size way. A poster for his exhibition which is now entering its final week at Foam. One for Monday Murals here.

Helmut Newton

In Foam Amsterdam is now a great retrospective about Helmut Newton.

I am afraid that if I show you some of his more controversial pictures what made him real famous it will be banned by the chastity police of blogspot. (Say something about our times too).  But if you are in the possibility to go go. Its a really nice one and stays until 4 September.

Somewhere in England

Also from the Unseen exposition this photo from Polly Tootal. An english landscape photographer based in London.