photo: © Kryn Taconis, copyright Erven Taconis - Cyclists in front of the Rijksmuseum seen from a car, 1953. Photo from the report Holland on wheels
Amsterdam, the city of All those Amsterdam people… , whose people saw Amsterdam change radically over the past century. The exhibition presents a lively, energetic city where people worked, played, lived and celebrated in the streets.
A distinctive city rediscovered itself after the Second World War and embraced a new era with courage and humor. It doubled in size through new residential districts, while growing prosperity gradually changed its character. Its younger generation also claimed a place of its own.
All those Amsterdam people… offers a selection of the most impressive photos by famous photographers from the years 1935-1975. From 29 photographers, including Ed van der Elsken, Eva Besnyö, Cor Jaring and Maria Austria, we chose the most beautiful images of the city as it is etched in our memory.
Every photo in this exhibition unmistakably breathes Amsterdam. That makes you happy and melancholic: a city that no longer exists, but is still alive in the memory and comes back to life in these unique photos in this exhibition.
Historical Photo Commissions Collection
Between 1978 and 1988, the City Archives acquired prints by important photographers who had documented Amsterdam between 1935 and 1975. This created a collection of more than 1,300 prints: the Historical Photo Commissions Collection. The selected photographers had worked for many years, were sometimes partly forgotten, and were poorly represented in the archive’s existing holdings.
The Historical photo assignments formed a dynamic unity with the Documentary photo assignments that have existed since 1972, which captured the current city. Every year, three photographers were asked to make a retrospective selection from their archive of 40 to 50 images. Well-known photographers such as Eva Besnyö, Ed van der Elsken, Cor Jaring, and their lesser-known colleagues such as Piet Goede and Hans de Boer thus received their rightful place in the Amsterdam image canon.
All those Amsterdam people… Photos 1935-1975October 27, 2022 - February 12, 2023
Amsterdam City Archives
