‘Happy Birthday Amsterdam’: about the city as artists saw it and the government collected it

Especially for the Amsterdam 750 anniversary, H’ART Museum is presenting an exhibition focusing on 75 very different artists who gave and continue to give the city color and character. From Johan Cruijff through the eyes of Marlene Dumas (1953) to Amsterdam in the 1990s through the lens of Erwin Olaf (1959-2023).

Happy Birthday Amsterdam presents a colorful, versatile and colorful parade that celebrates Amsterdam as an art city. The museum opts for an atypical, not art-historical or chronological order, but for a free approach that suits the nature of the city. 75 leading artists will be given a stage. Each and every one of them contributed and continues to contribute in their own unique way to the (artistic) image we have of the city celebrating its anniversary. With this collection, the museum pays tribute to the city, its residents, the different parts of the city and the makers of then and now who lived, worked or stayed there.

H’ART Museum works closely with the Cultural Heritage Agency (RCE) for this exhibition. With more than 100,000 objects, the RCE manages one of the largest art collections in the Netherlands. This is the first exhibition to include more than 50 Amsterdam loans from the RCE. Rarely has the National Collection been seen on such a large scale in and across the capital. The loans are supplemented with items from, among others, the Amsterdam City Archives, the ABN AMRO Art Collection, De Nieuwe Kerk Amsterdam and private collections.

The collection is Amsterdam through and through: colorful, diverse and distinctive. Both surprising and recognizable for lovers of art and the city of Amsterdam. H’ART Museum treats the public to quite a few big names from the art world. From Ferdinand Bol (1616-1680), Jacob Olie (1834-1905), Willem Witsen (1860-1923), Piet Mondriaan (1872-1944), Karel Appel (1921-2006) and Paul Huf (1924-2002) to Ed van der Elsken (1925-1990), Herman Gordijn (1932-2017), Jeroen Henneman (1942), Marina Abramović (1946) and Natasja Kensmil (1973). Ranging from paintings, photography and sounds to sculptures, icons from the street scene, textiles and Amsterdam design.
Happy Birthday Amsterdam, December 4, 2024 to March 16, 2025, H’ART Museum, Amstel 51