2019-04 - Vermeer, Rembrandt, Escher, and Golden Hague Day (the Netherlands)

Girl with the Pearl Earring by Vermeer

 Our AirBnB is so beautiful and wonderfully located near the Mauritshuis and MC Escher museum, both of which I visited today...after a fresh chocolate croissant from a nearby bakkerij (bakery). Arriving just at opening (10 am), I raced directly to Johannes Vermeer's "Girl with a Pearl Earring" and had a few uninterrupted moments to view it before the school groups and tour groups arrived. The girl's face fairly glows. The colors of her turban and dress are softer than I had seen in print. On the opposite wall is another Vermeer, almost completely overlooked. It is a view of Delft. All of the outdoor Dutch paintings that I've enjoyed show big fluffy clouds hanging in a brilliantly blue sky. After spending some days in Amsterdam and The Hague, I can tell you that the paintings don't lie. The sky has so many moods, even in the space of 30 minutes. However, while we've been visiting, it is often that brilliant blue with puffy white clouds sailing high.

The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp by Rembrandt

Due to the 350th year anniversary of the death of Rembrandt van Rijn, Mauritshuis has on show all of their Rembrandts. Most of these are portrait paintings. There is a very informative guide about the pieces. In addition, Mauritshuis has a free app which I downloaded on my phone (using the museum's free WiFi). Most pieces have a number listed on the accompanying placard. If there is audio commentary, there is a headset icon on the placard as well. It was interesting to listen to the anecdotes about the artists and the paintings.

The Goldfinch by Carel Fabritius

Some of the other famous Dutch artists on display at the Mauritshuis include Paulus Potter (The Bull), Jan Steen (As the Old Sing, So Pipe the Young), Carel Fabritius (The Goldfinch), Judith Leyster (Man Offering Money to a Young Woman), and Peter Paul Rubens. The current special exhibit on the other side of the building is of the original builder and owner of Mauritshuis.

Inside the MC Escher Museum

Next, my friends met me at the MC Escher museum. Though small on the outside, it is a very well set-up inside, with many of Escher's most recognizable prints. The building itself is very interesting because it used to be a residence for Queen Emma starting in 1901. There are still magnificent chandeliers in the shapes of birds, musical instruments, etc.

Bonifacio, Corsica (1928)

The first floor is all about Escher's early work, which was much more realistic. Many of these are from his travels through Italy. There are even some of his linoleum blocks and printing tools on display. Even more incredible (if you have ever done any printmaking) is that Escher did not use a press. Instead, he laid paper on top of each inked block and manually rubbed the paper with an egg spoon to print!

House of Stairs (1951)

What we know Escher so well for today is his take on tessellations (he visited the Alhambra; and, there are sketches in his notebooks of the mosaic tiles there); and, his beautiful geometric architectures that are physically impossible. The other pieces here that I found very impressive where his Metamorphoses I, II and III, which are long tableaus that go from detailed to tessellation and back again. Truly a delight to view as a whole as well as examine all the details.

Portion on Metamorphoses III

Part of Metamorphoses II (1939-1940)

By this time, we were hungry and made our way to Foodies Lab for lunch, where I enjoyed a delicious burger with wild mushroom sauce. Then, we headed over to the Willig Cheese Shop to finally make our cheese purchases. We've probably already eaten 100 grams in free cheese samples by now!

William of Orange

The sun had come out as we walked back through the Binnehof. Nearby was a little fair set up in the square for "History of the Hague Day". It consisted of various small booths, mostly by local museums. There were lots of activities for kids, including stilts to walk on, mini canvases to paint and free potterjes (mini pancakes). We joined the other participants in hiking up temporary stairs set-up to climb up eye-to-eye with a statue of William of Orange.


If you go....
- Mauritshuis is small. However, if you purchase your ticket online, you can skip the line waiting to purchase their tickets at the museum.
- MC Escher Museum has lockers in the basement for your things (1 Euro that is returned when you return your key) and coat hangers where everyone hangs their coats on a trust system that the coats will still be there when they return. What a great life in the Hague!

More photos here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/F9Ebu4yCjUANCjvA9

2019-04 - Anne Frank, Rijksmusem and Mystery City! (Amsterdam)

Great start to the day with poffertjes on the hotel's buffet breakfast! They are mini pancakes with sugar.  Even more delicious with the buffet's chunky applesauce. Plus, there were lots of cheese options on the buffet and even pots of tea.

poffertjes and applesauce

Our first stop this morning was the Anne Frank House. The building was actually Anne's father's business that sold spices and pectin. During WWII, Germany invaded Holland in 1940. In 1941, the Nazis began rounding up Jews and exporting them to work camps. Anne's sister's notice to report for "work" came in 1942. Because of this Anne's father decided that they all needed to move into hiding into the back of the building, with an entrance hidden behind a bookcase. Mr. Frank handed over his business to his employees. A few key employees kept the Frank family and four other friends hidden and brought them food. In 1944, the Nazis walked into the business, straight to the bookcase and removed all eight people and shipped them to concentration camps. Only Anne's father survived until the concentration camps were liberated by the Allied forces.

The museum and exhibit are arranged well logistically. While the rooms no longer have furniture in them, the rooms are so small that it gives enough space for the limited amount of visitors to pass through. In Anne's room that she shared with a neighborhood dentist, there are still cut out images on the walls that Anne pasted there. In the bottom of the museum,  you can see dioramas of the rooms with furniture. During the day, the eight people hidden there could not run the water and had to avoid all the squeaky spots on the wooden floors in order not to arouse suspicions from the other employees of the spice and pectin business. The entire exhibit is presented very respectfully; and, no photos are allowed. Tickets are available online only, starting two months in advance. Access through stories is via staircases, which becoming increasingly narrower and steepr. There are several staircases, each one narrower and steeper than the last.

The Milkmaid by Vermeer

Next, I headed to the Rijksmuseum, which is only a mile from the Anne Frank House. The building stands proudly across a canal. Then, the stoplight changes; and, bikes zip across the canal and through the archways in the museum's middle. A bit of a headache to go from one side to the other on two of the floors, as they do not go through. However, the Rijksmuseum was built to be the Netherlands' art museum in 1885. The big name Dutch artists with famous pieces here are Johannes Vermeer (the Milkmaid), Vincent Van Gogh (self portrait) and Rembrandt van Rijn (the Night Watchmen). There was just not enough time to go through all of the many exhibit spaces and see all of the artwork.

Small etchings by Rembrandt

Up close, this man's face looked like it was a photo

In addition, there is currently an exhibit of all of the Rijksmuseum's Rembrandts (must purchase a free entrance time when you purchase your ticket). It begins with tiny etchings the size of postage stamps of people, mostly Rembrandt himself, although there are also images of his parents. The etchings grow larger; and, Rembrandt also paints, from smaller portraits to religious images. While we often remember Rembrandt for his almost impressionistic use of paint, there are detailed and realistic paints that he did that almost look like photos of real people.

painted landscape by Rembrandt

Our final activity of the day was an outdoor "escape room" by Mystery City. It was unique in that we were given a map and a bag with different clues to decipher based on locations marked on the map. Definitely a good activity for the beautiful outdoor weather that we've been enjoying in Amsterdam!