We had another early morning filled with sunshine for our timed tickets to the Van Gogh Museum. It rests behind the Rijksmuseum and beside the Moco Amsterdam, next to a large open green space. It’s a new, modern building, built to house the largest collection of Van Gogh paintings in the world.
We started our visit in a series of rooms dedicated to a special exhibit of paintings by Chinese-Canadian artist, Matthew Wong, who was greatly inspired by Van Gogh. The works are incredible. Often large scale, suffused with colour, and depicting fantastic landscapes and worlds, each painting is a gorgeous burst of energy and imagination. Every one of them was my favourite.
Inside the main permanent exhibit of Van Gogh paintings, are many landscapes and portraits from the start of Van Gogh’s career as a painter at 27, through the next 10 years of his life, before his death in 1890.
It’s easy to spot the highlights from across a room because of the motionless throng of people in front of it including Sunflowers, a Self Portrait, and The Harvest. My favourites were Courtesan (after Eisen), View of Auvers-sir-Oise, Sprig of Flowering Almond in a Glass, Bridge in the Rain (after Hiroshige), The Sower, Landscape at Twilight, and his very last painting that he worked on just hours before his death, Tree Roots. There were lots and lots of favourites.
Afterward, we had lunch at the sandwich and burger stands just behind the museum before heading to the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, which is right behind the Van Gogh Museum.
We spent about two hours touring the rooms of modern art, many of it by Dutch artists and many of them young or emerging artists. My favourites were by graphic designer Hezin O, and were displayed along two long and high ceiling-ed hallways. Her work completely deconstructs her previous works visually and audibly using paper, space, and screen. They are very cool.
After a short break at the hotel, we went out for a walk in the city centre, followed by dinner at Fou Fow Ramen, where Kevin had the vegan Miso Ramen, Rowan had the vegetarian Shoyu Ramen and I had the best vegan Tan Tan ramen I’ve ever had – rivalling T’s Tan Tan in Tokyo.
We walked some more around the city and then had ice cream at IJscuypje Prinsengracht, which had chocolate sorbet (!!!). Of course I had a scoop, plus some blood orange sorbet, which was just as delicious.
We were back in our hotel room by 8:30pm for a shower and some more time to relax before bed. Which was good, because it was going to be another early morning the next day – this time to catch a train to the beach!
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