Amsterdam – Commodity Fetishism

De Dageraad, Amsterdam

The housing known today as De Dageraad was built between 1919 – 1921 and had its origins in the Dutch cooperative and socialist movements. Towards the end of the 19th century the working class grew in size and included workers in an ever increasing number of industries, trades and services. The development of mass productionContinue reading “De Dageraad, Amsterdam”

Ijselbuurt-Oost, Amsterdam

One of the (many) trials and tribulations of being an independent researcher (that is, not attached to any formal teaching institute) is that much information is learned the hard way. A very hard way. It sometimes feels like ploughing through a field of deep mud with a broken share pulled by an ancient ox thatContinue reading “Ijselbuurt-Oost, Amsterdam”

Roelof Hartplein, Amsterdam

The scale of the achievement of the housing built in Amsterdam between 1915 and 1940 is impressive. It is estimated that over 90,000 homes were built in total and managed by the municipality, housing associations, cooperatives and charities. Much of this filled the area which is known today as Amsterdam Zuid, built to a planContinue reading “Roelof Hartplein, Amsterdam”

Betondorp; Amsterdam’s concrete village

Betondorp is a garden village in Amsterdam Oost, constructed between 1923 – 1927 during a period of intensive house building across the city in which thousands of homes were constructed by cooperatives, associations and the city council. It is part of the larger Tuindorp Watergraafsmeer garden village which consists of two distinctive areas. One halfContinue reading “Betondorp; Amsterdam’s concrete village”

Amsterdam, International

There are maps, plans, diagrams, lists of articles and books, buildings to photograph, streets to explore, biographies to read and historical timelines. And yet sometimes the occasion is just to drift, pulled by the hidden psychic energy of what lies beneath the city streets. And unplanned, into Amsterdam East. It feels more anarchic than theContinue reading “Amsterdam, International”

In Amsterdam

In a bookshop is discovered ‘Brandscape’ by Anna Klingmann, published by MIT Press. It is an American book, published in the United States, and has the paper quality and object-weight that suggests something worth reading. Brandscape will be added to the catalogue of keywords that are being put together as a guide to the cityContinue reading “In Amsterdam”

To Europe

Billions of pounds have been spent on networks, servers, databases, computer equipment, satellites, cloud storage, web services and labour power. And yet due to a fire at Rotterdam station, no-one at the Eurostar check-in can tell me if there are any trains going to Amsterdam. I am presented with a vague, semi-apocalyptic vision which suggestsContinue reading “To Europe”

Amsterdam and the Dream in Bricks

When the starting point is unclear it can be helpful to aim for something well known. This is why tourists swarm to Trafalgar Square, the Eiffel Tower, the Taj Mahal, the Statue of Liberty. It’s a way of anchorage, of finding bearings. And if nothing else, it means a sense of having arrived; after all,Continue reading “Amsterdam and the Dream in Bricks”

Flanders Light

Another time, these are different people, with lives we pass as our train slowly picks up speed. The Palais de Justice past Bruxelles Centraal, built on a hill top in the centre of the city to act as a physical reminder to the working class of the power of the state. The obligatory walls ofContinue reading “Flanders Light”