citylikeyou — View From My Studio — Amsterdam by Misha de Ridder

Amsterdam / Place

My studio is situated on top of a Fifties concrete modernist apartment building in the Rivierenbuurt in the south of Amsterdam. The best thing is that my building is just one floor higher then the rest of the houses in the neighborhood so I get a good view of the city and the ever changing Dutch skies. What makes my view really special is the view from the balcony on an inaccessible inner garden. The garden is made on the roof of a parking garage of an office building and nobody can go there since there are no stairs or entrance. Once a year the gardeners come with a tall ladder. They are the only ones that enter the garden ever. The nice thing is that still there is a winding path in the middle of the garden for only your eye to trace it.

Address
View From My Studio, Rivierenbuurt, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Photographer Visual Artist

Current city: Amsterdam

mishaderidder.com

Misha de Ridder (1971, Alkmaar, The Netherlands) lives in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. To search, to disclose and to write with light is what Misha de Ridder does in his landscape photos and videos. He does not seek the comfort zone of the beautiful and picturesque, but of the sublime. De Ridder exhibited at Juliètte Jongma Gallery, Layr Wuestenhagen Contemporary, PhotoEspaña, the Triennial of Photography Hamburg, Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, FOAM and The Museum of the City of New York. Photobooks by Misha de Ridder are Sightseeing (2000, De Balie), Wilderness (2003, Artimo), Dune (2011, Lay Flat), Abendsonne (2011, Schaden.com), Falaise (2016, Roma Publications).

More Places in Amsterdam 100

Amsterdam / Place

I've always been inspired by old industrial buildings like factories, but unfortunately such buildings have become rather rare in the Netherlands. At the moment you can still find some of the remains of the old harbour of Amsterdam called the ‘NDSM werf’ on the other side of the river ‘IJ,’ but this area seems to be in transition as well. For the time being the NDSM werf is a creative place where a lot of activities are taking place. The best part for me is the 'Y-helling' to enjoy the (modest) skyline of Amsterdam and to write graffiti.  

Amsterdam / Cafe

I’m not much of a bar-person, but if and when I do go for a drink, I love to come here. It’s simply the best brown café in Amsterdam. A little off the beaten track, in the middle of a residential neighborhood, you’d really have to go out of your way to come here. Nienke, the proprietress is what we call in Dutch “een topwijf ”. With her warm heart and no nonsense attitude she makes you feel right at home, whether you’re a regular and part of the bar’s furniture, or just pop in occasionally, just like myself.

Amsterdam / Shop

One of the few professional hardware stores in the city centre of Amsterdam with a great knowledgable staff. Whatever you’re building problem, they have the answer for you, both in advice and in material solutions. I just really love hanging out there. For me it’s one of the best places to get inspiration from. When building a set, I usually go there with a vague idea of what I want to make and then fill in the details by looking at the materials they have.

Amsterdam / Club

With 24 hr licence to function as club, nights easily turn into days here. De school houses a coffee and a restaurant place, you can literally enter Friday and leave Sunday. :0 Quite in weekdays with great coffee, atmosphere and natural light

Amsterdam / Restaurant

The NewWerktheater is a café-restaurant venue located in Oostelijke Eilanden. Everything has been carefully selected/designed/created by ...,staat, the design studio behind the concept. The coffee beans are from Bonanza Berlin, the beer is made by Noam, and can only be found here in the Netherlands and the artworks are made by designer/artist Eike König. The location also regularly host creative events like the Dutch Art Director Club conferences, photography exhibitions or Creative Mornings.