Almost every underground station in Amsterdam has a fascinating story behind it. My favourite one is metro station ‘Weesperplein,’ because it has a hidden station underneath the actual station that was meant for the 'Singellijn.' However, that line was never build and the second station remained useless. Besides that the hidden station was also equipped to serve as a shelter during the cold war. The large doors that were meant to hermetically close the building are still visible at both ends of the platform. Other small details, like the panels in the ceiling than can be used as tables when turned around, are also silent references to the building’s former use.
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.
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.
At the end of tramline 7 and 14 there is a huge bridge on concrete pillars. These pillars are one of the few places in Amsterdam where it’s legal to spray graffiti. My work is very much influenced by graffiti, so I love to come here and see what’s going on. It’s a very dynamic place, so one day it can be awful and the next day amazing but it’s never boring.
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.