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Huis Marseille photography museum in Amsterdam

I was very happy when my daughter, visiting from the US, wanted to spend the day in Amsterdam, sightseeing with me. I gave her a list of museums I’d like to visit for my series on Amsterdam museums and other sights, and told her to choose two.

My daughter, a graphic designer, chose the Spectacles Museum (now closed) and the Huis Marseille Museum for Photography.

I wasn’t thrilled at her choices. The Spectacles Museum sounded dull, like the Handbag Museum was (It wasn’t, and I’m sorry it closed!). And the problem with photography museums is that generally they have a changing roster of shows instead of a permanent collection of works, so you never know what you’ll get.

Nevertheless, she chose them, and I could write about them, so we went.

Entering Huis Marseille

Bicycling along the lovely Keizergracht canal in the center of Amsterdam, we almost missed the unprepossessing entrance of the Huis Marseille. The sign was small and the door was up a short flight of stairs. The entrance hallway has surprisingly ornate plasterwork, all of it painted bright white.

The price wasn’t bad: €8 per person (now €12.50), but we had no idea yet what we would see. We both knew this photography museum in Amsterdam could be great or it could be a dud, depending on what kind of photography they were exhibiting that week. We hadn’t checked ahead, and we don’t know much about photography anyway.

It turned out we were lucky enough to discover two photographers we’d never heard of, both of whom have done fascinating work in two very different styles.

In this photo of the Huis Marseille photography museum in Amsterdam, you can see some of Martin Roemers' photographs and a bit of the ornately painted ceiling.
In this photo you can see some of Martin Roemers’ photographs and a bit of the ornately painted ceiling.

Housed in what was originally two Amsterdam merchants’ houses from 1665, Huis Marseille photography museum’s rooms are now mostly stripped to bare white walls and bare white ceilings, making them resemble purpose-built museum spaces. Some of the smaller rooms have been merged and opened up, particularly upstairs, where the ceiling follows the roofline. Visitors wander gradually upwards via short open staircases through one of the exhibitions, then descend through the other, in a neighboring series of rooms.

In two of the rooms, ornate ceiling paintings remain. One of them was painted by Jacob de Wit in the 18th century, and depicts Apollo surrounded by Minerva and the muses. You can see a bit of it in the picture above. I didn’t find any explanation of the other painted ceiling, but in any case both rooms present a pleasing contrast between traditional artwork and modern photography.

Photography by Martin Roemers

The exhibition “Metropolis,” by Dutch photographer Martin Roemers, consisted, as the name suggests, of photos of cities around the world. What’s unusual and special about them is the juxtaposition of movement and stillness in the crossroads and street corners he depicts, usually from a high vantage point. Using a slow shutter speed, Roemers reduces vehicles to streaks of bright light, while people are either still or appear as barely visible ghost-like images, depending on their movement. These photos stopped us in our tracks, studying the details of everyday street scenes in faraway cities.

As described on the caption: the photo doesn't allow much detail of the Roemers photos.
The photo on the right shows Muslims praying on a street corner. The photo on the left is of a “beach” in India, littered with trash, where several people defecating are visible. Both photos by Martin Roemers.

I especially liked one photo of Times Square in which protesters stand still in the foreground while cars and bicyclists whiz past. Another fascinating one (above on the right) is a scene from India, I think, in which a small platform has been set up under an overpass and next to an intersection. Discarded shoes surround it, and a group of men kneel in Muslim prayer as traffic speeds by.

A cluster of scoooters stand still in the middle left. Top left to middle right and top  left, curving around to bottom left: cars stream by, all blurry from motion. In the background: the shops along the street are also still.
I love how colorful Roemers’s photography is, and the contrast between the moving elements and still elements.

If you’d like to see more art in Amsterdam, check out these articles too:

Photography by Dana Lixenberg

Dana Lixenberg’s portraits contrast starkly with Roemers’s colorful city scenes. The exhibition, called “Imperial Courts, 1993-2015,” explored life in a housing project in Watts, a section of Los Angeles.

Lixenberg visited and took portraits repeatedly over a period of more than 20 years, which allows her to show the continuity of families and relationships. Each individual stands quietly, most of them looking at the camera, and it’s remarkable how much these simple portraits and group photos give a sense of who these people are or were. Many appear angry, some resigned, some defiant. None of them smiles, not even the children.

Looking down a row of framed photographs: all in black and white and all portraits of African Americans. The furthest left is a baby in a walker, next four are all young women.
photography by Dana Lixenberg, taken over 20 years in Los Angeles

The portraits are in black and white, taken against neutral backgrounds. They feel calm and quiet, yet the expressions betray tension.

Visiting Huis Marseille photography museum in Amsterdam

Unfortunately, both of these exhibitions are no longer at Huis Marseille, where the displays shift about four times a year. The Huis Marseille does have a permanent collection but, according to their website, photographs are light-sensitive so they are not always displayed. Instead, they produce thematic exhibitions.

Before your trip to Amsterdam, check Huis Marseille’s website to see what exhibitions are running when you’ll be in town. Or just stop by randomly, as we did, and take what you get. Hopefully future shows will be as delightful as this one was.

If you are going to visit several museums and attractions on your trip to Amsterdam, it might be worth your while to buy the I AMsterdam City Card. It includes admission to a whole list of museums, sights and entertainment in and outside of Amsterdam, plus a canal boat trip and unlimited public transportation.

Huis Marseille Museum for Photography in Amsterdam: Keizersgracht 401 (near the corner with Leidsegracht). This is a 20-25 minute walk from the Amsterdam’s central train station, or take the tram number 2, 11 or 12 to the Keizersgracht stop. Open daily, 10-18:00, and 10-21:00 on Thursdays Admission: €12.50 ($13.50).

(Last edited July 5, 2023)

Pinnable image
Text: Huis Marseille Photography Museum in Amsterdam: A review (and the Rachel's Ruminations logo)
Image: a young African-American woman with her hair on top of her head in a bun, large dangling earrings, looking at the camera with half-open eyes.

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about Rachel

Hi, I’m Rachel!

Rachel’s Ruminations is a travel blog focused on independent travel with an emphasis on cultural and historical sites/sights. I also occasionally write about life as an expatriate. I hope you enjoy what I post here; feel free to leave comments! Read more…
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Looks like you have a great selection of small museums there.

I would enjoy both of these displays and I think they were chosen well to compliment each other. I prefer the work of Martin Roemers. The photo of the motorbikes stopped and the cars moving around them is amazing. It was lovely that you got to spend the day with your daughter too!

So good they let you take pictures of pictures. I really like when I get visitors that share my interests. In that way, we can do things enjoyed by all in the group.

Rachel, I love going to photography museums, and I really love the motion shot. I also like your link list of all the other museums.

I like Roemers’ splashes of color. Lixenberg’s portraits are intimate and powerful.
Hope your daughter also enjoyed them.

Isn’t it fun, the way visitors prompt you to go places and experience things you wouldn’t have chosen on your own and in my case, I usually end up delighted that I had the nudge it took to get me to them! Fun post.

I chuckled when you wrote that your daughter chose the museums and you weren’t thrilled with them; however, looks like they were good choices! Love the picture as well of Times Square with the cars/bikes zooming by. Guess it’s the colours. I think I saw that picture in one of your Linkedin or Facebook posts and I thought YOU took the photo!

I often find those smaller museums fascinating just for their architecture – I often wander around photographing the buildings rather than looking at the exhibits! Although it looks as if you made a good choice in the end with those exhibitions.

Planning a first time trip to Amsterdam this September. Will have to check out your recommendations on museums. Thanks for sharing.

I’m a fan of small museums, and love discovering a place through them. Both of the displays that you saw on your visit to Huis Marseille look really interesting, and in a fine setting. Your daughter made a good choice!

I think this must have been a perfectly splendid outing. So interesting the completely opposite styles of the photographers. And those ceilings look magnificent (from the little glimpse you gave us). I might be tempted to haunt Huis Marseille on the regular if I lived there.

Another great find! Huis Marseille Museum looks very interesting. By the way, the other thing I’d like to do in Amsterdam is a ride a bike around as you did. Thanks for another great museum tip for my next trip.