In a city soaked in history and heavy with art, it’s not surprising that two of its major museums are offering mirror-image exhibitions. At H’ART Museum, From Rembrandt to Vermeer gathers the stars of the Dutch Golden Age into one gleaming showcase. Just across the foyer, Refresh Amsterdam #3 at the Amsterdam Museum throws open the doors to today’s makers, who are less interested in light and shadow and more concerned with war, migration, and who gets to belong.
The H’ART exhibition is undeniably impressive. Featuring 75 paintings from the privately held Leiden Collection, it includes 18 Rembrandts and a single Vermeer, the only one still in private hands. The works are arranged thematically, giving viewers room to compare intimate domestic scenes, bourgeois portraits, and mythological tableaux. It is a well-mannered exhibition that wears its scholarship lightly, with just enough wall text to guide without overwhelming.
Rembrandt, unsurprisingly, steals the show. His self-portrait from 1634 offers all the introspection and ego we expect. But others shine too. Gerard Dou’s precise genre scenes draw you into a world of taverns, kitchens, and study rooms, while Maria Schalcken’s small but striking portrait reminds us that women did more than pose in the 1600s. The real surprise is the Vermeer. Recently restored, it sits quietly in a darkened room and still manages to command attention. It is luminous, restrained, and worth the ticket price alone.
Refresh Amsterdam #3 offers none of this serenity. There are no golden frames here, no murmured appreciation of brushwork. Instead, we get video installations, protest banners, spoken word, sculpture, and a healthy dose of rage. The exhibition tackles war and conflict, viewed through the lens of a city that has always been shaped by migration and resistance. The open call format results in a lively, sometimes chaotic mix, but that is part of the point.
Together, the two exhibitions form a compelling portrait of a city caught between pride in its past and anxiety about its present. One gazes backwards with elegance, the other looks forward with urgency. Amsterdam, it seems, is still deciding what kind of painting it wants to be. Luckily for visitors, both versions are well worth seeing. Eva Lakeman 21st July 2025
