Seen in Amsterdam

I continue to be interested in the ways that different kinds of artists make sense of the places they live and how they connect the past, present and future of a place. While walking down the street in Amsterdam, I saw a shop with windows filled with coffee mugs in interesting designs...I was curious so I checked out the store. It was actually Ittala, the Finnish design store and the designs (above and below) were from the Local Mug Project, also happening in London, Stockholm and Helsinki.














What are the mugs? They're adaptations of a classic modern design, but more importantly, the images on the mugs represent place. The red Xs on the top mugs represent favorite windows in Amsterdam as seen on a map and the blue design is a graphic representation of favorite windows in Amsterdam.

I love Amsterdam's windows--the Dutch don't use curtains much, so you can see amazing spaces and slices of domestic life as you walk along the streets and canals. So this mug project connected my own Amsterdam experience with the experience of others, and if the dollar had been stronger, I would have brought these home.

How might an artist represent those meaningful places in your community? and how might you work with artists to help expand the sense of history and place?

Below: An Amsterdam window, 2007