Foam or Fotografiemuseum Amsterdam is a photography museum located at the

Keizersgracht The Keizersgracht (; "Emperor's canal") is a canal in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. It is the second of the three main Amsterdam canals that together form the Grachtengordel, or canal belt, and lies between the inner Herengracht and outer Prinsengr ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

, the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. The museum has four different exhibitions at any given time in which different photographic genres are shown, such as documentary, art and fashion. Next to large exhibitions by well-known photographers, Foam also shows the work of young and upcoming photographers, in shorter running exhibitions. Two notable shows were ''Henri Cartier-Bresson - A Retrospective'', work by

Henri Cartier-Bresson Henri Cartier-Bresson (; 22 August 1908 – 3 August 2004) was a French humanist photographer considered a master of candid photography, and an early user of 35mm film. He pioneered the genre of street photography, and viewed photography as cap ...

, and ''Richard Avedon - Photographs 1946–2004'', a major retrospective of

Richard Avedon Richard Avedon (May 15, 1923 – October 1, 2004) was an American fashion and portrait photographer. He worked for ''Harper's Bazaar'', ''Vogue'' and ''Elle'' specializing in capturing movement in still pictures of fashion, theater and danc ...

. In summer 2016, Foam presented a major

Helmut Newton Helmut Newton (born Helmut Neustädter; 31 October 192023 January 2004) was a German-Australian photographer. The ''New York Times'' described him as a "prolific, widely imitated fashion photographer whose provocative, erotically charged black-a ...

retrospective exhibition. The museum contains a café, a library, a bookshop, and a commercial gallery called Foam Editions. The museum also publishes a quarterly international photography magazine called ''Foam Magazine.''

Building

The building on the Keizersgracht canal in which Foam is located has a history dating back to Carel Joseph Fodor (1801–1860). Fodor first bought Keizersgracht 611, and later also bought the adjacent warehouse and residential house at Keizersgracht 609. Fodor destined the warehouse in his testament as the exhibition space that should receive the name

Museum Fodor Museum Fodor () is a former art museum in Amsterdam in the Netherlands. The museum was located at the Keizersgracht in Amsterdam-Centrum in the building that currently houses the Foam Fotografiemuseum Amsterdam.Nederlands Vormgevingsinstituut was located in these buildings.

History

Foam received permission in November 2001 from the city council for the start-up. On 13 December 2001, Foam opened its first exhibition ''Dutch Delight''. More than 7000 people visited the exhibition in which Dutch light played a prominent or self-evident role. After the opening exhibition the museum closed for renovation. Architects BenthemCrouwel turned three buildings at the Keizersgracht into a modern museum. The first exhibition in the new museum, was called ''Regie: Paul Huf'', Paul Huf together with Eva Besnyö being the originator of the museum. The official opening took place on 6 June 2002. The exhibition was visited by approximately 8000 people.

Exhibition policy

Every year, Foam organises four large exhibitions by particularly notable photographers, usually running for about three months. In conjunction, about 16 shorter running exhibitions are organised by the museum, which can be very different in character: either the work of relatively young photographers, or a specific project, work that is currently relevant, small retrospectives or the presentation of new developments within the medium. Emphasis is generally on

documentary photography Documentary photography usually refers to a popular form of photography used to chronicle events or environments both significant and relevant to history and historical events as well as everyday life. It is typically undertaken as professional pho ...

street photography Street photography (also sometimes called candid photography) is photography conducted for art or enquiry that features unmediated chance encounters and random incidents within public places. Although there is a difference between street and ca ...

portrait A portrait is a portrait painting, painting, portrait photography, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expressions are predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, Personality type ...

and

glamour photography Glamour photography is a genre of photography in which the subjects are portrayed in erotic poses ranging from fully clothed to nude. The term may be a euphemism for erotic photography. For Model (person)#Glamour models, glamour models, body sha ...

, and young and upcoming talents. Documentary photography exhibitions at Foam have included ''Avenue Patrice Lumumba'' by Guy Tillim, ''The Hyena & Other Men'' by

Pieter Hugo Pieter Hugo (born 1976) is a South African photographer who primarily works in portraiture. He lives in Cape Town.Leah Ollman (9 February 2007)Photography that goes only skin deep''Los Angeles Times''. Hugo has had four monographs published. H ...

, ''In the Shadow of Things'' by

Leonie Purchas Leonie or Léonie is a Latin-origin feminine given name meaning "lioness", from the masculine personal name ''Leon'' (meaning "lion"). Leonie evolved to Léonie in France. It is rare as a surname. People People with the name or its variants i ...

, and ''Calais - From Jungle to City'' by Henk Wildschut. Street photography exhibitions have included

Helen Levitt Helen Levitt (August 31, 1913 – March 29, 2009) was an American photographer and cinematographer. She was particularly noted for her street photography around New York City. David Levi Strauss described her as "the most celebrated and least ...

's ''In the Street'', a retrospective by

Weegee Arthur (Usher) Fellig (June 12, 1899 – December 26, 1968), known by his pseudonym Weegee, was a photography, photographer and photojournalism, photojournalist, known for his stark black and white street photography in New York City. Weegee w ...

and Tom Wood’s ''Photieman''. Portrait or glamour exhibitions have included ''Chemises'' by

Malick Sidibé Malick Sidibé (1935 – 14 April 2016) was a Malian photographer noted for his black-and-white studies of popular culture in the 1960s in Bamako. Sidibé had a long and fruitful career as a photographer in Bamako, Mali, and was a well-known fig ...

, ''People of the 20th Century'' by

August Sander August Sander (17 November 1876 – 20 April 1964) was a German portrait and documentary photographer. His first book ''Face of our Time'' (German: ''Antlitz der Zeit'') was published in 1929. Sander has been described as "the most important Ger ...

and ''Blessings from Mousganistan by

Mous Lamrabat Moustapha "Mous" Lamrabat (born 1983) is a Moroccan-born Belgian photographer, of Moroccan and Flemish descent. He is known for both fashion photography under Studio Mousmous, and fine art photography. Biography Lamrabat was born in Temsama ...

''. Under the denominator ''Foam_3h'', small shows by young photographers are presented under the Foam library. Recent examples include ''Control'' by Emilie Hudig and ''A Place to Wash the Heart'' by

Monieka Bielskyte Monieka is a community on the Busira River in the Province of Équateur in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In the colonial period it held a trading post and a Protestant mission. Location Monieka is on the north shore of the Busira River ...

Foam Paul Huf Award

Since 2007, Foam has been organising the Paul Huf Award, a prize that is awarded to a young, talented photographer under the age of 35. The award was at one time known as the KLM Paul Huf Award.

''Foam Magazine''

''Foam Magazine'' is a photography magazine published three times a year. Each issue is dedicated to a specific theme that is explored through work by both world-renowned image makers and newer, emerging talents. Accompanying essays, interviews and opinions by experts in the field come together to shape an in-depth and critical conversation. ''Foam Magazine'' has been the recipient of several awards for its high-grade graphic design and quality of content.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Museums in Amsterdam Photography museums and galleries in the Netherlands Neoclassical architecture in the Netherlands