Inspiration
Background information, inspirational stories and more
Time to enrich the story of Amsterdam together! We give you reading, listening, watching, browsing and doing tips to learn more about women today and women in history. We regularly add new tips. Get inspired! For whom are you making an ode?
Isaac Israels Portrait of Aletta Jacobs 1919, Amsterdam Museum, Atria loan
Listen
Podcasts, music and audiobooks. Everything you can listen to learn more about women from history, women of today or get inspiration for your ode (in Dutch).
- The podcast De Eeuw van de Vrouw. Bestselling author Suzanna Jansen, along with journalist Rachel van de Pol, explores the legacy of the past 100 years from a female perspective and how it resonates with our time.
- Damn Honey. In this podcast, Nydia van Voorthuizen and Marie Lotte Hagen discuss the “shit” you have to deal with as a woman of our time.
- The podcast De 100 vrouwen van Marcel. Marcel Musters talks to 100 women from his life who have been important to him.
- The podcast Naakt op een kleedje. Heske ten Cate and Yuki Kho discuss a work of art by a female creator with a female guest.
- The podcast De Geschiedenisles die je nooit hebt gehad
Watch
Movies, documentaries, series, TV shows or surprising movies. So much to see! We share 5 tips to immerse yourself in the world of women.
- Female Gaze Tours of the Amsterdam Museum. In these tours, guest tour guides from outside the museum reflect on the presentations and collection from a female perspective.
- Documentary Godendochters. Waldemar Torenstra followed the Ajax women in an eventful season and portrays driven stories behind the team.
- Vrouwen van Noord, series by the Amsterdam Museum. This video series introduces you to inspiring women from Amsterdam Noord.
- Kunst in het Kort van Carmen Schabracq. Kunst in het Kort ( Art in Short) are short videos in which makers and curators talk about objects in collections and presentations of the Amsterdam Museum.
- Each month, Dorine Maat gives a quick lecture about a woman who has made an impact on the city of Amsterdam as it is today. Which women in your neighborhood deserve an ode? Someone from your street, your favorite pub or from work who deserves a place in the city's history.
Read
Of course, there is also plenty to read about this topic. Below are tips from our staff (in Dutch).
- 1001 Vrouwen uit de Nederlandse geschiedenis - Els Koek. A reference work with 1001 biographies of famous Dutch women from the last 1000 years.
- Heksen - Eerherstel voor de vrouwelijke rebel - Mona Chollet. About the persecution of witches that was an ongoing battle against women that left its mark.
- Niet schrikken mama - Alma Mathijsen en Marita Mathijsen (correspondence). Mother and daughter Alma and Marita Mathijsen question the position of women in which they look and sometimes fall over intergenerational differences.
- The Story of Art (Without Men) - Katy Hessel. Art history is retold from the perspective of women and women artists.
- Zij is de Geschiedenis - Alies Pegtel. This book tells history through women who did leave their mark on history.
- Tonia Stieltjes - Activiste, model en wilskrachtdokter - Esther Schreuder. Book on the life of Tonia Stieltjes richly illustrated with portraits and many historical photographs, among other things. Artists Brian Elstak and Iris Kensmil depicted parts of Tonia's life especially for this book.
Grandma Corrie works and lives in Amsterdam, 2008 Riek Milikowski-de Raat, Amsterdam Museum collection
Brows
There are many online resources to get you started (mostly in Dutch)
- An object from the Amsterdam Museum's collection can be a convenient and inspiring starting point for your ode. Only 9% of the objects have so far been linked to a woman in history. Check out am.adlibhosting.com.
- Dive into the archives of Atria, the knowledge institute for emancipation and women's history, or the collection of the Stadsarchief Amsterdam. These archives contain objects, books and photos. Look at atria.nl or amsterdam.nl/stadarchief.
- Look around the Delpher website. This website contains digitised historical Dutch newspapers, books, magazines and radio bulletins from libraries, museums and other heritage institutions. Search for a woman's name and discover interesting information. Check out delpher.nl.
- Check out the Women's Lexicon. This is an online collection full of biographies of notable women from the history of the Netherlands and its overseas territories, past to present. Check resources.huygens.knaw.nl/vrouwenlexicon.
In the collection
The Amsterdam Museum has many collection items linked to women. Below, we highlight a few to inspire you. Will you pay tribute to one of these women?
Major Bosshardt
Alida Margaretha Bosshardt was a Dutch officer of the Salvation Army. To many, she was the face of this denomination in the Netherlands in the second half of the 20th century. She gained fame as Major Bosshardt, but her last rank was that of lieutenant colonel, since 1968.
Sophia Adriana de Bruijn
Sophia Adriana de Bruijn married pensioner jonkheer Augustus Pieter Lopez Suasso. The couple brought together a large collection of art, fashion and crafts. On her death, she bequeathed her entire estate to the city of Amsterdam. The Amsterdam Museum's collection includes around 5,000 objects from her inheritance.
