Tag: amsterdam

Dear Bookworms

Selling his vampire paintings as a little kid in his little self-made open-air gallery in front of Art Cologne (Germany) back in 1970, Benedikt Taschen already sensed on that books could open doors to different worlds. Ten years later he opened his first store TASCHEN COMICS. This, including Bene’s huge desire to be part of a world full of artist and free-minded spirits, turned into a publishing house starting with the realization of the first TASCHEN original publication: Picasso, 1985.

This all happening in the eighties, Benedikt got a helping hand from his talented punk mates, and together they laid foundation for the team that is now responsible for selling more than two thousand subsequent titles all over the world.

After Paris, New York, Los Angeles, London, Berlin, Copenhagen, Hamburg, Miami and Brussels, at last the city of Amsterdam will be enriched by a brand new TASCHEN store. A place where one can hang out for visual pleasures, absorb, ponder, and get absorbed. A place where one can meet Mario Testino and Kate Moss, LaChapelle, Helmut Newton, 100 contemporary fashion designers…

Books really, still are the best thing you can buy for yourself or anyone else. Who ever tries to convince you that books will disappear only to become scrolling pages on screens is forgetting about a few things. Let’s think for a second about the smell of new paper and ink, the sound of flipping pages. The feeling of tiny little bumps when you move your fingers from left to right reading about your favorite artist, or the texture whilst discovering a photograph so beautifully printed that you forget for a few seconds that you’re standing in a quiet shop, on a very busy shopping street, in a big buzzing city saturated by people, hurdy-gurdy’s, manic shoppers, car horns, bicycle bells, city noises and din. And there you stand, hot and sweaty. With the huge desire of taking that book with you so you can discover it again when no one is around.

…Ahum. I do have to admit, I have a huge weakness for art books. As well because they are clean in their aesthetics. Completed and done. No links to other books, no menu bars, un-expected sounds and adverts, poker competition pop-ups and other visual noises and din. No distractions at all. Everything you see is suppose to be exactly at that certain place. Shot, edited, designed, produced, printed and published. Ready to be lived and loved.

 TASCHEN opened the twelfth store on 19^th of September 2011 on P.C. Hooftstraat 44, Amsterdam.

The wonderful world of Nummer 9

It does not happen very often that stores in Amsterdam give you the feeling of international allure and service. However, when you look hard enough, there are a few gems out there that know exactly what the modern customer is looking for. Behold Nummer 9: a store in the center of Amsterdam with a selection of the most amazing young brands, excellent service and an interior that made me feel like I was in a high end New York boutique all over again. Nummer 9 is everything a boutique should be: genuine, unpretentious, to the point and ready to make you succeed. The fact that the owner is only 25 and really knows what she’s talking about makes the whole shopping experience even better. You won’t understand my enthusiasm until you’ve actually paid a visit to the store, so my advice would be just that. Afterwards we can talk and gush about the brands together!