Towards the end of the summer break, the Design Department took 41 students on a 5-day tour of Amsterdam. The itinerary covered a range of inspirational visits; from visiting the best collection of 17th Century Dutch paintings at the Rijksmuseum to a meeting with the founders and designers of Anomoly Studios, one of the leading cutting-edge creative agencies in the world.
Our aim was to provide the students with a vast range of stimuli that would then act as the catalyst for the work to be done at A Level. Touching interviews given by Otto Frank at our visit to the Anne Frank museum, the documentary photography of Walker Evans at the Huis Marseille museum and the stunning work of Edward Steichen and Tim Hetherington at the Foam museum all provided them with truly unforgettable experiences.
Other highlights included a major exhibition on Federico Fellini, one of the most image-defining masters of post-war Italian cinema at the Eye Film Institute and included large projected film fragments, photographs, archive documents and posters, which provide an insight into the obsessions and motivations of the man behind La strada, La dolce vita and 81⁄2.
One visit took us to the Kroller Muller Museum, which is beautifully situated in an expansive national park. The visit started with a 15 minute film about the Kroller Mullers, the museum building and the collection itself, which actually includes more Van Goghs than the Van Gogh Museum. In addition, many of the students made use of the free bike hire to cycle on the special paths through the most beautiful countryside and sculpture garden that surrounded the building.
On our return journey home we spent the final day in Bruges, one of the most beautiful towns in Belgium, with its winding canals, cobbled squares, ancient town hall & historic cathedral. We took a steady walk through the ancient cobbled streets to arrive at the central square, where they were able to enjoy some free time to explore the town & visit the shops. It was a wonderful end to a superb tour.