In September we had a little holiday in Amsterdam and I was surprised and delighted to find some examples of great illustration in a very unlikely place!
We stayed in a lovely hotel called 'the Library' which was close to the station and handy for the notorious red light district in the centre of Amsterdam. This meant the Erotic Museum was 10 minutes walk away, and we thought it would be fun to check it out. The pink elephant logo helped us find the building, which is owned by the same people as the famous sex show 'Casa Rosso' (but that's another story!).
The displays in the Erotic Museum are set over many floors, typical of the old houses around the city which are narrow in width but very tall, with steep stairs between the floors. To my surprise we saw some 'naughty' drawings by Picasso which was an unexpected treat.
In the drawing below you can see a voyeur peeping through a curtain in a brothel... I have been told that this character represents Picasso himself, who towards the end of his life who was more often a voyeur than a participant in the local brothels. Perhaps the couple on the right hand side represent Picasso in his younger days? I think that's an artists palette I can see in the younger man's hand?
Another well known character (but more for his music and politics than his art), who has artwork on display is John Lennon. John's work hangs close to Picasso's and features himself and Yoko in their public and private lives....
The obvious conclusion to this little blog is that all artists and art students visiting Amsterdam should take an hour to visit the Erotic Museum! It is far cheaper than the many art galleries around the city, and enables you to view some terrific artwork up close. It also means avoiding the tiresome queues and pre-recorded 'lifestories' that have edited out a lot of the more interesting stuff!