#felixmeritis

I walk towards Felix Meritis alongside the canals of Amsterdam. When I arrive at the crossing of the Keizersgracht and the Wolvenstraat, the monumental building looms from the surrounding canal houses. It looks extraordinary, different from its surroundings, in scale, materialisation and prestige. The facade exists out of  a rather neutral ground floor base and above four ¾ pillars reaching over two floors and supporting a pediment above.

The evening has come, large shadows cast dark planes on the facade. The building itself is radiant, the large windows emit the light and the activity happening inside. The entrance door is large and heavy, but people are walking in and out constantly, I feel invited to walk in.

Inside, I walk directly into the public bar. The entrance hall is located in the centre of building, on the left is the bar, on the right the reception desk. The first thing you notice is the rather bare interior. The walls are painted, but the timber of the door and window frames is sanded. It looks like the interior is ‘stripped’, that is waiting for a new coat of paint to be put on, one of the next days. Still though, the cafe is equipped with a large bar, and several plasma screens are hanging on the walls. 

I walk towards the staircase, located in the heart of the building. Here I can sense the resemblance with the exterior image of the building. The Staircase is spectacular, with nice detailing and circular window openings arround the borders. 

The concerthal is directly connected to the staircase on the groundf floor. Overlooking the room, I feel a similar sensation as in the bar, but what I see is different. Something feels wrong, but I can’t really designate it. Is it the strange yellow colour on the walls? Or is the fact that the trusses of the lightning are hanging so low, that I can’t see the Corinthian capitals of the pilasters, surrounding the whole elliptical room. I feel the same in the ‘Shaffyzaal’ right above it, except for the fact that this room is painted in dark red. The white elements, such as the door frames and the balcony, jump out as large contrasting shapes on a dark red background.

The ‘Zuilenzaal’ evokes the same feeling as the cafe underneath. The timber decorations look elaborate and unique, but bare and rough. Some of the pillars, that probably would have been painted in imitation marble, are now sanded, showing the wooden grains structure.

It is also possible to walk around the different concert halls. A corridor, following the whole ellipse shape, is an intermediary space between the concert hall and the outside. The corridor around the ‘Shaffyzaal’ gives access to a stair towards the balcony. 

At the end, I go all the way to the top, to the observatory. Now it is a completely empty room, bright white painted. You have a beautiful view over the city of Amsterdam, but it seems that it is only occasionally used as a meeting room.