Robert Kloosterman

The Warhol Economy and Amsterdam

Elizabeth Currid

The Warhol Economy; How Fashion, Art, and Music Drive New York City.

The Warhol Economy and Amsterdam

Important book:

• It’s central thesis is very important

• The underlying research is highly interesting

• Got a lot of publicity

• The style of the book

The Warhol Economy and Amsterdam

Read and enjoy the book!

The Warhol Economy and Amsterdam

Comparison NYC-Amsterdam Jane Jacobs did it before: in 1985Amsterdam: difficult transition to post-

industrial economy High unemployment, flight of the middle

classes

The Warhol Economy and Amsterdam

Jane Jacobs optimistic:

• Diverse economy

• Mix of buildings old and new

• Mix of use

• Density

• Intricate street patterns

• Lively sidewalks

The Warhol Economy and Amsterdam

We could add:

Rich palette of educational institutions,

Proximity to an international airport,

Attractive historic city centre

Tolerant atmosphere

Local entrepreneurial culture

The Warhol Economy and Amsterdam

Jane Jacobs turned out to be right:

After 1985, the Amsterdam economy picked up again

Producer services and cultural industries growth sectors

Amsterdam became a popular place to live driving house prices up

The Warhol Economy and Amsterdam

Grafiek 2: Ontwikkeling stedelijke concentraties van werkgelegenheid in creatieve bedrijfsklassen 1899-2005

0

0,2

0,4

0,6

0,8

1

1,2

1,4

1,6

1,8

2

1899 1920 1930 1963 1973 1980 1988 1993 2000 2005

LQ

Amsterdam

Rotterdam

Den Haag

Utrecht

The Warhol Economy and Amsterdam

Location quotients in arts in Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague and Utrecht, 1899-2005 (Michael Deinema and Robert Kloosterman, forthcoming)

0

0,5

1

1,5

2

2,5

3

3,5

4

4,5

5

1899 1920 1930 1993 2000 2005

LQ

Amsterdam

Rotterdam

Den Haag

Utrecht

The Warhol Economy and Amsterdam

Importance of cultural industries recognised by the national and the local government (e.g. Kansen voor West, Creative Cities Amsterdam Area)

Focus on match educational institutions and C.I.Offering room (workspaces) for C.I. Recognition of heterarchic characteristic of the C.I.Investing in knowledge infrastructureCreative City Lab: using C.I. to help to solve social issues

The Warhol Economy and Amsterdam

• Strenghtening of urban milieu to enable face-to-face contacts (third spaces)

• Tolerant atmosphere

• Accessibility of urban space

• Workspaces

The Warhol Economy and Amsterdam

Questions:

Relevant spatial scale?

Demand side?

Rerun of industrial policies of the 1950s?