750 years of Amsterdam captured in a single work of art

750 years ago, Amsterdam consisted of a few hundred people, living off herring from the Zuiderzee and the trade in beer and wool. Today, the whole world knows the city of legends such as Cruijff, Rembrandt and Hazes. The city where you cycle along the canal belt and take the metro towards Zuidoost to hear ‘Mijn Stad’ echoing through the Johan Cruijff ArenA. The city where people are blunt, yet have a soft spot in their hearts. In other words: the city that Amsterdammers are proud of. To celebrate the 750th anniversary, the Johan Cruijff ArenA is immortalising the pillars of our city in this artwork.

The heroes of 750 years of Amsterdam

This artwork brings together twenty-seven heroes who have shaped Amsterdam. Resistance fighters who stood up in times of war, a doctor who fought for women’s suffrage, and artists whose influence is felt to this day from the Jordaan to Zuidoost. From football icons to community builders, from artists to global stars: each of them makes Amsterdam what it is.

A gift for Amsterdam, from Amsterdam-Zuidoost

To give a visual expression to our pride in our city and Zuidoost, artists Floor Wesseling and Virgil Sana joined forces. Two creators who know Amsterdam-Zuidoost inside out. Floor Wesseling has lived in the Bijlmer for 27 years and previously designed the corporate identity for the Zuidoost district and the lion on the Oranje shirt. Inspired by the biscuit tins found in Amsterdam kitchens, he designed the city map on the ceiling. Virgil Sana lives in Zuidoost and has already seen his work featured in the Van Gogh Museum and on the walls of Reigersbos. For this artwork, they bring the twenty-seven heroes to life on the concrete columns.

Floor Wesseling: the identity-builder of and from Zuidoost Virgil Sana: the paintbrush of Zuidoost

The heroes as role models for Amsterdam’s new generation

From Rembrandt to Worthy de Jong, and from Aletta Jacobs to André Hazes: each of the twenty-seven heroes embodies the character of our city. The Amsterdam swagger and individuality that give our city its colour. Today, a new generation looks up to them. The children in the squares, in the classroom and on stage. Who knows, perhaps these twenty-seven heroes are paving the way for the heroes of Amsterdam fifty years from now.