Alkmaekers
Alkmaar through the eyes of its makers
Centuries ago, everything happens in the inner city: raw materials come from the neighborhood and everything residents need, they make within the city walls. Walk along and experience Alkmaar through the eyes of the makers, past and present.
Downtown is bustling with activity. Within the city walls Alkmaarers work as spinners, weavers, bleachers, tanners, potters, tile makers, woodworkers and much more. All raw materials come from the neighborhood. Each craft spreads its own smell and sound. The city is bustling.
Centuries later, raw materials fly all over the world and you can hardly find crafts in the city anymore. Yet you can still experience the crafts past everywhere through finds and stories. Walk along and discover the lives of the makers of the past, through the eyes of the makers of today.
The sheep, the cow and the herring
The walking tours are about crafts related to the sheep, cow and herring. Walk past the places on the map, look around carefully and listen to the podwalk-stories in which Alkmaekers engage in conversation with city archaeologists. Discover that there are still traces of the crafts of the past. At least, if you know where to look! The walking map is available in the museum store, the exhibition is in the foyer.
Alkmaekers: people, material and story
Social designer Ro Smit designs with social impact. In his studio "De Maekplaats," young Alkmaar residents with various forms of autism work as "Alkmaekers" on traditional products. For example, they make cushions and bags from linen, from flax that grows on the Zeeland and Flemish coasts. They color the fabrics with pigments from native plants they grow in their own city garden. The Alkmaekers also draw illustrations and this city map with precision. This project connects man, material and story.
Made possible in part with funding from the Municipality of Alkmaar, Makersimpuls, Stimuleringsfonds Alkmaar, Brede Spuk, and with the efforts of Kopzorg, the municipal archaeologists and the Stedelijk Museum Alkmaar.
The Alkmaeker project was inspired by the stories of Ro Smit's grandfather. Jacobus Nicolaas Smit was an artisan paintmaker and painter by trade. The workshop was located at 91 Laat.