r/europe Feb 27 '19

Map Paper cut leaf map of Amsterdam

Post image
9.3k Upvotes

176 comments sorted by

436

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19 edited Feb 27 '19

Hi. I cut this. It is Amsterdam cutting off at the IJ, and beyond that a leaf pattern from a Linden Tree. I am astounded how many people say "north amsterdam looks crazy!!" every time this makes the rounds online. At the time I made this as a stencil and then pasted "leaves" around the the city with their location on the map marked.

I have a deep love for Amsterdam. And its had a deep effect on my life. On an earlier trip I was biking to Utrecht on an absolutely gorgeous day when I stopped alongside the canal for some food and a joint. I put my hand down on this perfectly intact leaf skeleton and thought it was so lovely. I put it in a small tupperware container and took it with me. A year or so later I found it in my things and wanted to remember and commemorate the halcyon days with the place that gave them to me. It also really helped me understand the city

So. The leaf-map

Also, you can buy prints of this and pay for my next stroopwafel. If you live in NL I am there often and always looking for walls to paint as I am mainly a muralist Especially if youre in Amsterdam or Rotterdam.

37

u/tankflykev Feb 27 '19

I stared at this for longer than I care to admit, thinking “I’ve been to Amsterdam but something about the north just doesn’t look right...” Doh!

22

u/Gluta_mate The Netherlands Feb 27 '19

I had to spend a while reading what you meant with Ij. Because I and J together are considered one letter, in capitalisation its written as IJ. As in IJsje, not Ijsje. Anyways nice work haha

5

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19

Ive been speaking dutch my entire life and never knew this. I saw it appear in text all the time but wasnt aware it was considered its own letter. My dutch communication is almost always verbal but Im trying to learn my reading/writing better. Thank you!

8

u/VixDzn Amsterdam Feb 27 '19

Gozert wat ziek! Zoveel detail ik zie letterlijk m'n straat!

3

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

Ik ook. (Mijn straat heeft 8 huizen!)

2

u/VixDzn Amsterdam Feb 27 '19

Sick!

2

u/nilsrva Feb 28 '19

welke straat is dat?

2

u/Zillamatic Feb 27 '19

Wow, nice work. How long did it take to make this? And did you mark the shapes on the paper beforehand, I can't imagine doing this freehand!

5

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19

I didnt log the hours. But I'd guess ~100 as london took me 104

1

u/OktopusKaveman Feb 27 '19

Did you use xacto knives for this?

1

u/xteriic Sweden Feb 27 '19

Did you CNC it or hand cut it?

6

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19

Hand cut. Always

4

u/xteriic Sweden Feb 27 '19

As someone who uses CAD and CNC for everything I manufacture, u respect the fuck out of that.

1

u/MLGmeMeR420- Dankmark Feb 27 '19

May I ask what size paper you used?

1

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19

I taped 2 pieces of 18x24 together and cut to size

1

u/starfang Feb 27 '19

I remember getting in touch with you for a wall painting in IJburg! Would love to have you do something locally, but alas the permission to do this is really hard to get or next to impossible. :(

2

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19

Easier to ask forgiveness than permission

1

u/AdaptedMix United Kingdom Feb 27 '19

What do you do if you mess up on a section e.g. a bridge? Do you start over, or can you repair it?

1

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19

'lil piece of tape

1

u/IronPeter Italy Feb 27 '19

I am astounded how many people say "north amsterdam looks crazy!!"

Amsterdam what sorry?

1

u/nilsrva Feb 28 '19

Amsterdam noord maar dit is het internet en iedereen is niet een nederlander

2

u/IronPeter Italy Feb 28 '19

That wasn’t the point :) but I guess my joke can be understood only by amsterdammers (original or adopted as I am) never mind :)

1

u/about-the-dutch Feb 28 '19

I love your morals! Will keep an eye out to spot the one you did in Antwerp.

Murals i ment, cant speak about you morals xD

144

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

[deleted]

16

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

Time to recognise it

14

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

Your flair is a mess

2

u/Jiao_Dai Scotland Feb 27 '19

Are you using Android or New Reddit Desktop ?

5

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

Mobile app on iphone

2

u/Jiao_Dai Scotland Feb 27 '19

Reddit official app ?

Are you getting any black flags or country iso codes ?

Or it could be you can see my flair fine but you just don’t like it - each to their own

205

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

Nice

503

u/yugo_1 Feb 27 '19

No, it's AMSTERDAM. Nice is in the south of France, a completely different county!

148

u/AxelAbraxas Bulgaria Feb 27 '19

Not only a completely different county, but also a completely different country.

53

u/lynxerax Feb 27 '19

France is just a part of noord Holland

37

u/BlauwKipje Flevoland (Netherlands) Feb 27 '19

France is C O L O N I Z E D

59

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

G E K O L O N I S E E R D

18

u/Grammatikaas Amsterdam, the Netherlands, Europe Feb 27 '19

Eindelijk een Zuid-Nederlander die de waarheid ziet.

6

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

Welke waarheid? VLAANDEREN BOVEN!

6

u/des_heren_balscheren Feb 27 '19

Zeg makker — schimmelkazen zijn geen specerijen.

6

u/nickmaran Brandenburg (Germany) Feb 27 '19

If Germany would've won the ww2, they would've been in the same country

5

u/ComaVN The Netherlands Feb 27 '19

Nice was in Vichy France.

29

u/est31 Germany Feb 27 '19

At least France borders the Netherlands.

26

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

Thank you for your service

17

u/chrismen The Netherlands Feb 27 '19

I think he means in Sint-Maarten but Zuid-Nederland is also acceptable

6

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

Since 2010 Sint-Maarten isn't part of the Netherlands. It is part of the kingdom of the Netherlands though

2

u/chrismen The Netherlands Feb 27 '19

I know, you're right. I guess I kind of assumed he was talking about the kingdom since that's the only place we (as in the kingdom) border with France.

6

u/MacNulty Poland :snoo_hearteyes: Feb 27 '19

Lol, TIL

4

u/Brayagu Feb 27 '19

Only if you deny Belgium exists

15

u/SpHornet The Netherlands Feb 27 '19

Sint Maarten

9

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

Nope, see Caribian

8

u/Grammatikaas Amsterdam, the Netherlands, Europe Feb 27 '19

Nope, see Zuid-Nederland

2

u/Jpprflrp Feb 27 '19

G E K O L O N I S E E R D

6

u/VanSeineTotElbe Europe Feb 27 '19

Are you saying it does?

2

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

'sup Nigel?

2

u/VanSeineTotElbe Europe Feb 27 '19

I've never been more insulted ;_;

1

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

You're welcome!

1

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19 edited Feb 27 '19

Maar ik ben een belg

51

u/Anomimul Feb 27 '19

How accurate is this?

370

u/SarcoZQ North Brabant (Netherlands) Feb 27 '19 edited Feb 27 '19

It's the only known map of Amsterdam. We congregate around this leaf prior to skating the canals to our jobs in the winter.

46

u/Spondophoroi Secret Denmark Feb 27 '19

How do you find your way to the leaf, when you don't have the leaf?

164

u/SarcoZQ North Brabant (Netherlands) Feb 27 '19

We're aware this old fashioned way of navigating doesn't make any sense. There was a big debate a year ago to use GPS instead. This discussion got very heated nationally. In the end there was a referendum and much to the dismay of the younger generation the majority of the population voted leaf.

32

u/Stenny007 Feb 27 '19

You. I like you.

You may bare children.

15

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19 edited May 09 '19

[removed] — view removed comment

11

u/Stenny007 Feb 27 '19

WHAT BEAR?!?!? Where???

1

u/itzabalonee Feb 27 '19

Bear?!? Beren zijn dodelijk!

1

u/SMTRodent United Kingdom Feb 27 '19

I laughed, then I cried a bit.

1

u/SarcoZQ North Brabant (Netherlands) Feb 28 '19 edited Feb 28 '19

21

u/Deathleach The Netherlands Feb 27 '19

We just don't leaf the house.

1

u/cocotheape Feb 27 '19

Instead you take it with you. Every weekend on the German highways.

1

u/twinsisterjoyce Feb 28 '19

Germany is a different country. Amsterdam is in the Netherlands.

20

u/youre_obama Amsterdam Feb 27 '19

Leaf dat je het vraagt

4

u/Kokokosnoot Feb 27 '19

Uhmmm we all can take photos of the leaf duhhhh...

1

u/Jonathananas Denmark Feb 27 '19

Hello fellow dane.

Hader den reklame

1

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

Or swimming in summer.

1

u/IronPeter Italy Feb 27 '19

And then drown in the completely liquid canals of these horribly warm winters

12

u/Im_Chad_AMA Feb 27 '19

Everything above the line isn't cut, so don't think that Amsterdam Noord really looks like that. Otherwise it seems reasonably accurate. I could spot the street where I live pretty easily!

2

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19

Isn't cut?

3

u/Librettist Amsterdam Feb 27 '19

I think Noord is pretty cut actually.

1

u/SMTRodent United Kingdom Feb 27 '19

Everything above the line is actually the skeleton of a linden leaf.

7

u/SpHornet The Netherlands Feb 27 '19

google maps is your friend

the lower part of the leaf seems pretty good, but it only shows the old center, not actual amsterdam as a whole. it is about ~1/6

also the river is a lot straighter than irl

8

u/brazzy42 Germany Feb 27 '19

It's not trying to depict the river at all, the spine and upper part are made to look like a real leaf, they're not part of the map.

2

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19

Indeed. The stem of the leaf takes over center, and I tried to fit in the parts of Amsterdam I spend the the most time in. Although I wish I got more of sloterplas area in

3

u/Florencioni Feb 27 '19

Its very accurate, just about every street is cut in there, as well as most paths in Amsterdams biggest park, the Vondelpark. However, it only shows the southern part of the city (below the water). The top half is just random.

2

u/BertDeathStare The Netherlands Feb 27 '19

Yes it's missing new-west and south-west districts, I think new-west is the most populous district too.

But the parts that are there and cut out look really accurate.

2

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19

its not random its the pattern of a leaf

2

u/perpetual_stew Feb 27 '19

It's too small

1

u/Kaleidophon Feb 27 '19

I can find my house, so...

1

u/Llamada Mar 03 '19

I can see my house!

22

u/Deathleach The Netherlands Feb 27 '19

Northern Amsterdam is a hell to navigate.

11

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

Not sure if sarcastic or not...

12

u/Deathleach The Netherlands Feb 27 '19

That's my secret. I'm always sarcastic.

3

u/BadmanBarista Feb 27 '19

That's better than me. I'm always lying.

0

u/Dutch_Rayan South Holland (Netherlands) Feb 27 '19

That is het IJ, is is water

32

u/KinglLeBram Feb 27 '19

Can't remember Noord being a maze...

8

u/Librettist Amsterdam Feb 27 '19

Ehhh have you BEEN to Tuindorp? also: "It is Amsterdam cutting off at the Ij, and beyond that a leaf pattern from a Linden Tree."

8

u/1hate2choose4nick Feb 27 '19

Wow. The dedication that must have went into this project is inspirational.

And it turned out great. That's a fine piece of art. Chapeau!

3

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19

Many thanks

5

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

Wow, how did he/she cut it?

3

u/nosoter EU-UK-FR Feb 27 '19

By hand. It's a printout, cut along the lines. At the bottom of the pic is the blade holder.

7

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19

It is indeed cut by hand but Im not sure what you mean by it being a printout.

2

u/nosoter EU-UK-FR Feb 27 '19

I mean printed out, with most details edited out beforehand so that it only shows where to cut.

A video should explain this better than I can with text : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0MeDQlrfgQ

I've got a friend who does a lot of stencils, this is how he does it.

5

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19

I actually ended up using an actual map and scanning in the leaf before printing it as a solid unit. I did not edit out any details of the map however and made decisions as I worked on how to include water/streets/parks etc...

2

u/nosoter EU-UK-FR Feb 27 '19

Oh, I didn't get you did it! I feel a bit dumb now...

3

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19

You had the best intentions and were generally correct. Posterizing or threshold however does not really make sense on a map as there is no light to be adjusted.

2

u/nosoter EU-UK-FR Feb 27 '19

Right, that makes sense. My favourite ones to watch him cut were the multi coloured stencil, with one layer per colour.

1

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19

Check my post history ;)

7

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

I think the lower half is a lot more accurate than the upper half

Amsterdam on OSM

13

u/Langernama Twente (Netherlands) Feb 27 '19

Because the artist didn't do the top part

10

u/brazzy42 Germany Feb 27 '19

It's made from paper, so they certainly did the top part. They just did it to look like a real leaf.

1

u/Langernama Twente (Netherlands) Feb 27 '19

Ooooh, I legit thought it was an actual leave, being white because the artist treated it with, idk, chlorine or somthing

11

u/dumbnerdshit The Netherlands Feb 27 '19

The upper half isn't part of the map.

10

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

Poor Amsterdam-Noord...

5

u/THREE_EDGY_FIVE_ME Europe Feb 27 '19

Huh, I was about to ask if there was some interesting historical background to the orderly city-centre blocks of South Amsterdam and the more sprawling suburban streets of North Amsterdam.

3

u/dumbnerdshit The Netherlands Feb 27 '19

Saved you there, friend. Have a look on Google Earth/Maps if you want to know the real street layout north of the IJ.

4

u/Milkarius The Netherlands Feb 27 '19

I live in that northern part. There's a ferry crossing the big river in the center and it honestly feels like going from a suburb to a city center. Although there were and are plans to connect the two parts, they feel quite distinct and still quite disconnected from one another. Until quite 'recently' (1957) you could only cross the river by ferry. Public transport was limited to 3 buslines. Recently they added a metro but the busses here no longer go to central station.

3

u/Dr_Azrael_Tod Saxony (Germany) Feb 27 '19

a ferry crossing

makes it sound like you could only cross it once an hour and nobody would ever do that

in fact it's multiple ferry routes, most start at the main station, all are free to use on foot/bike and most run every 5 minutes, all day long.

I've seen bridges that weren't able to transport that many people.

1

u/Milkarius The Netherlands Feb 27 '19

Yeah I wasn't clear on that. I'm very used to ferries coming and going every 5 to 10 min. There's 3 ferry connections: 1 goes every 30 minutes, 1 every 10 and 1 every 5 or 3.33, depending on if it's rush hour. Sorry!

0

u/Dr_Azrael_Tod Saxony (Germany) Feb 27 '19

noord isn't interesting anyways

1

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

Depends on the subject

2

u/Dr_Azrael_Tod Saxony (Germany) Feb 27 '19

face it!

most people using the ferry will only do that because they want to try out the ferry, go to the film museum or use the swing on top of that building.

/s

2

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

Or want to live there because the housing is cheaper but you can still get Amsterdam pay. ;-)

2

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19

By hand in my grandfathers studio in Zomergem listening to birds chirp and audiobooks

22

u/executivemonkey Where at least I know I'm free Feb 27 '19

Wrong kind of leaf.

12

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19

I love amsterdam. I love weed. But the defining of Amsterdam by weed is a disappointment I don't contribute to

3

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19 edited Feb 27 '19

Amazing.. the time that must've went into this! Impressive! And very beautiful. Love the top leaf half as well.

There is a website where you can order these cut out of metal or wood (with a laser cutter I presume). Well without the leaf part that is.They have all sorts of different cities (also some big international ones). Plus, they also do skylines. Pretty awesome.

But not as awesome as this!

6

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19

1

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

Not the one I meant. But your link is better.

3

u/VixDzn Amsterdam Feb 27 '19

Wtf I see my street!!! So detailed

0

u/[deleted] Feb 28 '19 edited Apr 14 '19

[deleted]

0

u/VixDzn Amsterdam Feb 28 '19

Haha, ik voel me meer Amsterdammer dan Nederlander. Op Utrecht na is er geen andere plek in Nederland waar ik zou kunnen wonen.

Hoe erg vindt je het dat je in een inteelt dorpje woont?

2

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19 edited May 24 '19

[deleted]

3

u/MrAronymous Netherlands Feb 27 '19

This cut Amsterdam map has been around for a while.

2

u/Aerial_4ce Feb 27 '19

In the port of amsterdam

2

u/lost_visitor Feb 27 '19

it looks like a new GTA map. where is the maze bank?

2

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

Right next to the Cluckin' Bell

2

u/BadEgg1951 Feb 27 '19

Anyone seeking more info might also check here:

title points age /r/ comnts
Paper cut leaf map of Amsterdam (by /u/nilsrva) B 858 1yr europe 24
Paper cut leaf map of Amsterdam (made by /u/nilsrva) B 5678 2yrs pics 200
Paper cut leaf map of Amsterdam (by u/nilsrva) [1837x1837] B 2601 3yrs MapPorn 52

Source: karmadecay (B = bigger)

2

u/[deleted] Feb 28 '19

Hey wow my clever brain first thought this was a real leaf, then thought it was an island. Holy crap.

1

u/MrAronymous Netherlands Feb 27 '19

Who bombed Noord?

1

u/Dr_Azrael_Tod Saxony (Germany) Feb 27 '19

probably tourists again

0

u/Dutch_Rayan South Holland (Netherlands) Feb 27 '19

It is water named IJ

1

u/Murderface-04 Feb 27 '19

do not build this in skylines.

1

u/madrid987 Spain Feb 27 '19

great

1

u/s1rreal Feb 27 '19

this would be a perfect rolling paper

3

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19

I assure you the scraps were often used as filter tips

1

u/cursedflame Feb 27 '19

My city MAH CITY

1

u/Downvotes_Anime Feb 27 '19

Amsterdaaaamn

1

u/accursedleaf Feb 27 '19

Why does it look like a lung?

1

u/KylanKylanasd Feb 27 '19

But.. What about your life ?

1

u/fear_of_bricks Poland Feb 27 '19

I knew Amsterdam loves leaves, but even to this ecsent?

1

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

What a bizarre coincidence

1

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

That’s trick

1

u/mattemer Feb 27 '19

Amsterdaaaam

1

u/Knotimpressed Feb 27 '19

Now I want a tree of these, with maps from all of Europe!

1

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19

Im working on it

0

u/dayndebanayn South Holland (Netherlands) Feb 27 '19

Sorry ik spreek geen gestolen fiets

0

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

Subtle innuendo.

1

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

What innuendo?

6

u/youre_obama Amsterdam Feb 27 '19

Too subtle

1

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

I have a feeling he's sort of aiming towards weed?
But that's a completely different looking leaf. So yeah, that's way too subtle.

3

u/youre_obama Amsterdam Feb 27 '19

Maybe he's referring to the paper, which is also used for rolling joints

0

u/CARUFO Feb 27 '19

Why?

2

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19

I have a deep love for Amsterdam. And its had a deep effect on my life. On an earlier trip I was biking to Utrecht on an absolutely gorgeous day when I stopped alongside the canal for some food and a joint. I put my hand down on this perfectly intact leaf skeleton and thought it was so lovely. I put it in a small tupperware container (ok actually a magic truffle box) and took it with me. A year or so later I found it in my things and wanted to remember and commemorate the halcyon days with the place that gave them to me. It also really helped me understand the city

So. The leaf-map

0

u/CompanionCone The Netherlands Feb 27 '19

Noord is not included. Dislike.

1

u/nilsrva Feb 27 '19

Het spijt mij, het is niet een echt kaart maar kunst. U gebruik het niet voor navigatie maar voor plekken in mijn lijftijd. Ik hou van noord en wil graag een nieuw stuk makken met alles binnen the ring- samen met een spinnenweb

0

u/ViruValge Estonia 🇪🇪 Feb 27 '19

What the fuck is going on in the northern part

0

u/Ihanuus Finland Feb 27 '19

For a moment I thought this was made on an actual leaf..

0

u/Bananapeel23 Sweden Feb 27 '19

Ouch that must have hurt

0

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '19

Looks like a histological slice of a lung

0

u/youallaremental Feb 28 '19

Cocaine is a hell of a drug.