The Fabrique des Lumières is a cutting-edge digital art venue in Amsterdam that offers visitors an unforgettable immersive experience. It is located in the historic Westergasfabriek, a former gasworks in the Westerpark area on the north-western side of the city. Book Fabrique des Lumières tickets here
The Fabrique des Lumières was opened in April 2022 and is run by Culturespaces, a privately-run French foundation which specialises in immersive digital art exhibitions. It has a number of venues worldwide and attracts over 6 million visitors per year.
The Westergasfabriek complex was opened in 1885 and was designed by architect Isaac Gosschalk in Dutch Neo-Renaissance style. The gasworks was closed in 1967 and from the 1980s the area has slowly transformed into an artistic and cultural hub.
Fabrique des Lumières is housed in the Zuiveringshal (Gasfabriek) building. With 17m high walls it offers 3,800m² of projection area using over 100 state-of-the-art video projectors. This makes it the largest digital art museum in the Netherlands.
It runs regular themed exhibitions which have an accompanying curated soundtrack using both classical and contemporary music. This transforms the industrial space into a breathtaking display of light, colour and sound.
Tickets are offered with a defined entry timeslot. On arrival you can scan your ticket to go through the barrier. There are free lockers for bags available (though a coin is needed to operate the locks) and there are bathroom facilities upstairs.
You enter the main projection hall via a small exhibition which has some historic images of the Westergasfabriek.
You are free to walk around the entire hall and find a seat if you wish.
There is an elevated mezzanine section at one end which offers an excellent vantage point.
Apart from the main hall there are a few smaller rooms to visit including a mirror room and pavilion, artworks info room and The Studio.
The current main exhibition is Dutch Masters: From Vermeer to Van Gogh which has 325 different artworks from 50 artists and lasts 34 minutes.
Entrance also includes the short exhibitions Mondriaan, An Abundance of Colour and Infinite Horizons (a contemporary exhibition running in the Studio).
The shows run in a loop and once inside you can stay as long as you like.
The exit from the main hall is clearly signed by projection and leads out via the gift shop.
We thoroughly enjoyed our visit and seeing an old industrial setting brought to life with explosions of colour and fantastic sound. The captivating shows are highly recommended for all ages.
The shows are suitable for children who have space to run around chasing the light projections.
In a very short time Fabrique des Lumières has established itself as one of Amsterdam’s most popular attractions. We highly recommend taking in a show.
Fabrique des Lumières Essential Info
Opening HoursDutch Masters 1000-1700 daily. |
Tickets & Admission€17.00 for adults, €13.00 for children/youths 5-17. FREE entry to children 0-4. Book Fabrique des Lumières tickets here I Amsterdam City Card holders pay €13, there is no discount for Museumkaart holders. Order the I Amsterdam City Card online here |
How to Get to Fabrique des LumièresFrom Amsterdam Central you can take GVB bus 21 (direction: Geuzenveld, stop: V.d. Hoopstraat) or GVB bus 22 (direction: Sloterdijk, stop: Nassauplein). From there it is a short walk to the Fabrique. GVB Tram 3 serves Westergasfabriek from the Museumplein area. |
Address / ContactFabrique des Lumières, Pazzanistraat 37, 1014 DB Amsterdam |
First published 7 August 2024. Our last visit to Fabrique des Lumières was in August 2024 and we paid our own entrance.
