North Amsterdam is home to the 3D Print Canal House, a prestigious ‘research-by-doing’ project that involves constructing a typical canal side property using 3D printing. If the architects and sponsors involved in the initiative have their way, this experiment will be the city of the future in microcosm: sustainable, socially-conscious and creative. Perfectly reflecting the zeitgeist, it is also an exhibition and event space, where the public can contribute ideas and watch live as a huge printer, the KamerMaker (RoomBuilder), produces the new building materials and designs.

The project is also a symbol of the Amsterdam Economic Board's ambition of being Europe's number one creative metropolis by 2020. Why has it set itself this goal? Because urban creativity attracts and promotes economic activity and innovation, which in turn benefits the city and its residents. At least, that is the idea behind the creative city. Amsterdam policymakers are not the first to have big aspirations for their city, nor are they the first to bank on art and culture to make these goals a reality. But is it possible to plan a creative city? Or is wishful thinking ultimately the best that you can do? History suggests the latter. The question is whether that is such a bad thing.

Art and trade

Is it a coincidence that the 3D Print Canal House is on the very same site that was used, four hundred years ago, by cultural entrepreneurs avant la lettre Claes Jansz. Visscher and Pieter Bast to represent the city's grandeur – right on the bank of the river IJ across from the current location of Amsterdam Central Station? On this print from 1611, we see the Amsterdam city skyline from the north, looking east to west. Recently, the cityscape had undergone significant changes as a result of the first drawing-board plans for urban expansion becoming a reality, giving shipping and trade in particular more space reaching both eastwards and westwards. The image is dominated by the IJ, the city's artery, with countless ships bobbing along on its surface. Also striking are the exotically-dressed foreigners offering their goods. The city's buildings are prominently featured, with iconic sites and institutions such as the recently-established Stock Exchange, Dam Square and the Fish Market (Vismarkt).