Exploring the Rijksmuseum Public API with JavaScript

The Rijksmuseum is the national museum of the Netherlands, and it offers a public API that allows developers to access information about its collection of over one million artworks and historical objects. In this blog post, we will explore the Rijksmuseum Public API and show some examples of how to use it with JavaScript.

Getting Started

First, we need to obtain an API key, which we can do by registering at the official Rijksmuseum API website (https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/api). Once we have obtained an API key, we can start making requests to the API endpoints.

API Endpoints

The Rijksmuseum Public API offers several endpoints that allow developers to get information about the museum’s collection, exhibitions, and events. Here are some of the most important endpoints:

• /collection: This endpoint returns a list of the artworks in the collection, with information such as the title, artist, and image URL.
• /collection/{objectNumber}: This endpoint returns detailed information about a specific artwork, identified by its object number.
• /exhibitions: This endpoint returns a list of the current and upcoming exhibitions at the museum.
• /events: This endpoint returns a list of the current and upcoming events at the museum.

Example Code

Let’s now see some examples of how to use the Rijksmuseum Public API with JavaScript. We will use the fetch function to make requests to the API endpoints and get the data in JSON format.

Getting a List of Artworks

const API_KEY = 'YOUR_API_KEY';
const COLLECTION_ENDPOINT = `https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/api/en/collection?key=${API_KEY}&format=json`;

fetch(COLLECTION_ENDPOINT)
    .then((response) => response.json())
    .then((data) => {
        // do something with the data
    })
    .catch((error) => console.error(error));

In this example, we first define our API key and the endpoint for the /collection endpoint. We then make a fetch request to the API endpoint and get the response, which we parse as JSON using the .json() method. We can then do something with the data, such as displaying it on a web page.

Getting Information About an Artwork

const API_KEY = 'YOUR_API_KEY';
const OBJECT_NUMBER = 'SK-A-2344';
const ARTWORK_ENDPOINT = `https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/api/en/collection/${OBJECT_NUMBER}?key=${API_KEY}&format=json`;

fetch(ARTWORK_ENDPOINT)
    .then((response) => response.json())
    .then((data) => {
        // do something with the data
    })
    .catch((error) => console.error(error));

In this example, we define the object number of the artwork we want to retrieve and the endpoint for the /collection/{objectNumber} endpoint. We then make a fetch request to the API endpoint and get the response, which we parse as JSON. We can then do something with the data, such as displaying it on a web page.

Getting a List of Exhibitions

const API_KEY = 'YOUR_API_KEY';
const EXHIBITIONS_ENDPOINT = `https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/api/en/exhibitions?key=${API_KEY}&format=json`;

fetch(EXHIBITIONS_ENDPOINT)
    .then((response) => response.json())
    .then((data) => {
        // do something with the data
    })
    .catch((error) => console.error(error));

In this example, we define the endpoint for the /exhibitions endpoint. We then make a fetch request to the API endpoint and get the response, which we parse as JSON. We can then do something with the data, such as displaying it on a web page.

Getting a List of Events

const API_KEY = 'YOUR_API_KEY';
const EVENTS_ENDPOINT = `https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/api/en/events?key=${API_KEY}&format=json`;

fetch(EVENTS_ENDPOINT)
    .then((response) => response.json())
    .then((data) => {
        // do something with the data
    })
    .catch((error) => console.error(error));

In this example, we define the endpoint for the /events endpoint. We then make a fetch request to the API endpoint and get the response, which we parse as JSON. We can then do something with the data, such as displaying it on a web page.

Conclusion

In this blog post, we have explored the Rijksmuseum Public API and shown some examples of how to use it with JavaScript. We have seen how to get information about the museum’s collection, exhibitions, and events, and how to display it on a web page. The Rijksmuseum Public API offers a wealth of information that can add value to any art-related project, and we hope this blog post has inspired you to explore it further.