Guste Gulevaite

From 11 December 2026 to 11 April 2027, the Nederlands Fotomuseum presents Dag Nederland, an exhibition by photographer and filmmaker Marwan Magroun. Existing work from different periods is brought together with new photography created especially for the exhibition. At its heart is the question: who gets to define what it means to be Dutch?

The title Dag Nederland deliberately carries two meanings. In Dutch, ‘dag’ can be both a greeting and a goodbye. Magroun uses this ambiguity to examine how the Netherlands sees itself. Who is seen as Dutch? Who recognises themselves in the image of the Netherlands? And who gets to help shape that image?

“I grew up in this country and feel at home here, yet I haven’t always seen myself reflected in its image. With this exhibition, I want not only to question that image, but also to claim space within it.”

A different image of the Netherlands

For his new work, Magroun travelled across the country. He uses familiar elements of the Dutch landscape and national visual culture, such as a polder, windmill, flag, church and dike, as settings for portraits that bring together different expressions of Dutch identity.

Magroun works closely with the people he photographs. Together, they add new layers of meaning to familiar images. In doing so, identity emerges not as something fixed, but as something that is continuously shaped and redefined.

This approach connects to themes that have long been present in Magroun’s photography: identity, representation, family and intimacy. Dag Nederland therefore also includes earlier work, including the series Intimacy and Jonge Moslims (Young Muslims).

In Intimacy, Magroun turns his camera towards love and physical closeness among first-generation immigrants. The series began with a photograph of his mother and stepfather in their bedroom and developed into a series of tender portraits. Six photographs from the series are part of the Rijksmuseum collection.

In Jonge Moslims, created as part of a series of interviews by journalist Somajeh Ghaeminia for the Dutch newspaper Trouw, Magroun similarly focuses on the people behind social perceptions and stereotypes.

About Marwan Magroun

Marwan Magroun (Rotterdam, 1985) is a photographer and filmmaker. As a self-taught photographer, he developed his own visual language in which social themes such as identity and representation play an important role. Since 2017, he has worked for various newspapers, magazines and organisations.

Magroun received the Paul Peters Photography Prize in 2020 and the Dutch Photographers SO Award in 2021, among others. In 2022, he was appointed Fotograaf der Nederlanden (Photographer of the Netherlands). With Dag Nederland, he looks back on the period in which he portrayed the country from a range of perspectives.

Dag Nederland is on view at the Nederlands Fotomuseum in Rotterdam from 11 December 2026 to 11 April 2027.

With Screen Melancholy by Taiwanese artist Li Yi-Fan, the Nederlands Fotomuseum takes the next step in an updated direction: a more international programme in which photography and image are approached as a focal point within art, technology, media and society. In this context, Dutch photography is viewed as part of the wider world.

The role of the Nederlands Fotomuseum as a knowledge institute will also be further developed. The collection of 6.5 million objects and the museum’s expertise and research capabilities form the starting point. The collection, research and exhibitions will be more closely connected. The museum is working towards a dynamic programme of its own in which looking thoughtfully at the past and contemporary developments go hand in hand.

General & Artistic Director Zippora Elders considers photography in relation to the world in which images are created and acquire, and have an influence on, meaning. This vision will be further developed across all aspects of the museum.

“We reflect on what photography is and what it means, its varied history and the many forms and possibilities the medium offers. In the future, the museum will focus on bringing collection and programming, knowledge sharing and critical looking, seeing and sensing, the photographic object and image culture, Rotterdam and the world, Dutch photography and broader developments closer together.”
— Zippora Elders Tahalele, General & Artistic Director

Awareness of Images

Screen Melancholy by Li Yi-Fan opens on 21 January. The installation made a strong impression at the Venice Biennale, one of the world’s best-known international art exhibitions, and now comes from Venice to Rotterdam.

Li Yi-Fan examines how digital images are created and challenges the boundary between real and virtual. Video, virtual puppets, scale models and large 3D-printed sculptures come together in a single presentation.

Visitors take a seat on enlarged body parts, while digital figures on screen mimic human forms. As you watch, it becomes increasingly difficult to tell what is body and what is image, what is physical and what is digital, what’s on screen and what happens behind the surface. In this way, the new exhibition invites visitors to look critically at how images are created, distributed and viewed.

Large Exhibitions in 2027

This focus on the power and influence of images returns in various exhibitions and collaborations in 2027, in connection with the Dutch field.

Martin Parr’s iconic Global Warning is coming to Rotterdam, in collaboration with Jeu de Paume in Paris. The Nederlands Fotomuseum will also present a major overview by Angèle Etoundi Essamba, with spatial design by Studio L A. Magnum photographer Newsha Tavakolian will have a multimedia exhibition that will travel through Europe after Rotterdam.

Throughout the year there will be a diverse range of exhibitions and presentations relating to current topics in Dutch photography and beyond.

Space for Images and Knowledge in Santos

The new direction will not only be felt in the exhibition spaces. Other areas of warehouse Santos will also continue to take shape in the coming period.

In the freely accessible entrance hall, the museum will create more attention for spatial photography, moving image, film and video art, digital work and current developments in print and magazines in the Netherlands. Since the reopening, the library has been freely accessible as a place for learning and inspiration, as well as a place to work next to the museum’s coffee bar.

Step by step, artistic interventions that reflect the connecting curatorial direction will also be introduced throughout the rest of the building. In addition, museum-wide research is underway to enrich the permanent displays. This will give visitors an accessible introduction to photographic theory and greater insight into the significant influence photography and images have on societal debates and shifts in perspectives.

Rotterdam and the World

In spring 2027, various collaborations around Rotterdam’s creative landscape will continue to be developed.

During Museumnacht010, the museum will work with Rotterdam-based neighbours and creatives on workshops, guided tours, music and thought-provoking conversations about photography and images.

On Wednesday evening, 17 March, at the start of Art Rotterdam and Unseen Week, the Nederlands Fotomuseum will be transformed for a lively night of sound, images and collective experience. This site-specific activation, in which the boundaries between exhibition, performance and club blur, is part of a unique international collaboration that will be revealed at a later date.

On Friday, 19 March, the Nederlands Fotomuseum will also moderate a programme of talks and panels during Unseen at Ahoy.

This coming spring, the museum will announce a selection of acquisitions realized in 2026 from photographers and artists in the Netherlands. In doing so, the personal and documentary aspects of the collection will be more closely connected with contemporary photographic practices.

From 20 November 2026, the Nederlands Fotomuseum presents Violette Cornelius Rediscovered. More than 200 works bring together the life and work of photographer and resistance fighter Violette Cornelius (1919–1998). Much of her work remained hidden for decades and only came to light after travelling cases containing thousands of negatives, slides, prints and documents were discovered.

Cornelius belonged to the first generation of women to make photography their profession. She studied at the Nieuwe Kunstschool in Amsterdam, where teachers including Paul Citroen and Paul Guermonprez introduced her to ideas from the Bauhaus.

Photographer and resistance fighter

During the Second World War, Cornelius played an active role in the artists’ resistance. She worked with the Persoonsbewijzencentrale, which produced forged identity documents, among other things. Her photographs of this resistance work form an exceptional visual record and were recognised as important heritage on UNESCO Netherlands’ Memory of the World Register.

After the war, Cornelius worked in architectural photography, reportage and photobooks. From the 1960s onwards, she travelled to countries including Mali, Iraq, India, Yemen and Peru. There she photographed the social impact of rapid urbanisation. By living and working among the people she photographed for extended periods, she developed an intimate and personal visual language.

Hidden in travelling cases

Many of her international reportages remained largely unknown for years. In 2003, the Nederlands Fotomuseum received travelling cases from Cornelius’ son containing thousands of negatives, slides, contact prints and documents. Another discovery followed in June 2026: five additional cases containing vintage prints, dummies, notes and books.

Nederlands Fotomuseum curator Loes van Harrevelt researched the archive and traced works by Cornelius held in other collections. This research forms the basis of Violette Cornelius Rediscovered.

The exhibition brings together more than 200 works, including vintage prints, archival material, exceptional loans and new prints. For the first time, the work of Violette Cornelius can be seen on this scale.

Violette Cornelius Rediscovered is on view at the Nederlands Fotomuseum from 20 November 2026 to 28 February 2027.

On 12 and 13 September, the Nederlands Fotomuseum, the Dutch national museum of photography, takes part in Open Monumentendag. Explore the Santos warehouse through photography, architecture and heritage. Join a tour of the building, investigate how sunlight moves through Santos in a cyanotype workshop or capture the details of the monumental warehouse yourself.

The national theme of Open Monumentendag 2026 is Resilient Heritage. This theme fits the Santos warehouse well. The former coffee warehouse, built in 1902, has been given a new purpose as a museum in recent years. Historic details remain visible, while new architectural interventions have adapted the building for its present-day use.

From warehouse to museum

During Open Monumentendag, you can learn more about this transformation. On Saturday, architect Sander Nelissen of WDJArchitecten guides you through Santos and explains the choices involved in restoring, adapting and reusing the monument.

On Sunday, Sofie from Gebouwen door Vrouwen explores the building through the theme of Resilient Heritage. What did it take to turn a warehouse dating from 1902 into a museum for photography? And how can existing heritage be given a new future?

The transformation of the Santos warehouse has been nominated for this year’s NRP Gulden Feniks, a national award for renovation and transformation projects. Santos has also been nominated for the Dutch Daylight Award 2026.

Photographing with sunlight

Photography and architecture also come together in a cyanotype workshop by artists Carolin Lange and Dico Kruijsse. During their Under the Same Sun workshop, you approach the building as a camera. Follow the sunlight moving through the Nederlands Fotomuseum and capture it in deep-blue prints.

You can also bring your own camera. Look closely at the details of Santos, capture the building from your perspective during Open Monumentendag and share your photograph with @NLfotomuseum.

The Nederlands Fotomuseum remains open as usual on 12 and 13 September. Museumkaart and Rotterdampas holders can visit the museum free of charge.

View the activities and register for a tour or workshop.

Farmers appear in the news and on social media almost every day. The way they are photographed helps shape how we see agriculture and food production. Many images focus on climate issues, food production and uncertainty. But which stories are given space? And which perspectives remain out of sight?

On Thursday 30 July, the Nederlands Fotomuseum presents a special edition of Fotomuseum at Night alongside the exhibition Good Food: A Journey Through the World of Food and Resilience. During a panel discussion, photographer Ruud Sies and invited guests explore how photography shapes the way we look at agriculture, landscapes and food production.

About the panel discussion

Good Food brings together stories from farmers, growers, researchers and food makers around the world who are working towards more sustainable ways of producing food. Rather than focusing only on the challenges, the exhibition also highlights the resilience, knowledge and innovation that are helping to build more sustainable food systems.

During the panel discussion, the speakers reflect on the stories behind both the exhibition and the accompanying publication. Together, they explore how images influence the way we think about agriculture, what responsibility photography carries in representing these stories, and which voices deserve greater visibility.

Before the panel, we will screen the documentary Farming While Black (2024). The film offers an additional perspective on the relationship between agriculture, identity, history and community, providing a starting point for the conversation that follows.

Speakers

Ruud Sies – photographer of Good Food

Robert-Jan Piek – Rotterdam de Boer Op!

Josimar Barbolina – works on building resilient food systems across the Caribbean islands

Practical information

Date: Thursday 30 July

Doors open: 6.00 – 6.30 PM

Film screening: 6.30 – 7.45 PM

Panel discussion: 7.45 – 8.30 PM

Q&A: 8.30 – 8.45 PM

Location: Entrance Hall, the Nederlands Fotomuseum

Admission: Free

The museum will remain open until 9 PM. You are also welcome to visit the exhibitions Good Food: A Journey Through the World of Food and Resilience, Quickscan 3: Photography Now and the Gallery of Honour of Dutch Photography.

Pakhuis Santos, home to the Nederlands Fotomuseum since February 2026, has been nominated for the Dutch Daylight Award 2026. Presented every two years, the award recognises buildings that make exceptional use of daylight. This year’s theme is ‘Magical Spaces’.

From warehouse to museum

The nomination is a wonderful recognition of the transformation of the historic warehouse, originally built in 1902. Once used to store coffee, Pakhuis Santos is now an open home for photography: a place where visitors explore exhibitions, move through the national photography collection and discover what it takes to preserve, research and make photographic archives accessible.

Daylight at Pakhuis Santos

Daylight plays a central role in that experience. Flowing through the open atrium at the heart of the building, natural light reaches deep into the museum. Combined with the distinctive roof structure, it creates a different atmosphere throughout the day.

Since February 2026, Pakhuis Santos has brought together photography, collections and craftsmanship under one roof. This nomination highlights the unique building that now serves as the new home of the Nederlands Fotomuseum, where visitors not only experience photography, but also gain a closer understanding of the collection and the work that happens behind the scenes.

Pakhuis Santos has been nominated in the category Buildings over 1,000 m². The project was designed by WDJARCHITECTEN and RENNER HAINKE WIRTH ZIRN ARCHITEKTEN.

Seven projects have been shortlisted for the Dutch Daylight Award 2026. The winner will be announced on 30 September 2026 during the Dutch Daylight Event at the Metaal Kathedraal in Utrecht.

Read more about the nomination on the Dutch Daylight Award website.

The Nederlands Fotomuseum, Grafisch Lyceum Rotterdam and International Film Festival Rotterdam present the results of the fifth edition of NFM x GLR x IFFR. As part of this collaboration, first-year Photography students from Grafisch Lyceum Rotterdam created new work at the intersection of photography and film.

For this edition, students were challenged to create a photographic film scene within one week, inspired by the style of American photographer Gregory Crewdson (1962). As in Crewdson’s work, each image is a carefully constructed and directed scene that resembles a still from a feature film.

To explore this approach, students drew inspiration from the documentary Gregory Crewdson: Brief Encounters (2012) and attended a guest lecture by photographer Annabel Oosteweeghel. She spoke about the role of atmosphere, colour and location in creating a compelling visual narrative.

As a starting point for their projects, the students selected a subject from the Gallery of Honour of Dutch Photography at the Nederlands Fotomuseum.

Working as a film crew

The students worked in teams, with each participant taking on a specific role, such as photographer, director, lighting technician or stylist. They also had access to rented large-format cameras and professional equipment that are not normally available within their programme.

The assignment offered students the opportunity to experience how every decision on a professional set influences the final image.

A platform for emerging talent

By presenting the final works, the Nederlands Fotomuseum offers a platform to emerging photographic talent and makes their work accessible to a wider audience.

The presentation is on view in the educational space on level -1 of the Nederlands Fotomuseum. This space is currently in progress and will further develop in the coming period.