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. Through themes such as intimacy, family, identity and representation, Magroun explores what it means to be Dutch, who gets to decide who is seen as Dutch and who gets to recognise themselves in that image.
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. Through themes such as intimacy, family, identity and representation, Magroun explores what it means to be Dutch, who gets to decide who is seen as Dutch and who gets to recognise themselves in that image.
The title ‘Dag Nederland’ can mean both hello and goodbye. This double meaning connects to the questions Magroun raises about Dutch identity and the way the Netherlands sees itself. Who gets to represent the Netherlands? And who gets to take their place within that image?
A different image of the Netherlands
For his new work in Dag Nederland, Magroun travelled across the country. He uses familiar elements of the Dutch landscape and national visual culture as settings for his portraits. A polder, windmill, flag, church or dike takes on new meaning through the people Magroun photographs there.
The people he portrays play an active role in how they are represented. The resulting portraits bring together different expressions of Dutch identity, presenting identity not as something fixed, but as something that is continuously shaped and redefined.
Magroun’s work is rooted in encounter and collaboration. His portraits move between pride, vulnerability and everyday life, inviting viewers to look beyond stereotypes.
Intimacy and representation
Alongside the new work, Dag Nederland presents earlier series in which Magroun explores themes such as identity, representation and intimacy.
Intimacy began with a personal moment when Magroun photographed his mother and stepfather together in their bedroom. This became the starting point for a series of tender portraits centred on love and physical closeness. Through these photographs, Magroun shows a side of first-generation immigrants that is rarely seen. Six photographs from the series are part of the Rijksmuseum collection.
Young Muslims created as part of a series of interviews by journalist Somajeh Ghaeminia for Dutch newspaper Trouw, similarly places people at its centre. In both series, Magroun draws attention to people with relationships, desires, ambitions, dreams and thoughts, beyond the images and stereotypes through which they are often viewed.
About Marwan Magroun
Marwan Magroun (Rotterdam, 1985) is a photographer and filmmaker. As a self-taught photographer, he developed a distinctive photographic 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.
He 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 his time as Fotograaf der Nederlanden, during which he portrayed the country from a range of perspectives.
Exhibition: Dag Nederland
Photographer: Marwan Magroun
Dates: 11 December 2026 to 11 April 2027
Location: Nederlands Fotomuseum, Rotterdam