Nederlands Fotomuseum

13/10/2026

In this photograph, Ruud Sies captures Samanta Marzullo within the landscape of her family farm. For his portraits, Ruud often places his subjects at the centre of the frame. While this can create a more traditional composition, he uses the surrounding environment to add depth and an engaging image.

In Samanta’s portrait, the house becomes part of the composition: the doorframe creates a second frame around her, while plants and trees fill the four corners of the image. The interplay between light and shadow adds movement and atmosphere, bringing balance and tension to the scene.

The Marzullo family farm was the first organic farm in Sicily to grow all its vegetables and citrus fruits organically from the very start. Carmelo’s father was also the first farmer in the village to buy a tractor, an event that brought the entire town out to see it. At the heart of the Marzullo family farm are the principles of tradition, innovation and respect for the environment, plants and human health.

Explore more stories like Samanta’s in the exhibition ‘Good Food.’

Plan your visit to the museum via the link in bio.

‘Good Food’ is part of ‘Resilience Food Stories’.
Photography by Ruud Sies.

12/10/2026

In 1938 begint de 20 jarige Violette Cornelius aan de Nieuwe Kunstschool in Amsterdam. Ze experimenteert in haar fotografie met hoge en lage standpunten, diagonale composities en de fotografische techniek. In deze jaren maakt ze deel uit van een artistiek netwerk in Amsterdam. Een van de fotografen die ze daar leert kennen is Emmy Andriesse, die Cornelius ook portretteert.

Cornelius behoort tot de eerste generatie vrouwen die van fotografie hun beroep maken. In de decennia die volgen ontwikkelt ze een veelzijdig oeuvre, van architectuur en fotoboeken tot internationale reportages. Toch krijgt haar werk niet dezelfde erkenning als dat van haar mannelijke tijdgenoten.

In aanloop naar ‘Violette Cornelius herontdekt’ vertellen we meer over haar veelzijdige leven en fotografie. De tentoonstelling opent op 20 november in het Nederlands Fotomuseum.

🇬🇧 In 1938, 20-year-old Violette Cornelius enrolled at Amsterdam’s Nieuwe Kunstschool. She experimented with high and low viewpoints, diagonal compositions and different photographic techniques. At the same time, she became part of Amsterdam’s artistic circles, where she met photographers including Emmy Andriesse. Andriesse also turned her camera on Cornelius, portraying the young photographer herself.

Cornelius was among the first women in the Netherlands to make photography their profession. Over the following decades, she developed a diverse body of work, ranging from architecture and photobooks to international reportage. Yet her work did not receive the same recognition as that of her male contemporaries.

In the lead-up to ‘Violette Cornelius Rediscovered’, we’ll share more about her multifaceted life and photography. The exhibition opens on 20 November at the Nederlands Fotomuseum.

Credits:
1. Emmy Andriesse, Violette Cornelius, Amsterdam, 1938–1939. Special Collections, Leiden University Libraries
2. Still life with egg on a white plate, Amsterdam, 1939. Study assignment for the Nieuwe Kunstschool. © Violette Cornelius / Nederlands Fotomuseum

09/10/2026

08/10/2026

Where does the image end and reality begin?

From 22 January, the Nederlands Fotomuseum presents ’Screen Melancholy’ by artist Li Yi-Fan.

Digital actors, talking organs and enormous 3D-printed body parts come together in an installation that blurs the line between the physical and digital.

First shown at the Taiwan Pavilion during the 2026 Venice Biennale, ’Screen Melancholy’ is on view at the Nederlands Fotomuseum from 22 January to 11 April 2027.

🇳🇱 Waar houdt het beeld op en begint de werkelijkheid?

Vanaf 22 januari presenteert het Nederlands Fotomuseum ’Screen Melancholy’ van kunstenaar Li Yi-Fan.

Digitale acteurs, sprekende organen en enorme 3D-geprinte lichaamsdelen komen samen in een installatie waarin de grens tussen de fysieke en digitale wereld vervaagt.

‘Screen Melancholy’ was in 2026 te zien in het Taiwanese paviljoen tijdens de Biënnale van Venetië en is van 22 januari tot en met 11 april 2027 te zien in het Nederlands Fotomuseum.

©️ Li Yi-Fan

07/10/2026

‘Quickscan 3: Photography Now’ is not only on view, but also documented in a publication.

Designer Dana Dijkgraaf, who also designed the exhibition, brought together installation photographs and texts about its works and themes in two sections bound with an elastic band.

The publication is available at the museum shop for €12.50.

🇳🇱 ‘Quickscan 3. Fotografie nu’ is niet alleen te zien, maar ook vastgelegd in een publicatie.

Ontwerper Dana Dijkgraaf, die ook de tentoonstelling vormgaf, bracht installatiefoto’s en teksten over de werken en thema’s samen in twee katernen, gebonden met een elastiek.

De publicatie is voor €12,50 verkrijgbaar in de museumwinkel.

Credits:
Curators: Ruben Lundgren, Guinevere Ras
Graphic design: Dana Dijkgraaf Design
Installation photography: Sander van Wettum, Christian van der Kooy

Foto’s:
1, 3, 4, 5. Dana Dijkgraaf Dana Dijkgraaf Design
2. Almichael Fraay Almicheal.

05/10/2026

Een nieuw activiteitenoverzicht: deze maand staan er (doka-)workshops, Coco Olakunle’s Photography Book Club en een nieuwe avondopenstelling op het programma.

Op 22 oktober maak je met fotograaf Leonie Gossens van Club Caffenol fotogrammen in de donkere kamer en ontwikkel je deze zelf met Caffenol-C, een alternatieve ontwikkelaar op basis van koffie. Heb je zwart-wit negatieven thuis? Neem ze mee om af te drukken.

Op 29 oktober is het museum tot 21.00 uur open. Schuif aan bij Coco Olakunle’s Photography Book Club of volg om 19.00 uur een rondleiding door ‘Quickscan 3. Fotografie nu’ met de curator en deelnemende makers.

Op 31 oktober geeft fotograaf Esther Hovers een workshop straatfotografie. Meer informatie daar over volgt.

Bekijk het programma en reserveer je tickets via de link in bio.

🇬🇧 A new overview of what’s on: this month’s programme includes (darkroom) workshops, Coco Olakunle’s Photography Book Club and another evening opening.

On 22 October, join photographer Leonie Gossens of Club Caffenol to create photograms in the darkroom and develop them yourself using Caffenol-C, an alternative coffee-based developer. Have any black-and-white negatives at home? Bring them along to make your own prints.

On 29 October, the museum stays open until 9 PM. Join Coco Olakunle’s Photography Book Club or take a guided tour of ‘Quickscan 3: Photography Now’ at 7 PM with the curator and participating artists.

On 31 October, photographer Esther Hovers hosts a street photography workshop. More information will follow.

See the full programme and book your tickets via the link in bio.

Credits:
1, 3, 4, 5, 7 & 8. © Almicheal Fraay 
2. © Iwan Baan 
6. Esther Hovers & Raphaël Dallaporta, from the series ‘Trompe l’Œil’, 2026 © Esther Hovers & Raphaël Dallaporta

02/10/2026

Can changing a photograph also change the way you remember?

In ‘Spider, Snake, Turtle and Dragon,’ photographer Xiaoxiao Xu turns to her own family history. Inspired by the psychological technique Imagery Rescripting, she cuts up old family photographs and combines them with new images. By shifting, cutting and rearranging them, memories are separated from their original meaning, creating space for a new story.

Xu’s work is part of ‘Quickscan 3: Photography Now’, an exhibition showing how photographers and visual artists are moving between techniques and presentation forms as photography takes on new forms. On view until 22 November 2026 at the Nederlands Fotomuseum.

🇳🇱 Kun je door een foto te bewerken ook een herinnering herschrijven?

In ‘Spider, Snake, Turtle and Dragon’ richt fotograaf Xiaoxiao Xu zich op haar eigen familiegeschiedenis. Geïnspireerd door de psychologische techniek Imagery Rescripting werkt ze met oude familiefoto’s, die ze combineert met nieuwe beelden. Door ze te verschuiven, te verknippen en opnieuw te rangschikken, maakt ze herinneringen los van hun oorspronkelijke betekenis en ontstaat ruimte voor een nieuw verhaal.

Xu’s werk maakt deel uit van ‘Quickscan 3. Fotografie nu’, een tentoonstelling die laat zien hoe fotografen en beeldend kunstenaars bewegen tussen verschillende technieken en presentatievormen, terwijl fotografie steeds nieuwe vormen aanneemt. Te zien tot en met 22 november 2026 in het Nederlands Fotomuseum.

© Xiaoxiao Xu, uit de serie ‘Spider, Snake, Turtle and Dragon’, 2026

01/10/2026

What does it mean to be Dutch? And who gets to decide who belongs in that image?

From 11 December, the Nederlands Fotomuseum presents ‘Dag Nederland’ by photographer and filmmaker Marwan Magroun.

For his new work, Magroun travelled across the country, using familiar elements of the Dutch landscape as settings for portraits that reflect different expressions of Dutch identity.

The title ‘Dag Nederland’ can mean both hello and goodbye, as ideas about what it means to be Dutch continue to change.

‘Dag Nederland’ is on view from 11 December 2026 to 11 April 2027.

🇳🇱 Wat betekent het om Nederlander te zijn? En wie bepaalt wie in dat beeld thuishoort?

Vanaf 11 december presenteert het Nederlands Fotomuseum ‘Dag Nederland’ van fotograaf en filmmaker Marwan Magroun.

Voor zijn nieuwe werk trok Magroun door het land. Hij gebruikt herkenbare elementen uit het Nederlandse landschap als decor voor portretten die verschillende vormen van Nederlanderschap laten zien.

De titel ‘Dag Nederland’ kan zowel hallo als gedag betekenen, terwijl ideeën over wat het betekent om Nederlander te zijn blijven veranderen.

‘Dag Nederland’ is te zien van 11 december 2026 t/m 11 april 2027.

29/09/2026

In a corner of the bustling city of Nairobi, Kenya, you’ll find 45 Degrees Kitchen, the restaurant run by Harold Sena Akoto. In the portrait, Harold sits on a workbench in his kitchen, as if taking a moment of rest. With an open and disarming smile, he looks towards the viewer. The simplicity of the kitchen is clearly visible: photographer Ruud Sies intentionally captures the everyday details, inviting us to notice them.

After a career that took him across London, France, Italy, Canada and the United States, Harold returned to Africa and founded 45 Degrees Kitchen. He wanted to cook the way his grandmother did, using ingredients from his own land and preparing food over an open fire. His pans are as black as his grandmother’s, shaped by years of cooking over flames. According to Harold, this only makes them better: “They are meant to be black. Gleaming saucepans are only for show.”

Through Harold’s portrait, Ruud Sies reveals one of the perspectives brought together in ‘Good Food’, an exhibition exploring the people, practices and ideas shaping the future of food.

🔗 Plan your visit to the museum via the link in bio.

‘Good Food’ is part of ‘Resilience Food Stories’.
Photography by Ruud Sies.

28/09/2026

Some histories survive only through the images people leave behind.

In ‘Simeiz’, Anton Shebetko (Anton Shebetko) explores the q***r history of a small village on the southern coast of Crimea. Drawing on archival photographs, personal footage and oral histories, he reconstructs a place that was once an important meeting point for LGBTQIA+ communities, but whose history is now under threat.

As part of ‘Quickscan 3: Photography Now’, the project shows how photography can preserve memories that might otherwise disappear. The exhibition is on view until 22 November 2026 at the Nederlands Fotomuseum.

Plan your visit via the link in bio.