Nederlands Fotomuseum announces a February 2026 opening

Rotterdam, 9 September 2025

Today the Nederlands Fotomuseum, the National Museum of Photography, announced the festive opening of its museum in the Santos warehouse. The opening, which will take place in February 2026, marks the museum’s relocation to a landmark building in the Rotterdam harbour. 

The museum’s key partners were consulted ahead of this decision. This timeline allows for thorough preparation and ensures that the museum’s new leadership, which is currently being recruited, can lead the opening in an appropriate manner. 

According to the museum’s Supervisory Board, the recruitment of a new Director is already underway. “The process is being conducted with care, transparency, and in accordance with the Governance Code for Culture,” says the Board. “We are actively involving stakeholders in this search; staff members also have a formal say in the appointment process. This ensures that the museum’s future leadership is being shaped through broad collaboration.” 

The museum will announce the opening date once the recruitment process has been completed. This will allow stakeholders and the public to look forward to and prepare for the festive opening of the museum in its new home. One important group will get a sneak preview in December, when the museum will open its of doors to schoolchildren from the greater Rotterdam region. They will be the first to explore the new home of national photography. 

The Nederlands Fotomuseum, which acknowledges confusion regarding the move to Santos, is aware that discussions in (social) media have suggested an opening date the last week of September. This has not been communicated by the museum.  

While a launch later in autumn 2025 would have been technically feasible, the museum has deliberately selected February 2026.  This allows time for thorough preparation and meaningful collaboration with its partners. Now the museum can deliver a festive and well-prepared opening under new leadership. The move to the Santos warehouse marks not only a change of address, but also a new chapter for Dutch photography.  This is something photography lovers in the Netherlands and beyond can truly look forward to. 

Interested parties are invited to visit the museum’s press page for updates:

https://pers.nederlandsfotomuseum.nl/en/

Link to the media kit:

https://pers.nederlandsfotomuseum.nl/en/assets/233825/