ROTTERDAM, 5 January 2026 – The Nederlands Fotomuseum will reopen on 7 February 2026 inside Pakhuis Santos on Katendrecht, giving Rotterdam’s national photography collection a new public home. Expect exhibitions, behind-the-scenes conservation, and a rooftop spot with skyline views.
Image: Pakhuis Santos. Photo credit: studio Hans Wilschut
Right now, the museum says it is temporarily closed while the move is underway.
The Nederlands Fotomuseum opens in Katendrecht, Rotterdam on 7 February 2026
The opening date is set for Saturday 7 February 2026, with the museum moving into the Santos warehouse (Pakhuis Santos) at Rotterdam’s Rijnhaven area on Katendrecht. The museum says its collection holds more than 6.5 million photographic objects, which places it among the largest photography collections worldwide.
Pakhuis Santos is a former coffee warehouse, originally used for coffee shipped from the Brazilian port city of Santos. The building dates from the early 1900s and was designed by J.J. Kanters and Stok Wzn.
The renovation and transformation were designed by Renner Hainke Wirth Zirn Architekten and WDJARCHITECTEN, with the museum presenting the project as a careful reset of a national monument for public use.
A Gallery of Honour brings Dutch photography into focus
Inside, the museum highlights a Gallery of Honour of Dutch Photography (Eregalerij van de Nederlandse Fotografie), built around 99 photographs chosen for their social and artistic impact.
The idea is that you get a through-line across Dutch photography, while still leaving space for temporary exhibitions and changing perspectives as the wider programme evolves.
You can watch restoration work through glass walls
One of the big promises of the new building is visibility. The museum describes open restoration workshops where you can see specialists at work, rather than keeping that side of museum life hidden away. The move is also a major logistics story in itself: transporting and rehousing a collection of this size is part of what the museum has been documenting on its “road to Santos” updates.
A library, studios, and a darkroom round out the visit
Beyond exhibitions, the new building is set up for deeper time: a library described as holding Europe’s largest photo book collection, plus studios and a darkroom for photography-related making and learning.
If you like seeing how work is produced, not just how it is displayed, this mix of public galleries and practical spaces is clearly part of the point.
Droom en Daad support made the move possible
The museum says the relocation and renovation were made possible through support from the Droom en Daad Foundation (Stichting Droom en Daad), which enabled the purchase and redevelopment of Pakhuis Santos.
It also lands in a Katendrecht that keeps adding cultural gravity. For example, nearby, Fenix has highlighted its “Tornado” staircase by MAD Architects as a centrepiece, linking the neighbourhood’s harbour heritage to big, contemporary museum experiences.
How to get to Pakhuis Santos in Rotterdam South
Pakhuis Santos sits on Katendrecht by Rijnhaven, so it fits nicely into a day where you hop between the south bank’s waterfront spots. If you are coming from the centre, the metro gets you close, and the last stretch is an easy walk once you are in the Rijnhaven area.
