Photojournalism in the Netherlands

About the project

photojournalism is an underexposed genre in historiography. Over the next few years, the Rijksmuseum will be organising a series of events on the history of photojournalism. These events will not only focus on important events and iconic photos, but will also look at the early years of press photography, the golden years of the illustrated magazine, the rise of photo press agencies, the daily practice of photojournalists and the role of photo editors. The way visual news was made and disseminated in the past can greatly enlighten current discussions about fake news, image manipulation, online platforms and citizen journalism.

Goal of the project

The aim of this project is to set up an international network of researchers, curators, photojournalists and others involved in the world of photojournalism in order to take the next step in the historiography of photojournalism, and of Dutch photojournalism in particular, through lectures, presentations and discussions.

In addition, we intend to generate more attention for the millions of press photos that are kept in press photo archives worldwide and that until now have been sparsely used for research into photojournalism.

Related Events

• Press Photography Now! Five talks on photojournalism, 27 May, 3, 10, 17 and 24 June 2021, 3 – 4 pm CEST
• Open Up the Morgue! How Press Photo Archives are Enabling a New History of Photojournalism, international online symposium, 2 July 2021, 9 am – 5 pm CEST
• Exhibition Vincent Mentzel, Rijksmuseum, 28 January – 6 June 2022

Partners and sponsors

This project is supported by the Vincent Mentzel Fonds/Rijksmuseum Fund.