Rotterdam in Focus

After the Second World War, Rotterdam developed into a city of modern architecture. Photographers such as Iwan Baan, Stacii Samidin, and Lou Muuse capture the city from unique perspectives. They not only show how beautiful the city is, but also what its buildings mean to the people who live there. These photographs raise the question: who owns the city? The photographers demonstrate how photography helps create collective memories, strengthen the city’s identity, and connect residents more closely to their surroundings.

After a long history of photographing Rotterdam, Jannes Linders and Gilbert Fastenaekens broke with the image of Rotterdam as a precisely ordered city in the 1980s and 1990s. They photographed industrial areas, empty buildings, and forgotten places. This led to greater attention for the ‘urban landscape’ as a genre of photography. Many historical photographs are being shown for the first time in Rotterdam in Focus. A six-meter-long panorama by Siebe Swart is also on display, which has never been exhibited in Rotterdam before.

Cover image: Jan Roovers, Buitendijktunnel, circa 1960 | © Stadsarchief Rotterdam