lands Foto Instituut (1994), het Nederlands Fotor-
estauratie Atelier (1994), Huis Marseille in Amster-
dam (1999), het Fotomuseum Amsterdam (2001).
The Hague Museum of Photography opened at
the end of 2002 with the successful exhibitionPho-
tographers in the Netherlands 1852–2002.Eachyear,
the museum presents at least four interesting up-to-
the-minute exhibitions, focusing sometimes on
established names and sometimes on new talent.
The museum works with the University of Leiden
Print Room, which possesses one of the largest and
most important collections of historical photographs
in Europe. The museum shares premises with the
GEM, a new museum of contemporary art which
aims constantly to juxtapose work from The Hague,
The Netherlands, and the wider world. Its exhibi-
tions encompass a wide range of disciplines: video
and other installations, painting and sculpture, mul-
timedia, performance art, film, photography, draw-
ing, digital art, and design. Apart from exhibitions,
the GEM is a venue for a range of other activities
such as lectures, discussions, performances, concerts,
film shows, and book presentations.
The Maria Austria Instituut in Amsterdam is
famous for archiving. Within its collection are the
complete works of Eva Besnyo ̈, Louis van Beurden,
Carel Blazer, Hein de Bouter, Fred Brommet, Hans
Buter, Hans Dukkers, Paul Huf, Frits Gerritsen, Henk
Jonker, Wubbo de Jong, Wim van der Linden, Frits
Lemaire, Philip Mechanicus, Wim Meischke, Boude-
wijn Neuteboom, Ad Petersen, Jaap Pieper, Arje ́
Plas, Sem Presser, Kees Scherer, Robert Schlinge-
mann, Nico van der Stam, Waldo van Suchtelen, Ed
Suister, Jan Versnel, Johan Vigeveno, Ad Windig,
Bram Wisman, Eli van Zachten, Wim Zilver Rupe,
Maria Austria, and the KLM Archive.
Examining photographers today it is clear that
their pictures are refreshingly new pictures with a
motivated statement in which feeling and experi-
ences are the basis of a new visual dialogue. Several
Dutch photographers share a Dutch way of com-
posing the image, the use of space and light, and the
timing is similar in many photographers as is the
constant research into mystery, the creation of pat-
terns of light, shadows, abstractionism, and a cer-
tain ‘‘surreal esprit.’’ Their work has roots that go
back in history to where the enigma of space, light,
and the depth of luminous tones were the ingredi-
ents in the works by great masters. The proper use
of light can make the ordinary seem unusual, it can
reveal the unfamiliar, evoke moods and emotions,
and together with the use of space and the timing it
can exert a grip on the spectator.
Seen from the point of view of semiotics or sign
theory, photography possesses above all an essential
indexical character, because as an imprint of light
the photographic image is directly and physically
connected to its referent. Every photograph thus is
a unique trace of the real. This results in the ‘‘una-
voidable feeling of reality that you can’t get rid of,
even though you know all the codes that are in the
game and which are fulfilled in the production.’’ If
the viewer sees the photograph as an index, then the
mimetic and the symbolical play a subordinate role.
The work of Paul Huf and Eddy Postuma de Boer
provide examples of this tendency.
On the other hand, the photograph is only pure
index for a brief moment, because as soon as it is
viewed, it has been separated from reality. The
principle of photographic space-time distance is a
counterpoint to the indexical principle of physical
proximity. The photograph is the memento of the
definite lost, and herein lies its fictional potential: it
is open for any narrative the viewer can (re)con-
struct. The works of Jan Dibbets and Ger van Elk
are representative.
The photographers from the Netherlands use var-
ious aspects of growth and decay. Contemporary
photographers doing so are Frans Lanting, Anton
Corbijn, Rineke Dijkstra, and Inez van Lamsweerde.
Contemporary photography in the Netherlands
can be considered as an autonomous discipline,
and it would be more useful to analyze its applica-
tions in other fields. In the first place, contempor-
ary photography is characterized by an approach
to photography that actually does depart from
reality, yet renders this reality from a very specific
angle/perspective as a result of the photographic
technique and design it employs. In particular, the
processes that are typical of the medium of photo-
graphy, for instance, repetition, paradox, and the
gap between actual reality and its representation,
are often recurred to. This contemporary, empha-
tically visually oriented photography is character-
ized by a certain degree of alienation from reality as
the latter can be perceived and often stands out by
its markedly illusory character.
Photography is able to create a duplicate world/
reality that is of a more dramatic nature than the
natural world. By imaging this reality in a fragmen-
ted manner, the photographer suggests that there is
a need for another, a second reality, which ought to
be conquered by the photographer.
In the second place, one needs to point out that
contemporary photography is quite ambiguous. It
consists of showing a parcel of reality, framed by
the camera or in the darkroom, and—considering
the objective nature of this procedure—is entitled
to lay serious claims to thorough epistemological
validity or genuine knowledge of reality. In addi-NETHERLANDS, PHOTOGRAPHY IN THE