Fotomuseum Den Haag to Present Major Eva Besnyö Retrospective

Fotomuseum Den Haag will open ‘Eva Besnyö – De bevrijde camera’, one of the largest retrospectives yet devoted to the Hungarian-born photographer, on 5 September 2026. Drawn from the museum’s own holdings—the largest Besnyö collection in the world, according to the institution—the exhibition will trace her career from her early years in Budapest and Berlin to her life and work in Amsterdam. It will remain on view in The Hague through 31 January 2027.

Born in 1910, Besnyö developed her photography during a period of rapid change in European visual culture. The museum presents her as both a witness to and an active force in photography’s emancipation. Alongside her contemporaries, she experimented with a visual language that moved away from painterly conventions and toward direct, dynamic engagement with reality.

The exhibition will include around 200 photographs from the museum collection. The works include Besnyö’s 1931 portrait of a boy with a bass from Balatonlelle, portraits of artist friends including Charley Toorop and Violette Cornelius, and her celebrated image of Starnberger Straße in Berlin. The latter is identified with the strong diagonals and unconventional viewpoints associated with her work.

A substantial part of the presentation is situated within the context of Nieuwe Fotografie, or New Photography, a movement that used the camera to depict the world in objective and experimental ways. Clear compositions, striking diagonal lines and unexpected camera angles are among the characteristics highlighted by the museum. The photographs in the exhibition were printed by Besnyö herself or under her supervision in the darkroom.

The retrospective will also address the impact of the Second World War on Besnyö’s life and career, including the traces left by her Jewish background, as well as her involvement in the Dolle Mina movement during the 1970s. Besnyö photographed the Dutch feminist organisation’s 1972 covered-wagon campaign, which travelled through the country while providing information about abortion and campaigning for improved legislation.

That history will provide the context for a parallel project, ‘Beyond the Nuclear Family’, by artist and writer Mirthe Berentsen. The project’s covered wagon will be installed at Fotomuseum Den Haag from September 2026 through January 2027. Since 2025, Berentsen has taken the wagon to museums and institutions in the Netherlands and the United States, inviting visitors to attach pieces of textile connected to their family histories and build a collective, evolving archive. Monthly workshops at the museum will continue that process.

The exhibition will be accompanied by the publication ‘Eva Besnyö – De bevrijde camera’, issued by Hannibal Books, with contributions from Maurits de Bruijn, Nienke Coers, Margriet Schavemaker, Iris Sikking, Lou Stoppard and Willemijn van der Zwaan. The opening at Fotomuseum Den Haag is scheduled for 4 September 2026, with doors opening at 5:30 p.m., an opening address at 6 p.m. and access to the exhibition from 6:15 p.m.; Besnyö’s daughter, Iara Brusse, is expected to attend.