From October 11, 2025 to March 1, 2026, the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam presents Erwin Olaf - Freedom, the first museum retrospective dedicated to the artist since his sudden death two years ago. The exhibition pays tribute to a versatile and multifaceted author, tracing the entire creative process that characterized his career. Alongside his most famous works and series, the exhibition includes lesser-known works such as videos, sculptures, commercial photographs and personal archival materials, culminating with his last project: a video that remained unfinished.
Erwin Olaf Springveld is internationally recognized as one of the most important Dutch photographers, prized for his refined staging, use of light, perfectionism and ability to tackle controversial subjects. A free and independent spirit, he has made the pursuit of personal freedom the driving force behind his art, advocating wholeheartedly for issues of identity, sexuality and gender, the representation of the body in all its forms, nightlife and equal rights for all. Indeed, activism is a red thread that runs through the entire exhibition, which is organized thematically but chronologically.
The exhibition begins with black-and-white reportages from the early 1980s devoted to gay rights demonstrations, which highlight his social engagement and early interest in composition and light. The search for greater control led him to experiment with studio photography: thus were born some of his most iconic series, such as Ladies Hats (1985-2022), Chessmen (1987-88), Royal Blood (2000), Grief (2007), Fashion Victims (2000), Berlin (2012) and Skin Deep (2015). There is no shortage of commissioned work, including SM in Holland (1989) and photographs for the Dutch National Ballet. All of his productions reflect an abiding desire to celebrate diversity and individual freedom.
The theme of celebration, for example, recurs as a form of resistance to intolerance, but it is also investigated in its darker aspects: in Paradise (2001) men assume threatening attitudes and women always appear in a vulnerable position. During the 1980s, Olaf also engaged in high-impact campaigns for Aidsfonds and COC, the world’s first LGBTQ+ organization.
Finally, the concluding part of the exhibition brings together the works of his maturity, in which technical perfection and social reflection merge. These include Im Wald (2020), which explores the relationship with nature, and April Fool (2020), created during the pandemic, which explores human isolation and fragility. Both series are being exhibited for the first time in a museum. In Palm Springs (2018), on the other hand, the artist chronicles the decline of the “American dream,” while in Shanghai (2017) she highlights the role of women in different cultural contexts. Muses (2023), a reflection on the impermanence of existence and the acceptance of death, presented here for the first time, closes the itinerary.
A recurring motif in Olaf’s work is the flower vase, a subject the artist used during photo shoots to regain concentration. In artistic tradition, the flower is a symbol of the transience of life. In the last year of his existence, the artist dedicated a series to his mother, inspired by this theme, and shortly after his lung transplant he had begun a new version for himself, interrupted by her sudden death. The exhibition concludes with this last work, the unfinished video posthumously titled For Life.
“Erwin Olaf was more than a photographer; he was a versatile artist,” said Rein Wolfs, director of the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam. “The significance of his work is best understood by placing it in an art-historical context. By offering a comprehensive overview of his work, I believe this exhibition will shed new light on his work. It is unfortunate that he is no longer with us to see it. I am very grateful to the Erwin Olaf Studio, and especially to Shirley den Hartog, for their intensive collaboration in the last period.”
“Erwin’s last wish was to mount an exhibition at the Stedelijk, a museum for which he had mixed feelings,” commented Shirley den Hartog, manager and director of the Erwin Olaf Studio. “Approaching the museum at the end of his life, and seeing the change in leadership, his opinion of the museum has softened. This is a special moment: it will be Erwin’s last major exhibition in a Dutch museum in the near future.”
“We show Erwin as a human being, contextualized, not just the extraordinary and often iconic images, but what drove him: where did it all come from? It is fascinating to see his style evolve: ultimately distilled to its essence, but unmistakably Olaf, and Olaf at his best: stylized, minimal, contemplative, and with references to important themes in art history,” explains Charl Landvreugd, Head of Research and Curatorial Practice at the Stedelijk and curator of the exhibition. “Together with Studio Erwin Olaf and exhibition designer Marcel Schmalgemeijer, we present Erwin Olaf as the multifaceted artist that he was.”
The exhibition is organized by the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, curated by Charl Landvreugd in collaboration with Studio Erwin Olaf, and was made possible by a grant from the VandenEnde Foundation.
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| Amsterdam, at the Stedelijk Museum the first museum retrospective devoted to Erwin Olaf since his death |
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