Dialogue Festival 2026 :
Programme
One day, one house full of vintage photography. This edition of Dialogue Festival brings together a fair floor of 20 exhibitors, a collector's table, a lecture programme, and a line-up of demonstrations and workshops. Below is the full running order for the day.
On the Fair Floor
All day · 11:00–16:30The Fair
Photographers
All day · 11:00–16:30Announced
Curated with the help of Willem van Zoetendaal
Willem van Zoetendaal helped curate the programme. Read more about his publishing practice and background below. The three Collector’s Tables and three Lectures run in parallel, with 15-minute offsets; each session lasts exactly 1 hour.
About Willem van Zoetendaal
Since 1994, Van Zoetendaal has been active as a publisher of photobooks and has since published over 75 books. Apart from books on historical archives, which are often paired with contemporary counterparts, the majority of the book oeuvre was created with contemporary artists/photographers such as Koos Breukel, Céline van Balen, Paul Kooiker, Holger Niehaus, Diana Scherer, Harold Strak, Sigrid Calon, Sara Blokland, Marie Ilse Bourlanges, Otto Snoek, and Annaleen Louwes. And with deceased photographers G.H. Breitner, Carel Willink, Frans Zwartjes, Johan van der Keuken, and Esther Kroon. Wim views the publishing house as a contemporary platform for uniquely produced photobooks. He sees a photobook, optimally produced in reproduction, as an artistic expression on paper. The photobook as a context for an oeuvre or collection of photographs as a visual narrative has proven itself anew through renewed interest (over the last 25 years). Over the years, a large number of the publisher's books have been awarded the Best Designed Book title, including the Historical Book Award from Rencontres d’Arles in 2014 (Johan van der Keuken – Paris mortel retouché) and ‘Die Goldene Letter’, the highest international book prize from Stiftung Buchkunst Leipzig, in 2019. Also in 2019, the Australian ‘Cornish Family Prize for Art & Design Publishing’, both for the book ‘Stuff – Archaeological Finds Amsterdam’s North/South Metro Line'.
Doors open
The fair floor and photographer tables open. Free to visit until 16:30.
Young Collectors Circle
A gathering for the new generation of vintage photography collectors.
The Collector’s Tables and Lectures take place in parallel, with some sessions starting 15 minutes apart. All six sessions last exactly 1 hour.
Collector's Tables
Three sessions · all moderated by Lotte Klösters · 1 hour each
About the moderator — Lotte Klösters
Lotte Klösters is the manager of both the in-house gallery and the bookshop of Foam Photography Museum. After working in textiles and contemporary art jewellery, she has focused on photography for the past ten years. As gallery manager she works with both new talent — curating Foam's First Editions programme — and experienced artists exhibiting in the museum. She organises masterclasses on buying photography and advises private collectors and corporations on art purchases and expanding a collection. Her own art collection consists mainly of portraits.
Freek Kuin
Moderated by Lotte Klösters (Foam).
Josje Jansen
One of the most notable collections of its kind. Moderated by Lotte Klösters (Foam).
About the moderator — Lotte Klösters
Lotte Klösters is the manager of both the in-house gallery and the bookshop of Foam Photography Museum. After working in textiles and contemporary art jewellery, she has focused on photography for the past ten years. As gallery manager she works with both new talent — curating Foam's First Editions programme — and experienced artists exhibiting in the museum. She organises masterclasses on buying photography and advises private collectors and corporations on art purchases and expanding a collection. Her own art collection consists mainly of portraits.
Ruben Lundgren
Moderated by Lotte Klösters (Foam).
Speaker profile & session topic
Ruben Lundgren (b. 1983) is Senior Curator at the Nederlands Fotomuseum in Rotterdam. He is renowned for his work as a conceptual photographer, with publications including Empty Bottles (2007) and Tokyo Tokyo (2010). Lundgren completed a master's degree in photography at the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing, and his relocation to China has profoundly shaped his career, drawing him deep into Chinese contemporary photography. He worked as a photojournalist for the Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant and as an independent curator on The Chinese Photobook (2015), Ellen Thorbecke: From Peking to Paris (2021) and NL Imagined (2023). A retrospective of his work, Flowers in the Mirror , was exhibited and published in 2026.
Session — Chinese PropagandaSince the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the Communist Party has published an enormous number of propaganda books. While researching the history of the Chinese photobook, collector and researcher Ruben Lundgren amassed hundreds of these publications. Using a selection of rare and representative examples, he offers a concise history of Chinese propaganda photobooks, tracing their evolution from the Great Leap Forward through the Cultural Revolution and into the post-Mao era.
Lectures
Three sessions · 1 hour each
Ruben Lundgren
On buying vernacular photography for the Archive of Modern Conflict — to which the Frido archive was also sold.
Speaker profile is available in the 14:15 Collector’s Table session.
Willemijn van der Zwaan
Wim van Sinderen
Presentation on Gerard Fieret, and the new book: Gerard Petrus Fieret Raw Art on Paper.
And: the opening of the Fieret Exhibition in the CEC-atrium, for all to see.
Panel discussion: Willem van Zoetendaal will join the discussion.
1 hourSpeaker profile — Willem van Zoetendaal
Since 1994, Van Zoetendaal has been active as a publisher of photobooks and has since published over 75 books. Apart from books on historical archives, which are often paired with contemporary counterparts, the majority of the book oeuvre was created with contemporary artists/photographers such as Koos Breukel, Céline van Balen, Paul Kooiker, Holger Niehaus, Diana Scherer, Harold Strak, Sigrid Calon, Sara Blokland, Marie Ilse Bourlanges, Otto Snoek, and Annaleen Louwes. And with deceased photographers G.H. Breitner, Carel Willink, Frans Zwartjes, Johan van der Keuken, and Esther Kroon. Wim views the publishing house as a contemporary platform for uniquely produced photobooks. He sees a photobook, optimally produced in reproduction, as an artistic expression on paper. The photobook as a context for an oeuvre or collection of photographs as a visual narrative has proven itself anew through renewed interest (over the last 25 years). Over the years, a large number of the publisher's books have been awarded the Best Designed Book title, including the Historical Book Award from Rencontres d’Arles in 2014 (Johan van der Keuken – Paris mortel retouché) and ‘Die Goldene Letter’, the highest international book prize from Stiftung Buchkunst Leipzig, in 2019. Also in 2019, the Australian ‘Cornish Family Prize for Art & Design Publishing’, both for the book ‘Stuff – Archaeological Finds Amsterdam’s North/South Metro Line'.
Programme ends
The fair floor and photographer tables close.
Demonstrations & Workshops
With thanks to
Programme for Dialogue Festival september 2025
(Amsterdam)
Programme for Dialogue Festival march 2026
(Antwerp)

Our Mission and Values
Connecting vintage photography enthusiasts across Europe
Dialogue Vintage Photography Amsterdam fosters a community where collectors, curators, and photographers share knowledge and passion for vintage and vernacular photography. As a non-profit, we create spaces for meaningful exchanges and support the preservation and appreciation of photographic heritage.