On Wednesday 7 October, the winner of the Museumtijdschrift Exhibition Award 2026 was announced at the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam. The exhibition Iris van Herpen: Sculpting the Senses at Kunsthal Rotterdam was declared the winner by a wide margin.

The exhibition Sculpting the Senses was on view from 27 September 2025 to 1 March 2026 and attracted a record-breaking 281,000 visitors to the Kunsthal. Sculpting the Senses took visitors on a journey through the universe of Iris van Herpen (1984), presenting an immersive survey in which fashion, contemporary art, design and science came together. The Kunsthal presented more than one hundred iconic creations, through which Van Herpen continually pushes the boundaries of haute couture. The Kunsthal previously won the Museumtijdschrift Exhibition Award in 2024 with the exhibition Ai Weiwei. In Search of Humanity.

“As Kunsthal, we strive to create exhibitions that continually stimulate, surprise and engage a wide range of audiences. The fact that this exhibition has been recognised with this award not only by the professional jury, but also by our visitors, makes the appreciation all the more special. On behalf of all our colleagues at Kunsthal, as well as the many partners who contributed to the exhibition, I would like to express our sincere gratitude. We are proud to have realised this together.”  – Marianne Splint, director Kunsthal Rotterdam

The exhibition Iris van Herpen: Sculpting the Senses was organised by Kunsthal Rotterdam in close collaboration with the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris and Atelier Iris van Herpen, based on the original exhibition conceived by the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris.

The Museumtijdschrift Exhibition Award 2026

The Museumtijdschrift Exhibition Award is an annual public vote for the best exhibition of the cultural year. The expert jury, comprising Hester Alberdingk Thijm, Director of the AkzoNobel Art Foundation; Peter van Duinen, Director of the Vrije Academie; and Jeroen Junte, Editor-in-Chief of Museumtijdschrift, selected the ten nominees, after which the public was invited to cast their votes. The winning museum receives a cash prize of €10,000.