Year Programme Nest 2026
On this page you can read all about Nest's upcoming programme from July 2026.
Out of Office (Still Here)
1 May t/m 16 August 2026
For many, the summer holidays signify a time of rest, freedom and relaxation. Work and school are set aside, and plans are made to depart: towards sun, sea and sand, or perhaps the mountains. Yet for others, the summer period takes on a different meaning: continuing to work, staying at home, passing the time in idleness, perhaps visiting family or caring for others. The way one spends the summer holidays therefore reflects not only the notion of leisure and how it is filled, but also one’s access to it. What, then, does it mean to remain at home during the summer? How is leisure shaped by those who ‘stay behind’ in a period when many leave the country, schools are closed, and tourists flood into the city?
In the exhibition Out of Office (Still Here), Nest examines the notion of ‘leisure’ precisely by opening our doors during the long summer holidays to all those remaining in the city. How do we spend our summers? And what part is played by our immediate surroundings?
With: Philip Akkerman, Roger Anis, Josefin Arnell, Rugilė Barzdžiukaitė, Vaiva Grainytė and Lina Lapelyte, Céline Condorelli, Priscila Fernandes, Ilke Gers, Kexin Hao, Marina Planas, Pris Roos and Vita Soul Wilmering.
Block Party
As part of the exhibition Out of Office (Still Here), Nest is organizing a Block Party on Saturday, August 15: a street festival for the entire neighborhood and for all ages, taking place on the lawn in front of the DCR building.
During the Block Party, there will be food, drinks, and music. We will offer guided tours of the exhibition, host workshops with various artists, and organize a creative street market. The event is being held in collaboration with, among others, the Flora cinema and restaurant, the Nice Flaps drawing collective, Club Laak, het dooorp, and artist Laura Snijders.
We will announce the full program and all collaborating partners soon, but be sure to save August 15 in your calendar.
Creation Myths and Other Beginnings
4 September t/m 29 November 2026
Who are we, and why are we here? In seeking answers to these existential questions, cultures across the world have created and passed down their own stories of origin. These narratives speak of collective identity, moral frameworks and shared points of reference that connect people and lend meaning to traditions and values. Yet creation myths are never neutral. They can legitimise systems of power, reinforce the status quo, and silence alternative narratives. The international group exhibition Creation Myths and Other Beginnings therefore turns its attention to non-dominant creation stories: myths transmitted through oral traditions across generations, as well as speculative and fictional alternatives. What might these stories reveal about our social reality, and about the futures we might yet imagine?
With: Mounira Al Solh, Yael Bartana, Louis Braddock Clarke, Yaïr Callender, Claudia Martínez Garay, Fiona Lutjenhuis, Nathaniel Mellors & Erkka Nissinen, Rithika Merchant, Marie-Claire Messouma Manlanbien, Selma Selman, Müge Yilmaz, and an exhibition design by Zoë Hollander.
Nesting Habits
At the same time, we are launching Nesting Habits – the Space: a new permanent gathering place within Nest where visitors, alone or together, can further explore the exhibition and the themes it addresses.
With Nesting Habits – the Space, we aim to create a place for connection, reflection, and exchange. It will become the permanent home of the Infinite Library, Nest's lending library, where visitors can browse books on the artists, exhibitions, and themes central to our programme. The space will also host screenings, lectures, debates, and workshops for all ages. Ariane Toussaint created new curtains especially for the space, while Remco Osório Lobato designed its interior.
One Nest Stand
From 6 to 8 November we organise a new edition of One Nest Stand: a yearly exhibition in which students of the Royal Academy of Arts respond to an earlier exhibition at Nest. In this years edition, students will respond to the exhibition Creation Myths and Other Beginnings. The exhibition will take place at Nest in Laak, at Verheeskade in The Hague.
Scruffy Lesbian Art
11 December 2026 t/m 14 Februari 2027
Scruffy Lesbian Art is an exhibition that stems from the manifesto of the same name, written by Clem Edwards, Angelica Falkeling, and Natalia (Nika) Sorzano. Together, they advocate for an unconventional artistic practice that embraces the messy, the unfinished, and the handmade. Rather than clean lines and flawless finishes, corners are deliberately a little crooked and edges a little frayed. Unexpected materials, such as tape, textiles, dog hair, or an old comb with a dead fly in it found in a studio, find their way into the artworks. The artists in the exhibition, who identify themselves as scruffy lesbian artists, work with what they find on the street or simply have at hand. Their work is nonetheless made with love, care, and close attention to both the material itself and the many ways it relates to the world through networks of kinship and affinity—all with a generous dose of humour.
Together with guest curator Maia Kenney, Edwards, Falkeling, and Sorzano set out in search of like-minded spirits.
Nest x Rijksbouwmeester
Paralel to the exhibitions at the DCR building, Nest organises a series of exhibitions at The Hague's Palace of Justice, in collaboration with Atelier Rijksbouwmeester. The series is curated by Daphne Verberg. This years programme includes exhibitions by Robbert Pauwels, afra eisma, Esther Hoogendijk and Ariane Toussaint.