Fenix is not just another museum. It’s a journey. A journey through stories of love and goodbye, of coming home and feeling at home.

Migration is the common thread, viewed through the eyes of more than 100 artists from around the world. The museum is within walking distance of the Cruise Terminal. Fenix is an initiative of the Droom en Daad foundation. This foundation develops new cultural projects and encourages initiatives that reflect the city’s creativity, diversity and history.

Fenix *) is housed in a historic 1923 port warehouse
It was once the world’s largest storage and transhipment warehouse (360 metres long). In recent years, the warehouse has been restored and transformed into a museum. At the heart of the building, architect Ma Yansong added the Tornado: a double, twisted staircase that swirls up to a vantage point above the roof.

Anne Kremers, Fenix director: ‘A museum comes alive when there are visitors’ and ‘This museum is a starting point for many stories of departure and arrival.’ From the 19 th century, for example, millions of people departed from the port at Kop van Zuid, where Holland America Line’s headquarters (now Hotel New York) and the Cruise Terminal are located, to the United States and beyond. Kremers: ‘What this museum shows is that migration is of all times.’

Amazing art by migrants and artists
Anne Kremers studied General Cultural Studies and Art History and started her career at the Dutch Villa Mondriaan. She then lived and worked in Hong Kong and on her return to Rotterdam in 2020, she started at Fenix. Over the past six years, a huge collection has been built up and an attractive place for visitors created.

‘This is really the place to see exciting art by artists who look at migration in a special way,’ says Kremers. ‘Plus, there is always something new to see and do. This year, the museum greeted 250,000 visitors in six months. So people know where to find us!  And a survey showed that 98% of visitors were highly enthusiastic!’

*) Fenix (Phoenix) is the name of a bird from Greek mythology that symbolises rebirth and renewal.
The bird burns itself and then rises from its ashes like a young bird. “Rising like a phoenix from the ashes” is a common figurative expression.