Portret van Steffan Wolters, verzamelaar te Amsterdam 1670 - 1800

Editor: Here we have an intriguing drawing from somewhere between 1670 and 1800 – a "Portret van Steffan Wolters, verzamelaar te Amsterdam," or Portrait of Steffan Wolters, a collector in Amsterdam. It’s rendered in pencil, and charcoal maybe, by an anonymous artist. It feels somehow both incredibly intimate and slightly… unfinished, doesn't it? What captures your imagination most about this piece? Curator: Ah, unfinished, precisely! That's where the magic lives, isn’t it? For me, it’s the breath the artist took halfway through obsessing with every individual strand of hair…or the button he was planning to include. We can see a little of Steffan's soul peeking out between the lines. Do you sense it, too – that air of "What do *you* think? Is this *me*?" Editor: Yes! It’s like he's caught mid-thought. And there’s something vulnerable about it, which is strange, because the clothing and pose also suggest a man of status. Curator: Precisely! It is fascinating when portraiture clashes against time. We get so very caught up in portraying power…but I think true presence arrives the second we cease *performing.* Editor: I see what you mean. The looser style almost makes him more relatable, more…human. Curator: Indeed. It gives us the chance to dream alongside him! He becomes one of us for a suspended moment in eternity, pondering all of it, really… Do we dare look vulnerable or should we be forever trapped in gilded frames, buttoned-up like mummies? Editor: Well, I'm grateful for this glimpse behind the curtain. I never considered a portrait could feel so much like a shared moment of reflection. Curator: Precisely! And next time you stare into any portraiture...dare to invite your sitters for coffee and see where it leads you.