Twee prentbriefkaarten van de koninklijke wieg en een portret van koningin Wilhelmina c. 1908

These two postcards of the royal crib and Queen Wilhelmina, probably made with silver gelatin prints, feel like a muted conversation about visibility and power. The sepia tones lend a certain weight, almost like a faded memory. Looking at the image of Wilhelmina, you can almost feel the starchiness of her dress, the weight of the crown. The texture is smooth, almost cool to the touch. Everything looks so precise, but when I look at the way the paper is aged and how they're stuck onto the page, I can't help but see the human hand. It reminds me of those early portrait painters, like Holbein, but the lack of color flattens it somehow, making it a document more than a drama. Think about how the stiff formality of court portraiture is almost mocked by the ease of photography. Like Manet or Degas, this photographer uses a new medium to poke fun at old hierarchies.