Brief aan de Commissie van de Tentoonstelling van Levende Meesters in Den Haag Possibly 1841 - 1844

This letter was written by Johan Philip Koelman in 1864, and it’s made of paper and ink, humble materials put to the service of, in this case, an artist trying to get his work shown. The letter is a direct appeal to the selection committee of the Exhibition of Living Masters in The Hague, likely written with a quill. The graceful, sweeping script reminds us that handwriting was once a highly valued skill, a mark of education and refinement, and a means by which individuals communicated. The very act of writing, the careful forming of each letter, was a form of labor. Koelman’s letter suggests a world of artistic practice deeply embedded in social networks, where access to exhibition spaces and critical attention was mediated by personal connections and written correspondence. This was long before the age of digital communication, when a handwritten letter could carry significant weight. The letter can be viewed as a kind of artistic statement, an argument for inclusion in the exhibition, blurring the lines between art and documentation. The very materiality of the letter highlights the social context of artistic production and reception in the 19th century.