Portret van een onbekende man c. 1910 - 1920

This is a small photograph by Leonardus Pieter Tismeer, of an unknown man. Looking at this image, I wonder about this guy's life, and Tismeer's life for that matter. What could he have been thinking as he adjusted his jacket for the picture? The texture seems smooth and muted, lending a timeless quality to the subject. I can almost smell the chemicals used to develop this print. This portrait seems to be a moment frozen in time, an idea borrowed from the world of painting and brought into photography. It makes me think about other portrait artists like Alice Neel and Marlene Dumas, and how they capture a likeness, not just of the face, but also of the psyche. All artists are in an ongoing conversation and exchange of ideas across time, inspiring one another’s creativity.