Portret van Christina Maria Lucie Langhout 1882 - 1922

This portrait of Christina Maria Lucie Langhout was produced by H.C. de Graaff, and it looks like a photograph. It’s funny to think about photography as mark making but that is what it is, right? It is all about capturing the light and tone in a certain process. Looking at the surface, the tones are quite muted, almost monochromatic. The texture is smooth, which emphasizes the almost ethereal quality of the image. Her dress is interesting, the way the lines mimic hatching in a drawing. Her gaze is direct and a little bit confrontational. I’m thinking about Man Ray’s solarisations, the way he used light to transform the photographic image. Maybe De Graff was playing with some of those ideas too.