Portret van een man met bril aan zijn jas 1861 - 1883

Curator: It feels almost voyeuristic, doesn't it? Looking into a life from so long ago. There's something incredibly haunting about this old photograph. Editor: Indeed. We are looking at a portrait made between 1861 and 1883, an albumen print by Maurits Verveer, currently held here at the Rijksmuseum. "Portret van een man met bril aan zijn jas," it's titled—Portrait of a Man with Spectacles on his Coat. It captures a gentleman in full formal attire. Curator: Spectacles on the coat. How wonderfully precise! The focus seems very tight, on the gentleman's gaze and composure. Editor: The formality is definitely part of it, particularly in the Victorian era. Photographic portraiture became quite popular, reflecting societal norms, wealth, and social positioning. A new way to record your own image, instead of a painting. Curator: And that serious expression. Were people of this time never smiling? He almost looks disapproving, or perhaps merely impatient with the length of exposure, which they sometimes seem so uncomfortable about, almost a slight vulnerability? Editor: The long exposure times definitely contributed to the somberness. But it was also part of the social code to present a composed, dignified image. Remember, photography was also influenced by painting traditions of the time, which also favoured that formal mode. There's something of that painted gravitas there too. Curator: Perhaps. But look how his glasses are draped there. The ordinary is trying to assert itself even across that careful composition. This little thing reveals a character. A touch of absentmindedness or informality breaking through. Or a story untold. Editor: It’s true. It's details like those, those accidental hints of the everyday, that really connect us across time, isn’t it? Seeing beyond the historical distance and seeing an individual with his quirks and habits. And thanks to this particular snapshot, the rest of us can connect, generations later. Curator: Precisely! It whispers secrets and invites our imaginings into his world, if just for a moment. Editor: Indeed, capturing not just a face, but also the faintest glimpse of a life beyond.