Studie van een knielende Zeeuwse boerin 1861 - 1935

Joan Berg created this pencil drawing called "Study of a Kneeling Zeeland Farmer Woman," now held in the Rijksmuseum. It depicts a peasant woman and can be seen as part of the broader artistic trend in the late 19th century, which involved artists turning their attention to rural life. This interest in rural life was not just an aesthetic choice. It reflected deeper social and political concerns, such as anxieties about industrialization and urbanization. It idealizes a simpler, pre-industrial past but also involves the aestheticization of the working class. Consider how this image creates meaning through its visual codes. The woman's traditional clothing marks her as part of a specific regional identity. Zeeland, a province in the Netherlands, had its unique cultural traditions, and the artist emphasizes her connection to a particular place and community. The Rijksmuseum serves as an important institution for constructing national identity. Works like this, which focus on local customs, reflect the institution's role in curating a sense of Dutch heritage. To understand this work better, we could research the representation of rural life in Dutch art during this period, using museum archives and historical accounts to get a better sense of the image's role.