Portret van Nico Treep 1928 - 1945

This photographic portrait of Nico Treep, whose maker is unknown, lives in the Rijksmuseum. It’s a study in light and shadow, where the monochrome palette almost feels like a memory fading into sepia tones. The artist, or photographer, coaxes the light to dance across Treep’s face, revealing the subtle contours of his brow and the set of his jaw. It’s like watching the gradual unfurling of a feeling. There’s a softness here, an intimacy, as if the artist sought to capture not just Treep’s likeness, but a glimpse of his inner world. I wonder what it was like to sit for this portrait, to be so closely observed by a stranger. Did Treep feel vulnerable, or did he find a sense of connection in the shared gaze? To me, it feels like a precursor to the work of someone like Gerhard Richter, where the photograph is used as a means to capture a feeling more than an image.