Portret van een vrouw met witte klederdrachtmuts 1889 - 1925

Josephus Hendrikus Petrus Coppens made this photograph called 'Portret van een vrouw met witte klederdrachtmuts'. The image, with its tight crop and subtle gradations of tone, is like a drawing. In fact, the whole piece feels like a study in light and shadow, carefully rendered in monochrome. You can feel the artist figuring out the fall of light across the woman's face and the delicate lace of her headdress. I am really drawn to the way the artist has used the camera to describe the materiality of fabric and lace, transforming the real thing into tones, shades and shapes. The background fades into the subject. It becomes ambiguous, as the woman emerges from the ground. It reminds me of the work of Irving Penn, his portraits of tradespeople in their work clothes. Both artists share an appreciation for the quiet dignity of ordinary people and the beauty of everyday life.