Portret van Louis Couperus, met opdracht aan Selly de Jong 1913

This anonymous portrait of Louis Couperus, with an inscription for Selly de Jong, is a lesson in how photography can become an intimate, almost painterly, gesture. The sepia tones give it a soft, dreamlike quality. See how the focus is so gentle, blurring the edges of his face and suit. It's as if the artist is less interested in capturing every detail and more in conveying a mood, a feeling. My eye keeps getting drawn to his signature, looping across the frame. The ink looks so fluid, as though it's dancing, which makes me think of Cy Twombly’s scrawls. The inscription feels personal, and it makes you wonder about the relationship between Couperus and De Jong. There’s a story here, a connection, that’s left for us to imagine. Which is what art does best, right? It gives us just enough to spark our own stories.