Portret van Elchanon Verveer 1857 - 1875

Maurits Verveer made this small photograph of Elchanon Verveer at an unknown date. It’s a calling card, a carte-de-visite, a popular token of friendship and social connection in the 19th century. These cards reflected and reinforced social hierarchies. Looking at this image, we might ask, what does it mean to have your portrait taken, and to circulate it among your peers? Elchanon Verveer is shown in a relaxed pose, hand to his face, wearing a patterned suit, seated in an ornate chair. The trappings of wealth and respectability are all here. Verveer was part of a family of artists, and this image reflects the rising status of artists in the Netherlands at this time. Historical research into the lives of both the artist and the sitter, their professions and social circles, could reveal the complex network of social and professional relationships that this small photograph represents. The meaning of art is always contingent on social context.