Buste van een Vestaalse maagd uit de Farnese collectie before 1879

Editor: Here we have Giorgio Sommer’s "Buste van een Vestaalse maagd uit de Farnese collectie," dating from before 1879. It’s a photographic print of a marble sculpture, residing here at the Rijksmuseum. It strikes me as both serene and a bit melancholy. What's your interpretation of this work? Curator: Well, the gaze certainly pulls you in, doesn't it? I'm captivated by the texture created in the drapery; the way it falls suggests both weight and fluidity, trapping light to evoke a real sensuality. I find myself wondering, does this tell us more about Victorian sensibilities and Sommer’s artistic goals than about the Vestal Virgin herself? It feels less about ancient Rome, and more about how the 19th century wanted to see ancient Rome. Don’t you think there’s a bit of romantic idealization here? Editor: I can see that. It's a very clean, almost staged image, very different from gritty reality. Curator: Exactly! The print itself, with its subtle tones, lends an air of timelessness that the bright white marble alone might not achieve. Perhaps it is about photography's power to romanticize and, arguably, even deify. What stories do you imagine behind those eyes? What vows, what sacrifices? Editor: I imagine she misses home. And feels the weight of responsibility. It makes me appreciate how Sommer captured the marble sculpture's smooth texture. I hadn't considered how much Sommer’s time period influenced the presentation. Curator: And that, my friend, is why we keep looking! The layers just keep revealing themselves, like peeling an onion, one textured photographic layer at a time. Editor: I’ll never look at an old photograph the same way again!