Portret van een onbekende vrouw 1907 - 1922

Jac. van Faassen made this portrait of an unknown woman with, I'm assuming, a camera, at some point in the early 20th century. I can imagine Van Faassen carefully composing the shot, adjusting the light just so, maybe directing the woman with gentle prompts. I wonder, did they chat? What was the atmosphere like? The sepia tones give it a timeless feel, almost like a memory fading at the edges. The way the light catches the woman's face, her eyes seem to hold a story, or maybe it's a secret. There's a certain stillness, a quiet dignity in her posture. Painters have always looked at photography, wrestling with how to represent reality, how to capture a likeness, how to freeze a moment in time. Think of Gerhard Richter and his blurred photographs turned paintings. Van Faassen, I reckon, was part of this big, ongoing conversation, finding new ways to see and show us how to see too.