Portret van een meisje 1860 - 1900

Editor: So, this is "Portret van een meisje," or Portrait of a Girl, taken sometime between 1860 and 1900, a photograph from Ch. Binger & Co. at the Rijksmuseum. There's such a strong sense of formality, even constraint, in this image of a child. What do you see when you look at it? Curator: I see the gaze of the other. This photograph exists within a historical framework that often objectified women and children, particularly within the rising middle class. Do you notice how the girl's direct gaze, while seemingly innocent, positions her within a power dynamic? The photographer, likely a man, capturing her image for posterity. What do you think that implies for her agency, or lack thereof? Editor: That’s interesting. I hadn't really considered the power dynamic inherent in early portrait photography like this. I was focusing more on the subject, that she looks almost melancholic or contemplative despite being so young. Curator: Precisely! And perhaps her expression isn't just melancholic. Consider the broader social expectations of women during this time. Restrained, proper, seen and not heard. Might this portrait, in its seeming simplicity, subtly reflect the constrained roles imposed upon women, even girls, during that era? Does her gaze challenge this imposed ideal? Editor: It makes me think about how little girls growing up today are constantly bombarded with expectations, and the degree to which we’ve grown more sensitive as a society. The girl seems aware that she is not free, perhaps? Curator: That awareness, whether conscious or not, becomes part of her historical narrative. How are women objectified in photographs and portraits today? Has photography really evolved and emancipated itself from the 19th century? These are questions to continuously keep at the front of our minds. Editor: That is a really important note. This has really opened my eyes to a new way of reading this photograph, and photographs more broadly! Curator: Mine too, in turn! Thank you.