Portret van een onbekende vrouw 1903

This is Cornelius Antonius Gerardus Leijenaar's "Portret van een onbekende vrouw", made sometime during his lifetime using what appears to be graphite or charcoal. This work is a sketch on a rectangular piece of paper, inside an oval frame, and I can almost feel Leijenaar's hand as he made it. The woman is finely rendered in profile, looking off to the left of the frame with a serious expression. What was she thinking? Did she know she was making history? I admire Leijenaar's commitment to representing something of this woman, even if her name has been lost to time. The artist has captured something real and fleeting. It reminds me of how all artists, past and present, are in a continuous conversation, each adding their voice to the chorus, and inspiring new generations of artists. Each work an echo of a shared humanity, a testament to our ongoing quest for understanding and expression.