Portret van Henrietta Maria, echtgenote van Karl I van Engeland c. 1645 - 1678

Curator: Up next, we have an engraving from around 1645 to 1678, crafted by Adriaen Lommelin. The artwork is titled "Portret van Henrietta Maria, echtgenote van Karl I van Engeland," which translates to "Portrait of Henrietta Maria, wife of Charles I of England." Editor: Immediately, what strikes me is the stillness, a poised melancholia, wouldn't you agree? The cross-hatching gives a certain formality, yet there’s a real softness to her features. Almost like a daydream caught in ink. Curator: Indeed. Lommelin, working in the Baroque style, captures Queen Henrietta Maria with a certain regal reserve, the fine lines etched into the engraving highlighting the opulence of her attire and the faint air of sadness, perhaps hinting at the tumultuous times she lived through. Editor: Absolutely. The piece speaks volumes about the construction of royal female identity. We see her pearls and lace – clear markers of wealth and status, but her pose is far from commanding. Holding that single rose, hands clasped gently – it conveys vulnerability and perhaps even a sense of longing, considering the historical context of the English Civil War and her husband's execution. Curator: Yes, there’s an almost performative element to her tranquility. It is also hard not to see the "caricature" hints of caricature that are flagged up. Could this have been a subversive take? Editor: A really interesting and unexpected angle to take, as that would destabilize her status in a rather pointed fashion, playing with conventions and expectation around images of nobility. What might feel conventional and expected on the surface here starts feeling rather different... Curator: Precisely. And it reminds us how an image can be interpreted across centuries, changing with different social and historical contexts, shifting our appreciation. Editor: Agreed, diving beneath the surface to examine those tensions—between power and vulnerability, the personal and the political—is really fascinating.