Portret van een meisje met korte haren en oorbellen, staand op een voetenbank 1865 - 1895

Thomas Martin Staas captured this small portrait of a girl, standing on a footstool, sometime in the late 19th century. The child's clothing and stern expression speak to the rigid gender norms of the Victorian era. Note how the girl’s cropped hair and androgynous clothing challenge the traditional representations of femininity at this time. The simple dress and lack of elaborate adornment suggests a move away from the hyper-feminine ideals that dictated women's fashion. By placing her on a footstool, Staas literally elevates the girl, yet her firm stance and direct gaze suggest an inner strength, a quiet defiance against the constraints of her time. She seems to ask: "Who am I beyond the roles prescribed to me?" The portrait serves as a reminder of the unspoken stories of girls who navigated a world that sought to define and confine them. It invites us to imagine a broader spectrum of identity and self-expression that transcends historical limitations.