Portret van Frederik Karel Antonius Pantekoek 1855 - 1898

Friedrich Wilhelm Burmeister rendered this print, "Portret van Frederik Karel Antonius Pantekoek," using etching. Burmeister worked in the latter half of the 19th century, a period marked by shifting social structures and burgeoning nationalist sentiments. This portrait of Frederik Karel Antonius Pantekoek, whoever he may be, exists as a record of a certain class and identity. A man of importance is immortalized through art. Burmeister's work offers insight into the visual culture that both reflected and reinforced social hierarchies. The success of the portrait relies on the way the subject is framed. This print, in its commitment to representing Pantekoek in a way that conveys authority and respect, also speaks to the values of the society in which it was produced. What is reflected in this man’s face, in his clothes, in his posture? What does it mean to be memorialized in this way?