Meisje met spinrokken 1814 - 1879

This is an image of a girl with a spinning wheel, made by David van der Kellen. The spinning wheel is a potent emblem, historically associated with the domestic sphere, female labor, and virtue. The depiction of women with spinning wheels echoes across time and cultures, appearing in folklore, mythology, and art. Think of the tale of Sleeping Beauty, where the spinning wheel is the instrument of fate. It is a cyclical process of creation and transformation, imbued with a sense of destiny. The thread she spins, it’s like the thread of life itself. But see how she is bare foot, seated in nature? The spinning wheel becomes a symbol of the inevitable passage of time, and the primal connection to nature. This archetype continually resurfaces, each time colored by the anxieties and aspirations of the era. It is a dance of cultural memory.