Portret van een staande dienstbode met witte hoed, vlinderstrik en schort bij een stoel 1887 - 1940

This vintage photograph by E. v.d. Kerkhoff captures a standing maid in monochrome tones. The image is small, almost like a cherished memento slipped into a locket. I can imagine Kerkhoff carefully composing the shot. There’s a formality in the subject's pose, a quiet dignity, that hints at the nuances of class and labor. What was it like for Kerkhoff to frame this woman’s presence? I think about the surface of the print itself, the way it might feel cool and smooth to the touch. How the light might catch on the subtle variations in the emulsion. It makes me consider how much of our experience of art is tactile, sensual. Photography, like painting, is about feeling your way through the dark, isn’t it? Each photo, each painting, becomes part of an ongoing conversation between artists across time, inspiring new ways of seeing and feeling.