Envelop aan Ernst Wilhelm Moes en Cornelia Rembrandina Valeton 1896 - 1912

Curator: Looking at this piece, I'm struck by its…humility. It's so simple, just some ink on paper, almost ephemeral. Like a fleeting thought captured. Editor: Indeed. What we have here is a piece listed as "Envelop aan Ernst Wilhelm Moes en Cornelia Rembrandina Valeton." This drawing, made with pen and ink on paper sometime between 1896 and 1912, also displays elements of both portraiture and calligraphy. It's fascinating to consider the communication practices embedded in an object like this, a literal envelope, containing layers of potential meaning. Curator: Right. I almost want to trace the loops and swirls with my finger, you know? There's something so intimate about handwriting, a connection to the hand that formed it. What I find truly compelling about this is, whose portrait are we even discussing if it is not self-portrait? Are we certain these names have connections with the figures within? Editor: That’s a critical question. And also why focusing on the envelope is so poignant. I mean, what’s included and excluded tells a very pointed story. Consider what power dynamics are implicit when discussing such letters between two named entities and even unnamed ones. Curator: Totally. It raises questions about accessibility to certain knowledge. Like, what does it mean to see a piece of private correspondence displayed so publicly? Is it a violation? Or is there something to be gleaned, some historical insight offered by its exposure? And look at the different pressure applied, there. Editor: Precisely. So much unspoken in such a plain object. But these lines that do stand out... What might the envelope have represented at the time to the historical actors versus now in our moment? A completely altered view! Curator: Yeah, you’re making me think of the physical object as an artifact that indexes these power structures… Very potent. I do love how it complicates these typical modes of portraiture by bringing forth questions of communication! It is lovely to simply stare. Editor: I think there's a story waiting to be unfolded here. The quiet power of ink on paper!