Vrouw met waaier 1781 - 1822

Curator: Welcome. Today, we are examining Hermanus Fock's "Woman with a Fan," a drawing residing here at the Rijksmuseum dating back to between 1781 and 1822. Editor: My first thought is, what captivating tonality. It's quite somber, almost melancholic, which is interesting for a portrait, particularly with what looks like such basic toolmaking: simply paper and likely charcoal, pen or ink. Curator: Indeed. Fock was working within the late 18th and early 19th century Neoclassical tradition, when portraiture started to take on new roles as documentation and also social commentary. Editor: What's intriguing is the presumed sitter's anonymity. With her simple dress and almost clumsy fan, she clearly isn't part of the noble or merchant classes whose visual documentation defined much of this period's portrait production, and as the artwork's title does not state an identity, one can conclude her identity was not deemed pertinent. I also wonder, was Fock engaging in caricature through these techniques, playing with her very "ordinary"-ness to underscore social realities? Curator: It's quite probable. Consider that printed material such as fashion plates and caricatures were beginning to challenge traditional artistic norms and forms, creating room for this sort of social critique. This drawing may indeed provide a sharp look at how ordinary folk fitted—or did not fit—into an increasingly structured society. Her unglamorous portrayal, the visible labor of the medium... Editor: It speaks volumes! We see here the materials—simple, everyday things. How fitting that it should depict a regular woman, perhaps the unsung labourer holding that fan! Curator: Right, and this challenges, even perhaps undermines, more lavish society portraiture of the period and offers a broader reflection on class distinctions. Editor: An incisive moment caught in time and a social reality, sketched for us through readily available means. Food for thought. Curator: A subtle yet striking challenge using commonplace material to reveal commonplace circumstances. An insightful point of view to hold about those portrait drawings which have become canon.