Blad 152 uit Stamboek van de leerlingen der Koloniale School voor Meisjes en Vrouwen te 's-Gravenhage deel II (1930-1949) Possibly 1948 - 1949

This is page 152 from the register of students at The Colonial School for Girls and Women in The Hague, dated between 1930-1949. The students’ portraits bear silent testimony to their aspirations and identities. Observe the photograph of the young woman. In her gaze, we find echoes of the classical virtue of *pudicitia*, or modesty. We see this virtue, for example, in the veiled virgins of antiquity. The subtle downward glance, while conveying modesty, also hints at a complex interplay of emotions. This gesture resurfaces throughout art history, from Renaissance portraits to Victorian photography. It carries with it a sense of introspection and vulnerability that engages us on a subconscious level. The recurring appearance of modesty throughout art history highlights the way cultural values are encoded in visual symbols. These cultural values are continuously reshaped across generations. Here, in this school register, the student's gaze represents both personal identity and collective memory in an ever-evolving cultural narrative.