Portret van een jongen met boek op schoot, zittend op een tafel 1860 - 1884

This diminutive photograph, "Portret van een jongen met boek op schoot, zittend op een tafel," was created by Wegner & Mottu. The sepia tones and the compact composition draw us into an intimate encounter with the young subject. The boy's upright posture, perched on the table with a book in his lap, suggests a deliberate staging of identity. The vertical lines of the curtain in the background, juxtaposed with the horizontal lines of the table, create a structured space around him. These formal choices invite a reading that goes beyond mere portraiture. We can consider how the arrangement of the boy, the book, and the setting function as signs within a system. The book, a symbol of knowledge and status, sits squarely in his lap. The setting, with its staged backdrop, is less about capturing a likeness and more about constructing an ideal. This photograph challenges fixed meanings. What does it mean to be young, educated, and positioned within a constructed environment?