Buste van een jongeman met een baret 1683 - 1746

Editor: Here we have a work from the Rijksmuseum, "Buste van een jongeman met een baret" – or "Bust of a young man with a beret" – by Nicolaas Verkolje, created sometime between 1683 and 1746. It’s a charcoal drawing, and I’m struck by the intensity of his gaze. It feels very direct, almost challenging. What do you see in this piece? Curator: Oh, he's quite the captivating character, isn't he? For me, it whispers of hidden stories. You see the way the light catches his face? It's almost theatrical, isn't it? Like he’s about to step onto a stage. I wonder what role he’s rehearsing. Verkolje, see, was playing with perceptions. This isn't just a likeness; it's a constructed image, carefully posed and shaded. What does his beret tell us? Perhaps an artist, a poet, a free thinker. Or perhaps it’s just a stylish hat. What do you think that tells us? Editor: I guess it depends how staged the whole thing is! The beret could just be an everyday item he happened to be wearing. Curator: Precisely! That’s the beautiful ambiguity Verkolje gifts us. It is like an ink blot. What do you make of him, just between you and I? Editor: I see the potential of Academic art and how artists built on established poses to find new nuances of representation. The beret may simply serve to show us just how Verkolje is challenging that representation, I suppose. I wouldn't want to challenge this character to fisticuffs anytime soon. Curator: Ha! He has that air about him, doesn't he? I see it too, now. That hint of mischief lurking in his eye. Well, it just goes to show how art invites a thousand different tales. Thanks for letting me ponder him with you a moment longer. Editor: And thank you for pointing out the little stories that exist within what appears to be simply a formal piece.