Ingrid 

Editor: This drawing by Theodor Severin Kittelsen, called "Ingrid", rendered with pen and ink, depicts a figure obscured by a large hat and blanket. The scribbled line work gives it an unfinished quality, but the pose conveys a kind of weariness or resignation. What’s your read on this image, seeing it through a historical lens? Curator: Considering Kittelsen's context, a Norwegian artist working around the turn of the 20th century, this drawing likely reflects the social conditions and cultural anxieties of the time. What strikes me most is how Ingrid is portrayed. She's not romanticized; rather, she appears weighed down, almost swallowed by her garments. Does this depiction challenge the conventional portrayal of women in art at the time? Editor: Definitely, it avoids the idealized. So, you're saying the way she’s covered up hints at a deeper social commentary? Curator: Precisely. In that era, women were often placed under immense pressure, restricted by societal norms. Kittelsen’s choice to hide Ingrid, not revealing her face, could be interpreted as a commentary on that restricted role. What kind of conversations around the social positioning of women would it provoke in its viewers, do you think? Editor: I hadn’t considered it that way. Maybe it was trying to challenge the standard norms by raising questions about how much society confined and defined them. Curator: It makes us consider who has the power to define an individual through images. Thank you, I am leaving with something to reflect on as well.