Portret staande vrouw met grote hoed 1901 - 1907

Harry Bartram Boyd made this portrait of a standing woman wearing a large hat, although we don't know exactly when. What can this small photographic image tell us about the social and cultural conventions of its time? The woman's elaborate hat and patterned blouse suggest middle-class status in a Western country, probably in the late 19th or early 20th century. Hats like these were not just fashion statements, they were markers of social standing and respectability. Photographic portraits became increasingly popular among the middle class as a means of documenting and displaying their status. Photography studios emerged as important social spaces, where individuals could perform their identities for the camera. The social historian might look at sources such as fashion magazines, census records, and studio archives to better understand how people constructed and negotiated their identities through visual media. We might see how this portrait participates in broader systems of social and cultural meaning.