Zittend persoon met hoed 1847 - 1899

Jacob Maris made this pencil drawing, "Sitting Person with Hat", sometime in the 19th century. It's a quick sketch of a woman in a hat, seemingly caught in a moment of repose. Maris was part of the Hague School, a group of Dutch artists who reacted against the rigid academic style of the time. Instead, they turned to everyday life for inspiration. This sketch reflects that interest in capturing the informal and the ordinary. But it also speaks to broader social shifts in the Netherlands. The rise of a new middle class created a market for art that reflected their own lives and values. The sketch is a reminder that art doesn't exist in a vacuum. It's shaped by the social, economic, and cultural forces of its time. When we study a work like this, we can research things like fashion trends, social etiquette, and the art market of the Netherlands in the 1800s. That kind of knowledge allows us to understand it as something more than just a pretty picture.