Portret van een vrouw 1710 - 1772

This is Petrus Johannes van Reysschoot's, "Portret van een vrouw," a delicate graphite sketch depicting a woman in the style of the 18th century. It’s likely this woman came from means, signified by her elaborate hairstyle, dress and adornments. Van Reysschoot would have been influenced by the cultural norms of his time, where portraiture was about conveying status and idealised beauty. The woman's calm expression invites us to consider the limited agency women had at that time, often confined to roles that emphasized appearance and domesticity. Her gaze, though gentle, carries a hint of something more, a quiet resilience perhaps. "Portret van een vrouw" asks us to look beyond the surface, to reflect on the complex interplay between identity, representation, and the unspoken stories of those who lived within the constraints and expectations of their era.