Jurk van witte katoen met blauwe blaadjes. Lange mouw; gladde voorbaan; aangerimpelde achterbaan c. 1910

This cotton dress with blue leaves, made by P. Titjen-Baas, feels like a painting in its own right. I can see the artist, or dressmaker, carefully placing each little blue leaf, one by one, across the white fabric. It’s like they’re building up the image, shifting and emerging through trial, error, and intuition. I sympathize with Titjen-Baas, imagining the repetitive, meditative process of creating this pattern. What was she thinking as she worked? Each leaf is a small gesture, communicating feeling, intention, and meaning. The thin cotton, the repeated motif, it all shapes our experience of the dress, contributing to its emotional and intellectual resonance. It reminds me of the work of other artists who use repetition and pattern to create a sense of rhythm and movement. Artists are always in conversation, exchanging ideas across time, inspiring each other’s creativity. This dress, like a painting, is a form of embodied expression which embraces ambiguity and uncertainty, allowing for multiple interpretations and meaning.