Engelse vrouw van stand met brede plooikraag en mof 1640 - 1707

Editor: Standing before us is "Engelse vrouw van stand met brede plooikraag en mof," or, "English noblewoman with a wide pleated collar and muff," a print made between 1640 and 1707 by Wenceslaus Hollar. It's… intriguing, I guess? Stately, for sure, but a little flat. Almost like a fashion plate. What jumps out at you about it? Curator: Fashion plates they were! Well spotted! To me, it whispers of both constraint and extravagance, doesn’t it? Look at the ruff – like a pristine, starched halo. Then the fur muff, practically swallowing her hands. Think about the social tightrope she walked daily, her value measured by her attire, her silence. A gilded cage, no? Editor: A cage. Yeah, I see what you mean. Is the artist commenting on that or just documenting it? Curator: Ah, now *there's* the question that haunts all portraiture, isn't it? Hollar was a documentarian, primarily. But artists don't exist in a vacuum! Those details – the unflinching gaze, the almost comical scale of the ruff, those… sausage-like sleeves… it practically begs us to question the very definition of "noble." Doesn't it strike you as somewhat… absurd? Editor: Absurd and…uncomfortable, maybe? I hadn't really noticed, but yeah, there's something awkward about it. Curator: Exactly! Art allows us to observe, to interpret, and maybe even empathize with individuals separated from us by time, wealth, and wildly impractical clothing. It asks that we truly *see.* What will you see *next* time, I wonder? Editor: I guess I’ll be asking a lot more questions! Thanks for that, this was very interesting.