Silhouetportret Jantje Brandes 1783

Curator: This is "Silhouetportret Jantje Brandes," a portrait made with ink on paper in 1783. It presents the profile of a young child rendered as a silhouette. Editor: There's a haunting simplicity to it, isn't there? It’s so stripped back, emphasizing the shape, the curve of the nose and chin. It also conveys the vulnerability of childhood. Curator: Silhouette portraits were popular then, especially among the middle class. They offered a relatively inexpensive way to have a likeness of a loved one made. Think of them as the snapshots of their time. The process often involved projecting a shadow onto paper and then tracing and filling it in. Editor: It makes you wonder about accessibility, doesn’t it? Who had the privilege to be remembered in this way? Whose stories are prioritised even when rendered as a simple shadow? Curator: It speaks to the rising interest in individual portraiture during the late 18th century and, the changing social values around family and domestic life. We see this shift reflected in other visual mediums too. Editor: Yes, the rise of sentimentality during the Enlightenment period certainly shaped portraiture. And you can see in the soft rendering around the face how such a style would work to flatter the sitter by obscuring unwanted details or ‘flaws’. Curator: Absolutely. It wasn't always about pure accuracy. And with this example, what stories were attached to Jantje? Who was this young individual, what circumstances allowed her silhouette to be captured, preserved and displayed? Editor: The ephemerality of childhood and the social context that allowed the image to exist—that’s where the image's enduring value truly lies. The object signifies loss but it should be used to tell untold stories of inequality from the 18th century. Curator: Indeed, these glimpses into the past offer more than meets the eye and raise worthwhile questions to consider. Editor: A small drawing with big implications, then!