Zelfportret met pet: B-1-1, 16 februari Possibly 1942

Curator: Let’s discuss "Zelfportret met pet: B-1-1, 16 februari," a self-portrait attributed to Cor van Teeseling, potentially created in 1942. Editor: There's an immediate delicacy and fragility to this piece. The very thin lines and subtle shading, mostly in one shade, suggest vulnerability. Curator: Indeed, the linear quality is striking. Look at the deliberate economy of line—how a few strokes define form, especially around the eyes and the beret. It employs a refined formal reduction, minimizing details for maximum impact. It is all done in pencil on paper, drawing. Editor: That's what fascinates me. Consider the simplicity of the medium, pencil on paper, during a tumultuous period. The material availability, its portability. A pencil was a tool accessible even amidst hardship, making this act of self-representation almost an act of resilience. Curator: You raise an interesting point about resilience. Semiotically, the gaze, slightly averted, could symbolize introspection or a lack of engagement. Its rendering of form is achieved purely through gradations of tonal value and, of course, through a masterful manipulation of lines and contrast. Editor: Exactly! It’s about the access to that material during a period of duress, to render an identity or expression within the restrictive times. The labor and the art, both acts defying the restrictions of place. It is realism that is heightened because the self-portrait does not have colour. Curator: Absolutely. And as for the hat, it contributes to the formal composition with its almost circular line on the top portion of the head. Overall the simplicity offers visual clarity with that minimalist composition which lends itself to psychological interpretation. Editor: I am interested in what that beret means as part of what makes this. That material aspect of representing identity, or culture through fashion and materials, perhaps, amidst wartime limitations? It asks one to wonder what sort of labor made it, whether it was store bought or homemade, mass produced or custom… Curator: Considering these combined formal and contextual readings enhances our experience of art in an original and thoughtful way. Editor: True; examining this work's process, access, and materiality against its creation time reframes the piece. A great work to delve into today.