Portret van een onbekende vrouw 1855 - 1885

Emil Tappe, a photographer in Bremen, made this portrait of an unknown woman using the carte de visite format. Dating from the late 19th century, this small photograph, likely mounted on card stock, speaks volumes about the era's visual culture and social norms. The carte de visite emerged as a popular form of portraiture, fueled by advancements in photography and printing technology. Its affordability and reproducibility democratized image-making, enabling a wider segment of society to participate in visual representation. The portrait served as a social currency, exchanged among friends and family, and collected in albums as emblems of personal and familial identity. Here, the sitter's attire and hairstyle conform to the fashions of the time, reflecting middle-class aspirations of respectability. The formality of the pose and the studio setting underscore the ritualized nature of portraiture, where individuals carefully constructed their public image. Such images offer invaluable insights into the social codes, material culture, and power dynamics of 19th-century society. By researching photographic history and portraiture conventions of the time, we can learn more about the woman in the image.