Anna Held, dans Toutes ces Dames au Théâtre 1894

With swift strokes, Toulouse-Lautrec captured Anna Held on paper, an actress framed by the theater's raw backstage. Her elaborate costume, particularly the frilled bonnet, speaks of the performance's artifice, yet hints at something deeper. Consider the bonnet: in earlier times, elaborate headwear signified status and beauty, echoing through centuries of portraits. But here, it’s almost a mask, a symbol of the stage. Held’s pensive gesture—fingers to her chin—reveals a moment of vulnerability that resonates with Hamlet's introspective "To be or not to be." This mirroring of gestures across contexts, like the bonnet evolving from status symbol to theatrical mask, shows how deeply connected we are by visual echoes. It reminds us that images carry cultural memory, and our subconscious is stirred by these echoes.