Portret van een onbekende jongen met kruiwagen 1902 - 1914

This 'Portret van een onbekende jongen met kruiwagen' was made by Johannes Gerardus Kramer, and without a date we are left to imagine its creation. I can really get into the textures, the light and dark, the velvety blacks that let you sink into the depths of the image. Look at the way the light seems to fall across the boy's face, how the shadows around him give him form. It's like Kramer is feeling his way through the darkness, one shape at a time. The boy’s pose, he is kind of stiff, right? With one hand at his side, and the other resting on the wheelbarrow. What does this mean? I love that the piece asks more questions than it answers. And the way the photograph has aged, so you can see the silver shimmering on the surface. It's almost like a Gerhard Richter painting, something that has been built up in layers. Which is to say, it has lived a life!