Portret van een staand meisje, leunend op de leuning van een stoel 1858 - 1890

A. Böeseken created this small portrait of a standing girl leaning on the back of a chair. The invention of photography in the nineteenth century revolutionized portraiture, moving it from the exclusive domain of the wealthy to a broader reach. The subject's clothing and posture tell us a great deal about the social context. Made in the Netherlands, the young woman's modest dress and composed stance suggest a middle-class background where decorum was valued. Photographic studios flourished as commercial enterprises offering affordable portraits to an expanding bourgeoisie. We might ask, what role did photography play in shaping identities and social aspirations at the time? What can studio records and family albums tell us about the lives represented in these images? The historian examines not only the aesthetic qualities of the photograph, but also its place within the social and institutional networks of its time.