Vrouw met een hooivork vol stro op haar schouder before 1904

This image, *Vrouw met een hooivork vol stro op haar schouder*, or *Woman with a pitchfork full of straw on her shoulder* by Raymond de Smet, is a book plate, so it's been printed, probably from a photographic negative. I like that. The original moment captured, re-presented and re-contextualized. She's a strong looking woman, caught in action with a full pitchfork of straw on her shoulder. Her gaze is intense, and she seems to be looking off into the distance. The photograph reminds me of early modernist portraiture. Maybe she reminds me of Paula Modersohn-Becker, who made her own paintings of rural German women. I imagine de Smet wanted to capture her honesty and labor. He knew that a photograph could make an artwork that could be replicated and reproduced as many times as needed, just like a painting, connecting with an audience across time.