Portret van een onbekende vrouw, madame Huberti 1895

This print of an unknown woman, possibly Madame Huberti, was made by Auguste Danse, a 19th-century Belgian artist. Danse was associated with the Société Internationale des Aquafortistes, a printmaking society that sought to elevate etching to the level of high art. His choice of subject—an older woman of some social standing—reflects the values of bourgeois society. The lace collar and carefully arranged hair speak to this woman’s place within a social structure in which appearance was paramount. Consider the institutional forces at play here: the rise of printmaking as a recognized art form, the social function of portraiture in solidifying class status. The historian’s role is to unpack these meanings, drawing on sources such as period journals, exhibition catalogues, and biographical research. Only then can we understand the social life of this image.