Dubbelportret van Adeh en Kitty van Braam 1880 - 1900

Carel Eduard Westerborg made this photograph, now at the Rijksmuseum, portraying Adeh and Kitty van Braam. Note the flowers they carry; flowers, especially when held by young women, often serve as symbols of innocence, purity, and the fleeting nature of beauty. Consider Botticelli’s "Primavera," where Flora scatters flowers, symbolizing spring and renewal, and the transience of life. The flowers held by Adeh and Kitty evoke similar feelings of youth and potential, yet also hint at vulnerability. In a broader sense, this image reflects a desire to capture and preserve a moment in time, to hold onto the ephemeral quality of childhood before it fades. This composition is emotionally compelling, engaging viewers on a deep, subconscious level, as we are innately drawn to the beauty and fragility of youth, and reminded of the inevitability of change. It's a cyclical progression, a dance between beauty and decay, innocence and experience, that resurfaces time and again in art.