Drie portretten van Loentje Onnen, onder in kostuum 1911

Editor: Here we have "Drie portretten van Loentje Onnen, onder in kostuum," three portraits of Loentje Onnen in costume, dating back to 1911. They are gelatin-silver prints. They give me this wistful, theatrical vibe. What captures your attention when you look at this work? Curator: Well, for starters, the ephemeral nature of a silver gelatin print already speaks to that wistful quality you mentioned! They’re like ghosts captured in time. There’s a lovely, almost naive quality to the poses; they remind me of kids playing dress-up. But I also find myself wondering about Loentje herself. Three portraits nestled together like this – are we seeing her attempt at self-discovery? Does the 'under in kostuum' element – implying a low level costume, or amateur, nature of her dramatic pose? Editor: Self-discovery through costume – that’s intriguing. It’s more than just surface then, it's digging deeper through image. Do you think the modernism tag applies just by date or something deeper here? Curator: Good question! On one hand, it has this connection to the changing ideas around representation at the time; on the other, it remains rooted in portraiture and perhaps documentation. There is no dramatic change happening. What if the very *act* of trying on these personas is the artist working out her internal modernist rebellion, in a very constrained way. Editor: That's a great point; so almost a quiet, personal modernism? I will consider that for my essay; Thanks for all the extra food for thought! Curator: My pleasure; always a joy when looking and discussing photography!