Portret van een vrouw 1850 - 1899

Wilhelm Mayr created this small portrait of a woman using photographic methods. In this era, portraiture was evolving from painting to photography, changing who had access to having their image recorded for posterity. The woman's gaze meets ours directly, her expression unreadable. Her clothing and jewelry suggest a middle-class status, yet her somber demeanor hints at the social constraints placed on women during this period. There's a tension in the image between the sitter's individuality and the conventional representation of women at the time. Is she presenting herself as she wishes to be seen, or as society expects her to be? This image invites us to reflect on the complex interplay between identity, representation, and social expectations.