Portret van een zittende vrouw in een jurk met een boek in de hand c. 1860 - 1900

Editor: So here we have, "Portret van een zittende vrouw in een jurk met een boek in de hand," or "Portrait of a seated woman in a dress with a book in hand." It’s by the London and Continental Photographic Copying Company, dating from around 1860 to 1900. There's something incredibly still and composed about it. What do you see in this piece? Curator: Isn’t she wonderful? Immediately, I imagine a whole inner life for her, fostered by quiet afternoons and endless cups of tea, all filtered through the printed page. Those serious eyes! The slight, almost defiant, tilt of her chin! And the bows on her dress are such an overt attempt at softening her. Do you think she’s succeeding? Editor: I’m not so sure! There's something in her gaze that suggests she's utterly self-possessed despite the frills and lace. Curator: Exactly! I wonder what book she’s reading? Perhaps something revolutionary that's informing her defiant spark. I mean, look at how deliberately she holds it. Almost as if she’s displaying it as a badge of honour. Wouldn’t it be fascinating to know who this person truly was? This portrait offers so many unspoken questions about female identity in the 19th Century, about outward appearance versus inner resolve. Editor: It’s true! This image captures a moment in time but feels so timeless as well. A really good image of that intersection. Thank you! Curator: My pleasure, thinking about her really opened my own eyes!