Portret van prinses Wilhelmina 1885

Curator: This is an 1885 gelatin silver print titled "Portret van prinses Wilhelmina" created by Carel Eduard Westerborg, held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum. Editor: My goodness, she looks like she’s dreaming of bigger things already, a bit trapped maybe? Like a butterfly just pausing before its next flight. It's a bit melancholy, don't you think, this little royal perched on a branch chair? Curator: Melancholy is an interesting reading. Structurally, observe how Westerborg has composed the image. The princess is positioned almost centrally, framed by a backdrop that seems both natural and artificial simultaneously, blurring the lines between staged portraiture and candid capture. It's the formal tension of expectation. Editor: Right! It is staged. But I find myself pondering the sepia tones, that little lace dress, the slightly smudged background… I can't help but imagine a fairy tale with a very serious princess at its heart. A future queen, yes, but also a little girl surrounded by such heavy expectation. Curator: Precisely! And consider the textures rendered in gelatin silver. The contrast isn’t as stark as some earlier photographic processes might offer. Rather, we get these muted tonal gradations, capturing both the delicacy of the dress and the subtle nuances of her expression. What some perceive as sentiment is a study of social standing reproduced to an accessible material for widespread use. Editor: I do love that! Social standing in such soft tones. Tell me more about Westerborg himself? This feels almost surprisingly intimate given it's royalty. Curator: Westerborg, active mainly in Arnhem, became known for these cabinet portraits. They were affordable, almost like the Instagram of their day, and gave a veneer of access to a powerful figure. The relatively shallow depth of field pushes our focus squarely onto Wilhelmina's gaze. A masterstroke in subtly conveying power, don’t you think? Editor: Absolutely. It's amazing to think something that feels so quaint now could carry so much weight, politically and emotionally, at the time. Makes you wonder how we will judge our carefully filtered selfies a century from now. Curator: Indeed! Each piece captures a slice of time and sentiment beyond its initial aesthetic appeal. Editor: Such serious sweetness...I do love a photograph with a hidden heart!