Zelfportret van Frederik Hendrik Weissenbruch 1843 - 1887

This is a self-portrait by Frederik Hendrik Weissenbruch, created as an etching. Weissenbruch lived and worked in the Netherlands during the 19th century, a time of significant social and artistic change. Weissenbruch’s direct gaze and the intimate scale of the etching invites viewers into a personal encounter. Note how Weissenbruch presents himself: dressed in the garb of the middle class. This was a period where artists were beginning to explore their identities in relation to societal changes, particularly the shift from patronage to a market-based system. Weissenbruch, like many of his contemporaries, navigated his position in a society undergoing rapid transformation. The intimacy of the etching process suggests a desire for introspection, marking a move toward more individualized expressions of self. The artwork offers a glimpse into the artist's own negotiation of his identity, and how he chose to represent himself to the world.