Geschilderd ovaal portret van een vrouw met opgestoken haar c. 1863 - 1870

This painted oval portrait of a woman with her hair up was made by Carl Rensing in the 19th century. The delicate brushstrokes and subtle gradations of tone suggest the artist's mastery of oil paint. But it’s the very support on which this portrait is painted, that gives us a sense of the times in which it was made. The picture is mounted on card stock; an industrial product that transformed the art of the portrait. Before photography, painted portraits were a luxury for the wealthy. However, with the rise of photography and the mass production of card stock, portraiture became more accessible to the middle class. Rensing's choice of materials reflects a shift in society. He skillfully combines traditional painting techniques with modern industrial materials, blurring the lines between fine art and popular culture. This is a testament to the changing landscape of artistic expression in the 19th century, and a democratization of portraiture tied to wider social issues of labor, politics, and consumption.