Portret van een dienstbode met witte muts, met lepel in de hand 1867 - 1880

Curator: There’s something inherently melancholic about this piece, wouldn't you say? It reminds me of quiet rooms and forgotten histories. Editor: This is an albumen print, probably dating from around 1867 to 1880, titled "Portret van een dienstbode met witte muts, met lepel in de hand"–or "Portrait of a maid with white cap, holding a spoon." Curator: Oh, it's a photograph. It felt much older than that to me; a still life painted in a minor key, and holding a spoon as she poses. Editor: It certainly captures a very particular moment. These photographs were becoming more accessible then, yet they also present labor so formally. She's framed, not just by the photographic frame, but also within a larger social structure. Her very pose speaks to the expectations and limitations of her role, wouldn't you agree? Curator: Absolutely! She’s caught in a ritual, even. The lighting is almost dreamlike but practical implements of labor seem caught in amber. It is like seeing work made suddenly monumental in small things. You could almost hear a clock ticking there! I get an idea of quiet resistance or perhaps weary dignity from her expression. It makes one wonder what stories she's holding. Editor: It's fascinating to consider the mass production aspect, too. Albumen prints involved coating paper with egg whites to create a glossy surface that the photographer can create an image on and each print would need time-consuming manual labor from women as well. We should consider these photographic studios too, what sort of labor did they represent. How do we view an artwork like this with that kind of social labor embedded? Curator: True. Even though she's captured, she isn't necessarily contained. What could such work even communicate to viewers then as opposed to what can happen in our own moment. I think there is some possibility that eludes the lens—and me too, in this present time. The longer you look the more it resonates. Editor: Yes, an invitation to truly "see". Curator: Indeed! And that invites a deeper appreciation to both how we lived and worked.