Portret van Pietertje Beunder Possibly 1904 - 1923

This photographic portrait of Pietertje Beunder was made by Sijbren Wierds Dijkstra, but we don't know exactly when. Look closely at the way the tones softly fade from dark to light, and how the background has been washed out to emphasize the sitter. Think about the physical act of making a photographic image at this time - the darkroom, the chemicals, the careful posing. It's easy to forget the material process behind even the most seemingly straightforward image. Notice the detail in Pietertje's dress and the way her hair is styled. These are not accidental choices. This is a very controlled and deliberate image, and the fading out of the tones reminds me of the paintings of someone like Gerhard Richter, where something is simultaneously revealed and obscured. This picture captures a moment in time, but it also hides so much. It invites us to ask: who was Pietertje Beunder? What was her life like? And what is it that we can really know about someone from a photograph?