Brief aan Philip Zilcken Possibly 1894 - 1899

This is a letter in Dutch, penned by Suze Robertson to Philip Zilcken around the turn of the century. It offers a glimpse into the art market and the artist's social network. Robertson mentions sending Zilcken an exhibition from the club to which she belongs, then promotes her atelier for 225 Dutch Guilders. We can read this note as a piece of social history that speaks to the cultural moment in which the artist operated, in the Netherlands, at a time when women artists had to fight for recognition. Robertson used her network to sell her art and promote her studio. As historians, to understand this fully, we'd look into records of artists' clubs and exhibition histories. We could examine Zilcken's role in the art world and study the Dutch art market at the time. Only then can we appreciate the strategies deployed by women to succeed in this environment. The meaning of art is always bound to its context.