Silhouetportret van Jan Barend Hendrik Bruinier 1809 - 1848

This is a silhouette portrait of Jan Barend Hendrik Bruinier, made by Pieter Barbiers IV. Silhouettes were a popular, affordable alternative to painted portraits in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. In the Netherlands, as elsewhere, this method democratized portraiture, making it accessible to a broader segment of the middle class. The stark profile view, devoid of color, emphasizes the sitter's social standing through the cut of his jacket and hairstyle. This image provides a valuable record of middle-class identity and social status during this period. The fact that such an image was commissioned, collected, and is now preserved in a museum like the Rijksmuseum, speaks to the way institutions shape and validate cultural practices. To fully understand the cultural significance of this work, one might look into archives of Dutch fashion, and printed sources documenting the rise of the middle class in the Netherlands. Such research reveals how artistic practices are embedded in broader social and economic contexts.