Portret van een onbekende vrouw 1875

Willem Linnig the Younger created this etching of an unknown woman in 1875. Observe the intricate curls cascading around her face and neck. The wildness of her hair is echoed through centuries of art, each era imbuing it with new significance. We see echoes of this unkempt hair in depictions of mythological figures such as the bacchantes, the female followers of Bacchus, god of wine and ecstasy. During the Renaissance, images of unbridled female figures evoked a mix of awe and fear, embodying both the divine and the untamed aspects of nature. In the Victorian era, the loose hair of women symbolized not ecstasy, but a forbidden sexuality. Thus, the emotional power of her unrestrained hair transcends time, revealing how collective memory and subconscious processes shape our perception, resurfacing and taking on new meanings across history.