Portret van Friedrich Wilhelm, Markgraf von Brandenburg-Schwedt 1720 - 1775

Editor: So, here we have a portrait, "Portret van Friedrich Wilhelm, Markgraf von Brandenburg-Schwedt", created sometime between 1720 and 1775 by Gustav Andreas Wolfgang. It’s an engraving, which gives it a striking, almost austere feel. What catches your eye in this piece? Curator: You know, the thing that really dances out at me is how Wolfgang has managed to imbue this rather formal portrait with a cheeky, almost mischievous energy. Look at the Marquis’s eyes, they hint at some kind of knowing secret, don’t they? And that delicate rendering of the hair – it feels almost windswept despite the stillness of the pose. How does the baroque aesthetic speak to you in this engraving? Editor: I can see the mischievousness you are talking about, although, on my first inspection I did not think of that. Baroque portraits always strike me as rather grand and stiff, more concerned with conveying status than capturing a personality, though maybe it's my modern bias speaking. It is interesting to think about capturing his true nature and not an aesthetic portrayal. Curator: Absolutely! It's that dance between representation and reality that makes portraiture so endlessly fascinating, right? Are we capturing likeness or constructing a performance? In this piece, I think there's a negotiation going on, a tension between the expected aristocratic pose and something more vulnerable. Think of the political and social tightrope the Markgraf walked, now picture how that translated into this artwork. Does it begin to morph slightly, if we acknowledge these notions? Editor: I see what you mean. You’ve made me rethink how I see the portrait and I can appreciate the depth beyond its immediate surface. Thanks for the added context! Curator: My pleasure! And honestly, your fresh perspective helps me to reconsider, too! Art is so rarely a solitary experience, wouldn’t you agree?