Studententijd van Henry Pauw van Wieldrecht 1888 - 1889

This is a portfolio called ‘Student Life of Henry Pauw van Wieldrecht’ by Henry Pauw van Wieldrecht, dating from his time as a student in the Netherlands. But what does it mean to call this object ‘art’? We might think of the history of art as the history of images, but here we have an object that invites us to think about the social conditions of art. The portfolio reminds us that artists don't just arrive fully formed; they must at one time be students. Art education and the art school as an institution are crucial to the production of art. Van Wieldrecht who came from a wealthy family, would have been able to afford art school, unlike many others at the time. To understand this portfolio better, we might look to the archives of art schools. What was the curriculum? What was expected of students? What kinds of social networks were formed? And how do these impact the creation of art?