Portret van de vrouw van Wilhelmus Johannes Steenhoff, in bed 1873 - 1932

Wilhelmus Johannes Steenhoff made this portrait of his wife in bed, using pencil on paper. I wonder what it was like to make this work. Did she have a fever? Or was she simply taking a rest? Maybe Steenhoff was trying to capture a feeling: the quiet of the sick room, the feeling of melancholy in a space of rest. The artist has built up the image with lots of little marks, paying attention to the way light and shadow define her face. There are lots of very fine, faint lines to capture the soft textures of hair and skin. But I can also see the marks are much bolder in other areas. This reminds me of how Agnes Martin used to build up her canvases with thin glazes of paint. When I look at this, I realize that it’s not just a portrait of his wife, but it's also a portrait of a relationship, of seeing someone with such tenderness.