Portret van een man, aangeduid als Henri Overloop 1850 - 1900

Adrien Louvois made this photographic portrait of a man, thought to be Henri Overloop, sometime during his career which spanned the late 19th and early 20th centuries. This image invites us to consider the formal conventions of portraiture at the time, and what they reveal about the sitter's identity and status. Overloop, dressed in a suit and bow tie, projects an image of bourgeois respectability. Yet the small size of the photograph, and the fact that it is part of an album, suggests a more intimate, personal context. What stories might this image tell about the cultural values and social dynamics of its time? Was Overloop part of a rising middle class asserting its identity through visual representation? Or was this image a token of affection, a memento of a personal relationship? What might it mean to be depicted as a ‘gentleman’ at this historical moment? The photograph invites us to imagine the lived experiences of people like Overloop, and to reflect on how identity is constructed and performed through visual culture.