Portret van een zittende vrouw met muts 1869 - 1875

Emanuel Lorjé created this small portrait of a seated woman with a bonnet sometime between 1845 and 1875. During the mid-19th century, photography offered new ways to represent identity and status. Looking at the woman, her modest bonnet and dress suggest a life of domesticity and perhaps religious observance. The ring on her finger hints at marriage, a cornerstone of societal expectations for women. Seated formally, her reserved gaze speaks volumes about the limited roles available to women during this period. Lorjé, who died at the young age of 30, worked during a time of enormous social change. Did he seek to capture the essence of his subject, or did he reinforce the existing codes of representation? This photograph invites us to reflect on the untold stories of women whose lives were often confined by social norms. It prompts us to consider how representation can both reflect and shape societal expectations.