Portret van een onbekende vrouw in klederdracht 1897 - 1909

This is a mounted albumen print by Jannes Faber depicting an unknown woman in traditional costume. The tonal range is something else, isn't it? I imagine Faber in his studio watching this woman pose. She is adorned with decorative jewellery and headwear - maybe for a special day or occasion. I am curious about the dark colour of her dress and the light catching the embroidery. It’s like he is discovering the subject through the act of photographing, shifting, emerging, trial, error, intuition... I empathize with Faber here - the technical challenges! The exposure, the lighting, the composition, but also, I wonder, what did she think of it? What did she feel when she first saw it? And that makes me think - what is a portrait anyway? Artists are always in conversation, you know, always responding to each other's work across time, inspiring each other's creativity. It's an ongoing exchange of ideas and techniques. Painting, photography - these are forms of embodied expression, embracing ambiguity, uncertainty, allowing for multiple readings and meaning over time.