Portret van een vrouw met een knot en een halssieraad c. 1882 - 1910

Franz Reissig made this small photograph of a woman with a bun and necklace at an unknown date. The work is mounted on card, a format which circulated widely in Europe and America in the late nineteenth century. Photography was becoming more popular and affordable, leading to a boom in portraiture across the middle classes. Though the sitter's name is unrecorded, the features of her dress and hair indicate that she was a woman of some status in society. The neutral backdrop and formal composition suggest that this was intended as a more official record, perhaps for family or social purposes. The stern expression and averted gaze create a certain distance between sitter and viewer. To understand this portrait better, we might investigate the history of photography, the growth of the middle class, and the changing role of women in society. Such research can help to provide a richer picture of its cultural context.