Briefkaart aan Philip Zilcken Possibly 1889

This is a postcard sent to Philip Zilcken, in The Hague, Netherlands. Though undated, the postmark indicates it was sent in January 1889. The visual codes are those of the postal service; royal crests indicate its official nature. The sender, Adèle Josephine Godoy, remains relatively obscure, but the recipient, Philip Zilcken, was a well-regarded artist, critic, and editor closely associated with the Amsterdam Impressionism movement. The card, then, provides insight into the artistic networks of the time. What was the nature of their relationship? Was it merely professional or something more intimate? Perhaps the collections of Zilcken's papers will reveal more about his connections and the institutional forces at play in the art world. What other traces do artists leave behind, and how can we as historians better understand the social conditions that shape artistic production?