Portret van Charles Florent Marie van Nassau-Corroy 1775 - 1834

Editor: We’re looking at a rather dashing engraving here at the Rijksmuseum: "Portret van Charles Florent Marie van Nassau-Corroy," dating from 1775 to 1834, by Ernst Karl Gottlieb Thelott. There's such an amazing stillness in this profile. The line work is immaculate, almost mathematical. What do you see in this piece? Curator: Ah, stillness... you've touched upon its essence. It’s a neoclassical dance of precision, isn't it? Like watching a perfectly choreographed ballet in monochrome. Thelott has rendered the Count with a certain… inevitability. He is *meant* to be viewed this way. See how the circular frame contains him, almost like a coin, stamping his importance onto the page. Makes you wonder what stories he could tell, doesn't it? Does the severity suggest a man burdened by duty, perhaps? Or is it simply the fashion of portraiture at the time? Editor: Fashion definitely plays a role. Though the face, it looks… kind, somehow. Maybe it’s the slight curve of his lip. You mentioned stories – I wonder about the details of his life! Was he happy, even with all the social expectations bearing down on him? Curator: It’s a lovely thought, isn’t it, finding a hint of humanity amidst the formal rigidity? He was part of that fascinating moment of shifting powers – that late 18th century, teetering between eras. But those intimate details… those, alas, are often lost to the grand sweep of history. That little half-smile – could it be a secret he carries, carefully guarded? It's what whispers to us across time, isn’t it? The part of him that was undeniably, irrevocably human. Editor: It's really given me a whole new way of looking at neoclassical portraiture. Thank you! Curator: My pleasure. It’s always rewarding to find those fleeting connections that makes art breathe!