Brief aan Frans Buffa en Zonen Possibly 1873

This letter to Frans Buffa en Zonen was written in 1873 in The Hague by the artist Louis Apol. The letter gives an insight into the commercial art world of the Netherlands in the late 19th century. Apol writes to discuss a portfolio of drawings. He wants to know the price of the smallest and the largest aquarel painting so he can work out a fair value. Buffa was a well-known name in the art world at that time, operating as both art dealers and auctioneers. Apol's letters show how artists navigated the art market, negotiating sales and cultivating relationships with dealers. To fully appreciate this document, it’s worthwhile to examine the archives of galleries like Buffa to reconstruct the market conditions and the economic realities that shaped artistic careers during this era. The social and institutional context is critical to our understanding of even the most seemingly personal artistic statements.