Portret van een man met bakkenbaarden 1875 - 1877

Curator: This is a photographic portrait titled "Portret van een man met bakkenbaarden," which translates to "Portrait of a Man with Sideburns." It was taken between 1875 and 1877 and the piece is housed here at the Rijksmuseum. Editor: My goodness, those are magnificent sideburns! He looks like a slightly melancholic walrus contemplating the complexities of 19th-century financial instruments. Is it just me, or is there a touch of gentle humor hiding in that stern expression? Curator: Well, let’s unpack that a little. This portrait is attributed to Bernardus Bruining, and understanding photography in the late 19th century requires situating it within broader narratives of social status and representation. For the burgeoning middle class, commissioning portraits, like this one, was a crucial step towards social visibility. Editor: So, it was a power move back then. Interesting. And it also has an intimate feel. Looking at this photo, I can almost smell old paper and hear the faint scratching of the photographer's pen. He doesn’t seem stiff like a regular bourgeois figure but somewhat soft in expression and hair, especially the curl right by his ear. Almost romantic, really. Curator: I think that reading of romanticism can coexist alongside the awareness that photography, at this time, was often used as a tool to reinforce social hierarchies and gender roles. These were carefully staged performances of identity, adhering to strict conventions about pose, dress, and even the desired emotional affect. Editor: But the little rebellion in that curl makes it so much more humane. Do you think he might have smirked as the photo was being taken? Or perhaps he requested a specific lighting effect to accentuate a favorable aspect of his visage? He may even have a few secrets, don’t you think? Curator: We can’t know that with certainty, but such an imagined anecdote adds complexity and dynamism to how we perceive a man’s character from behind a picture. Engaging with this photo, even with humor and imagination, grants him—and ourselves—a sense of living beyond our own time. Editor: Exactly. It's a snapshot—pun intended—of a human experience transcending history. So thanks for giving me room for some reverie alongside scholarly examination! Curator: And thank you for illuminating this moment with a touch of humour and humanness. It is important to remain interdisciplinary when considering the man in this context.