Portret van een man 1873 - 1900

This is Nadar’s “Portret van een man” from the 19th century, a small yet evocative piece of photographic history. Nadar, a prominent figure in the Parisian art scene, was more than just a photographer, he was a caricaturist, journalist, novelist, and balloonist. This portrait offers a glimpse into the visual culture of the time, when photography was still a relatively new medium, and its power to capture and construct identity was being explored. The sitter, framed in an oval, returns the gaze in a way that feels remarkably present. His beard, the cut of his suit, marks him clearly as a bourgeois gentleman, but what remains unsaid? What are his hopes, desires, and fears? Nadar himself was deeply engaged in the political and intellectual currents of his day, and he used his portraits to capture the spirit of his era. In his studio, he photographed many of the leading artists, writers, and thinkers of his time. This photograph reminds us of the stories that remain untold.