Portret van drie kinderen, Cato, Piet en Nina c. 1880 - 1903

This is Willem Frederik Boelsums’ photograph of three children, Cato, Piet, and Nina. The three children stand stiffly, posed in dark, formal clothing—an arrangement that echoes the conventions of bourgeois portraiture. The flowers held by the eldest girl are of particular interest. The bouquet embodies a language of symbolism. Flowers have been used since antiquity to convey layers of meaning, from love and remembrance to innocence and purity. This symbolic language extends back to ancient Greece and Rome, where certain flowers were associated with gods and goddesses, and later flourished during the Victorian era. The fleeting beauty of flowers mirrors the transient nature of life and childhood, a concept deeply rooted in the human psyche. Think of Dutch still life paintings, the ‘vanitas,’ reminding us of the ephemeral nature of life. This photograph, with its somber mood and delicate floral arrangement, encapsulates a moment in time, tinged with an awareness of its inevitable passing.