Portret van Fietje Straub 1881 - 1903

This is Max Cosman’s “Portret van Fietje Straub,” an undated photograph. Cosman worked in Amsterdam in the late 19th century, at a time when photography was rapidly evolving from a novelty to a widespread medium. The portrait aesthetic is one of constructed innocence. Fietje is posed with a fabricated rural fence, a prop to suggest pastoral purity. The clothing of the sitter also conveys this. Her dress is long sleeved and high necked, but trimmed with lace, and she wears practical boots. This carefully constructed image speaks volumes about the era’s expectations for young girls. Such portraits also raise questions about labor and representation: Who was Fietje Straub, and what was her relationship to Cosman? Was this a commission, a favor, or something else? As viewers, we are left to ponder the silences and untold stories behind this carefully posed image. It’s a reminder that every portrait is not just an image, but a social and historical document.