Staande vrouw, het hoofd opzij gebogen 1849 - 1917

Editor: So, this is *Standing Woman, Head Turned* by Matthijs Maris, sketched between 1849 and 1917. It’s a pencil drawing on paper. There’s something very dreamlike about the figures… almost ghostly. What do you see in it? Curator: Oh, yes! It whispers rather than shouts, doesn't it? For me, it’s the suggestive power of the unfinished. Maris teases us, allowing our imaginations to fill in the blanks. Notice how he uses line – a kind of shorthand for form, light, emotion. It’s less about depicting a "real" woman and more about capturing a fleeting impression of womanhood, of melancholy perhaps. Does it evoke anything for you personally? Editor: It reminds me a bit of those blurry, out-of-focus photos people take, trying to capture a feeling more than a clear image. Almost like a memory fading. Do you think that was intentional? Curator: Absolutely. Maris, along with many artists of his time, were grappling with new ways of seeing and representing the world. Photography was emerging, and painting didn’t need to be merely representational anymore. Think of the Impressionists! They aimed to capture the subjective experience of sight. Perhaps Maris is trying to show us not just *a* woman, but the *feeling* of a woman, a memory of her essence. Or even, the mystery inherent in all of us. It invites you into this private, introspective moment. Editor: That’s a completely different way to look at a portrait, I hadn't thought about that! Thanks, I think I understand Maris better now. Curator: My pleasure! I guess we all can learn a thing or two by allowing ourselves to step out from reality and step into feelings.