Kunstenaar Cor Visser werkt aan het portret van koningin Wilhelmina. 1941

Editor: This photograph, taken in 1941, captures Cor Visser at work on a portrait of Queen Wilhelmina using, it seems, pencil and photography. I find the setting and the artist's focused expression quite striking. What catches your eye, and how do you interpret the significance of this work being created during wartime? Curator: It whispers, doesn’t it? Of resilience. Think of 1941 - the Netherlands under occupation. Here's Visser, creating a portrait of the exiled Queen. A potent act. Not just art, but defiance. See how the light catches the artist’s face? The sharp focus on his work, against the softer background...almost like hope materializing from the shadows, don’t you think? Do you get a sense of this subtle push-and-pull of dark and light at play here? Editor: Absolutely! There’s something very powerful about continuing artistic expression during such a dark time. And you’re right, the way the light is focused really draws you into that sense of hope and determination. What do you think drove Visser to work on it at that time? Curator: What do *you* think? Think about symbols, about what the Queen represented in that moment...It’s not just likeness he’s capturing; it's resistance. I'd bet the portrait was a lifeline for the Dutch people to maintain morale, even from a distance. You’ve got to ask yourself how, by making this art, was he subverting the gloom of occupation? Editor: I see it now, like a seed of hope in dark times. It really changes my perspective, makes me think about how art can be such a quiet but strong form of protest and resistance. Thank you! Curator: Precisely! It reminds us that art doesn't just reflect life; it shapes it. Now, that is what gets the cogs turning for me!