Portret van een onbekende vrouw, mogelijk mevrouw Ligeois 1831 - 1890

Curator: Before us is "Portret van een onbekende vrouw, mogelijk mevrouw Ligeois," or "Portrait of an Unknown Woman, Possibly Mrs. Ligeois," an etching and engraving by Jean Baptiste Pierre Michiels, dating from 1831 to 1890. Editor: She feels like a whisper from another century. The grey tonal art is subtle, delicate almost, but there’s strength in her gaze, or perhaps just a knowingness. Curator: The formal structure reinforces this, the oval frame compressing the figure to emphasize its concentrated presence. Note how the dark etching around the figure causes a visual tension that directs attention to the woman's visage. Editor: It's curious, though, isn't it? This rigid formality versus the almost gentle softness of the details. The way the light catches on her lace bonnet is really beautifully rendered. Curator: Yes, the etching technique allows for nuanced light play and detail. But the subject's anonymity presents semiotic questions. Who was Mrs. Ligeois, and what symbolic weight did portraiture hold in the nineteenth century? Editor: Maybe that’s part of the charm; we are left to fill in her story. I imagine her a secret novelist, penning scandalous tales by candlelight... or maybe she just made a mean pot of soup! The not knowing lets your imagination fill in. Curator: The realism here speaks to its cultural roots, to represent faithfully what is seen. But perhaps the most interesting aspect lies in its status as print. Reproduced, democratized... accessible to all. Editor: Hmmm... Or cheap? Easily dismissed? An every-person instead of a royal, hanging in middle class homes instead of palaces! Maybe that’s her appeal – an accessible kind of elegance. Curator: Perhaps a fruitful direction for further analysis would focus on this very accessibility, given that art was gaining prominence as part of common culture. Editor: Looking at this etching, I feel a curious link to the past and I also get a little laugh as my romantic ideas collide with the art historian’s analytical eye. Good. The old dame got us thinking.