Artwork
Portrait of a Surinamese Girl
Portrait of a Surinamese Girl is an ivory painting by Unknown. It dates from 1810 and is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum. This portrait, rendered on ivory, captures a young Surinamese girl in a serene and intimate manner.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
Ivory as a support medium underscores both the artwork's material fragility and its association with luxury goods produced through colonial trade networks.
The painting shows a young girl dressed in European attire, holding a fan and positioned against a muted backdrop that emphasizes her delicate features. The fan and clothing reference contemporary European fashion while subtly alluding to colonial connections in the Dutch Caribbean. Ivory as a support medium underscores both the artwork's material fragility and its association with luxury goods produced through colonial trade networks.
The composition balances naturalistic detail with symbolic representation, framing the sitter within a visual language that merges local identity with metropolitan aesthetics.
Technique & Style
Portrait of a Surinamese Girl is executed on ivory, a support commonly associated with small-scale portrait miniatures of the early nineteenth century. The work is classified as a painting and takes the form of a portrait, with the diminutive ivory panel suited to the intimate scale of the likeness. Its recorded dimensions are 6.4 cm in height by 4.9 cm in width, confirming the miniature format. The piece dates to 1810 and is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum.
History & Provenance
The Portrait of a Suronamese Girl is an anonymous ivory painting dated to 1810. The work was created during the early nineteenth century, with the specific inception recorded as January 1, 1810. It depicts a young girl and is executed in the medium of ivory, measuring 6.4 cm in height and 4.9 cm in width.
The current ownership of the piece is held by the Rijksmuseum, which classifies the artwork as a portrait. No specific details regarding the original commission, the identity of the artist, or the chain of ownership prior to its arrival at the museum are provided in the available records.
Portrait of a Surinamese Girl is held by the Rijksmuseum, which is listed as both its collection and its location. The work is catalogued as an anonymous painting on ivory, dated 1810, and measures 6.4 by 4.9 (units as recorded on Wikidata). No specific inventory or accession number, and no exhibition history, is documented in the available sources.
Overview
This portrait, rendered on ivory, captures a young Surinamese girl in a serene and intimate manner. The subject's dark, curly hair is styled in a bun, complemented by a pearl necklace, while a white dress with lace trim adorns her figure against a muted, earthy background.
Context
Given the subject's Surinamese background, the portrait may reflect colonial or post-colonial interactions, though without further context, the exact cultural or historical dialogue it engages with remains unclear.
Legacy
The portrait demonstrates the artist's proficiency with miniature painting on ivory, a technique requiring great precision. Its legacy, however, is not elaborated upon, suggesting it may not be widely recognized in broader art historical narratives without additional context.
Artist & collection
