Haarlem. On my bike, on my way to my regular supermarket, I see a little elderly lady standing in front of a church, with her mouth wide open. It is as if she is shouting out something from the bottom of her soul, yet without making a sound. The pain in her expression lingers with me. So I decide to portray her as I remember her.
I interpret the silent cry of the unknown woman as an act of resistance. That is why I named the portrait after Kenau Simonsdochter Hasselaer, a shipbuilder and timber merchant who became a legend because of her resistance in defending Haarlem during the Eighty Years’ War.
If you look closely, you may see the map of Haarlem on her face.
SOLD.
