The Housekeeper, Brita Maria (Mussa) Banck

Both the modern selfie and the realistic portrait of the 19th century are informed by a desire to capture people in everyday moments in their own environment. Eva Bonnier has chosen to paint the family’s housekeeper Maria Banck (1830–1906) reading the newspaper, and not in her professional role. This is one of the few portraits in the Nationalmuseum not representing people from different elites. The collections include only a scattering of portraits of non-whites and individuals from working-class backgrounds.