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Hey, what's that posh lady doing sitting in the middle of Anna Paulownaplein? In the shade of the big trees, she seems to be waiting for someone. The seat next to her on the bench is empty. This bronze sculpture was commissioned by the Mesdagkwartier Association in 1999 from sculptor Alexander Taratynov. The association wanted a sculpture of the square's namesake to embellish the neighbourhood. The extravagant sister of the famous Russian Tsar Nicholas 1 married William of Orange, later King William II, in St Petersburg in 1816. From 1849 until her death in 1865, she lived at the Buitenrust estate in The Hague and enjoyed walking in the Mesdagkwartier. Various companies and organisations contributed to the cost of this work of art.

Via the cultural attaché of Russia, the association ended up with the Russian sculptor. Trained in Moscow, Taratynov came to Amsterdam in the nineties. Since 2000 he has lived in Maastricht. Besides bronze sculptures, he also makes medals. He is best known for his 3D version of the Night Watch. He made this life-size group of sculptures together with Michael Dronov on the occasion of Rembrandt's 400th birthday in 2005. From 2006 to 2020, the twenty-two bronze figures could be seen intermittently next to the Rembrandt Monument on Amsterdam's Rembrandtplein. There it attracted many tourists who made selfies with the statues in between.

Taratynov almost always makes images of people. He depicts them in a naturalistic way, often full of details. His figures seem to have walked straight out of a painting or the old days. That makes his sculptures recognisable and easily accessible. This also applies to Anna Paulowna. Despite her 19th-century dress and headgear, you could easily join her on the bench. Just for a chat.