Multi-portrait oval, E.van HAM? 1875

Oval oil on canvas showing six figures (two men and four women) painted in close-up, with great realism.
Probably a group of friends, a sibling group (although they seem to be close in age), or perhaps a group portrait of artists, as was frequently seen in the 19th century.
The photographic moment is perfectly captured, and the flow of light is perfect.
The women are wearing the hairstyles of the female painters and sculptors of the last quarter of the 19th century,
To corroborate this, the work was painted on both sides and a precise restoration separated the two pictorial layers. On the reverse was the profile of a young girl (last two photos), signed lower right Eugénie van Ham, 1875. She was one of the 18 founding members of the Cercle des femmes peintres de Bruxelles, active between 1888 and 1893.