Standing woman to the left 

Otto Scholderer made this drawing of a standing woman, using graphite, likely in Germany, sometime in the second half of the 19th century. In this sketch, we see the rough outlines of a woman and some clothes strewn on a chair behind her. What does such a quickly rendered sketch tell us about the history of art? Well, firstly, the informality of the image reflects a shift in the Academy toward a more naturalistic style of painting. Artists were starting to move away from Neoclassical ideals and, under the influence of Courbet, to show an interest in the everyday. Secondly, and perhaps more interestingly, it tells us something about the institutional function of art. Drawings like this were never intended for public consumption, but were part of the training process. Understanding this image requires archival research into the history of art education in the late 19th century. By situating it in its historical context, we can come to appreciate what it tells us about the social conditions that shape artistic production.