Twee vrouwen zittend aan de oever van het Meer van Tazenat bij Charbonnières-les-Vieilles 1904

This photograph, by Delizy, captures two women seated on the shore of Lake Tazenat near Charbonnières-les-Vieilles. While the date of the photo is unknown, it evokes the late 19th-century, a period of burgeoning leisure activities for women of certain classes. Confined by social expectations, their lives often revolved around domesticity and decorum. Yet, here, by the lake, we witness a moment of respite. The women, adorned in dresses and hats, sit closely together; perhaps they are sisters, cousins, or friends? The presence of the parasol signals the period’s emphasis on protecting fair skin, a signifier of class and femininity. They appear to be at leisure, and this image offers a look into the limited space that women occupied at that time. There's a quiet intimacy in the scene, an unspoken connection between them. The photograph freezes a fleeting instance of female companionship and freedom within the boundaries of their time.