Sitting woman 

Johann Georg von Dillis rendered this watercolor titled 'Sitting Woman.' Dillis was court painter in Bavaria, Germany, during the late 18th and early 19th centuries, a time of political upheaval marked by the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars. Here, a woman sits, her gaze averted, dressed in the high-waisted empire silhouette popular at the time. The delicate watercolor captures a sense of quiet introspection, perhaps reflecting the limited roles afforded to women in that era. While the sitter's identity is unknown, her clothing and adornments—the simple dress, the shawl, the coral necklace— hint at a bourgeois background. Dillis avoids idealizing his subject; instead, he presents a realistic, intimate portrayal. The bare feet suggest a certain informality, hinting at a private moment, inviting us to reflect on the interior lives of women in this period.