Filling a Tub, from the series Elles 1896

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec produced this print, “Filling a Tub,” as part of his series "Elles" exploring the lives of women in Parisian brothels. Note how Lautrec directs our gaze not at the woman’s face, but at her labor. The act of filling a tub, seemingly mundane, carries complex symbolism. Water, universally, signifies cleansing, rebirth, and transformation. In ancient Roman bathhouses, bathing was a communal and social act. However, Lautrec isolates his figure, emphasizing the private nature of her ablutions. Consider the recurring motif of women bathing throughout art history, from depictions of Venus rising from the sea to Degas's intimate studies of women at their toilette. Each era imbues the act with different cultural and emotional weight. Here, the woman's posture, bent and obscured, evokes a sense of weariness, a psychological weight that transcends mere physical exertion. The image resonates because it taps into a shared, perhaps subconscious, understanding of water as both restorative and revealing, a mirror reflecting not just the body, but the soul.