France Waits c. 1914 - 1919

"France Waits" is a poignant sketch by Jean-Louis Forain, created sometime between 1914 and 1919. The drawing depicts a solitary figure, likely a woman, in a long, flowing dress with a red scarf or hat, standing with arms crossed, gazing into the distance. A hat hangs from her shoulder. The figure stands before a background that suggests a barren landscape, possibly a war-torn environment. The loose, expressive lines of the sketch, executed in charcoal and watercolor, convey a sense of melancholic anticipation and uncertainty, reflecting the anxieties of the period. Forain, a keen observer of social realities, captured the mood of a nation awaiting the outcome of the Great War.