Standing Savoyarde with a Marmot Box c. 1715

This is a drawing of a standing Savoyarde with a Marmot Box, by Jean-Antoine Watteau. The drawing, executed in red chalk, captures a figure rendered with delicate, flowing lines. The composition is deceptively simple: a woman stands almost centrally, her form anchored by a staff. Her clothing is rendered with close hatching, conveying texture and volume with minimal means. The lines vary in thickness and direction, creating a sense of movement and depth, while the shadows are cast sharply, grounding the figure in space. Watteau destabilizes conventional portraiture by focusing on the everyday. The Savoyarde, typically a poor itinerant, is rendered with dignity, challenging fixed social categories. The marmot box, an emblem of her trade, is carefully delineated, adding to her presence. The seemingly simple study becomes an exploration of social identity and representation. The subtle gradations of the red chalk and the fluidity of the lines create a sense of immediacy, as if Watteau captured a fleeting moment, a transient figure in the landscape of 18th-century France.