Girl in Yellow Drapery 1901

John William Godward made Girl in Yellow Drapery with oil on canvas and the finish is so smooth, it’s like the paint knew exactly where to go. There's such a focus on the rendering of form that it almost feels like sculpture. I keep thinking about the way the folds in the yellow fabric pool around the figure’s body. Those areas where the yellow deepens into almost an orange, against the cool marble. It’s a masterclass in creating volume with subtle shifts in tone. You can almost feel the weight of the cloth, even though it looks so sheer. It reminds me of Bouguereau but without the sentimentality. There's a detachment here. The woman's lost in her thoughts and Godward seems to be interested in her as a form as much as anything else. Art, at its best, offers us these quiet moments of contemplation.