Omhoogkijkend meisje 1820 - 1830

This is Jean Augustin Daiwaille's lithograph of a young girl, made sometime in the first half of the 19th century. The girl's upward gaze invites questions about the social and cultural values projected onto young women during this period. Made in the Netherlands, this lithograph reflects a society grappling with shifting norms around gender and class. Was it meant as an exercise for young women in art institutions? What kind of aspirations were young women meant to embody? The girl’s seemingly innocent look could represent idealized feminine virtues, such as piety, hope, or obedience, highly valued in the bourgeois society of the time. To fully understand the lithograph, scholars might consult conduct books, periodicals, and educational records. These historical resources help us to interpret this work within its original social and institutional contexts.