Young woman, female head 

Gaspare Diziani sketched this study of a young woman with red chalk sometime in the 18th century. In this period, Venice was marked by social stratification, influencing artistic representations of women. Diziani's young woman, likely of aristocratic background, is depicted in a refined manner that adheres to the conventions of the time, yet the sketch provides insight into the restrictive roles assigned to women in 18th-century Venetian society, where their identities were often defined by their social status. The choice of red chalk lends a certain warmth to the subject, but the medium’s inherent limitations also reflect the limited opportunities available to women in pursuing their own self-expression and agency. While Diziani's drawing may appear as a traditional depiction of a female figure, it also subtly underscores the societal constraints that shaped women's lives during this period.