Study for a Female Full-length beside a Fountain 

Editor: Here we have Joseph Highmore's sketch, "Study for a Female Full-length beside a Fountain." It looks like pen and brown ink on paper. There's a sense of longing or melancholy in the figure's pose. What can you tell me about it? Curator: It's important to consider the role of women in 18th-century society. Her posture, seemingly pensive, could be interpreted as a commentary on the limited agency afforded to women of that era. The fountain, often a symbol of purity, juxtaposed with her languid pose, what kind of tension might we explore there? Editor: So, it's not just a pretty picture, but maybe a statement about the constraints placed on women? Curator: Precisely. The image becomes a point of departure for examining the social and political climate that shaped women's experiences and identities, doesn't it? Editor: I hadn't thought about it that way. I'll definitely consider that next time I'm looking at art from this period.