Modern Girls Writing Letters

Giovanni Boldini 1

Young Woman WritingDate?Larin, Guilloux and Buffetaud, ParisOil on panel23 x 16.5 cm 
The lady here is turned away from her viewer, eschewing contact, refusing to let us into her room. She writes furiously, alone in the bare but opulent room, covered in rich textile. We're spying into a quiet, private moment, much the way we're a bit voyeuristic looking into Vermeer's A Lady Writing. In Vermeer's work, though, at least our glance is met, our presence is not a secret. Here, our only fate is to look on, as she ignores us, or as she concentrates so hard on her task that she doesn't hear us. 
In portraying quiet moments of solitude as a lady writes a letter, thinking of Vermeer is all but impossible. Who knows how much Vermeer influenced Boldini, or if he was privy to the painting that preceded his. The reference, though is a clear one. As the lady concentrates, her task is elevated, she becomes Vermeer's modern woman: a highlighted lady in rich fabrics, concentrating upon her task so that we may never read her expression. 

Milton Avery 2

Girl Writing, 1943

Oil on Canvas

48 x 31 3/4

In examining an artist's legacy, it is impossible to know how many works were spawned as a result. Here, in Milton Avery's Girl Writing, an anonymous girl turns her head toward her writing, and delves in. Her body position is turned from A Lady Writing, flipped so that she is facing the other way, however, she sits at a desk the same way. The vase is clearly seen behind her, but the other details are absent, taupe-green walls, plain floors. The hint of a near Vermeer-blue pops up behind her, supporting the vase of flowers. Again, she does not hear us, or she is ignoring us. She is lit in a stark white, with no source of light to be seen. The moment is quiet, despite all the bright details. This could well be a modern take on the Dutch painting, or at least the Dutch convention of painting letter writing.




1"Giovanni Boldini 's Young Woman Writing." John Singer Sargent Virtual Gallery. Web. 10 May 2011. <http://jssgallery.org/other_artists/boldini_giovanni/Young_Woman_Writing.htm>.
2 "Milton Avery - Girl Writing." The Phillips Collection. Web. 10 May 2011. <http://www.phillipscollection.org/research/american_art/artwork/Avery-Girl_Writing.htm>.