Intricate patterns, rich textures, and intriguing details draw us into this scene of two women conversing in a luxuriously decorated interior. A visitor, wearing a cloak with an elaborate Indian paisley pattern, peers around the edge of an oriental lacquer screen, and a seated woman leans on a table covered with a richly patterned cloth. The artist has intentionally left the relationship between the two women ambiguous. Alfred Stevens was known for his detailed descriptions of exotic décor and his ability to capture the customs and habits of the wealthy in mid–19th-century France.

Excerpt from

DMA label copy

• The Clark Art Institute, Williamstown, MA
  Check out a similar work by Alfred Stevens titled A Duchess (The Blue Dress).

• The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
  View Alfred Stevens's 1892 Salon submission, In the Studio.