The artwork titled “Smoking woman” is an etching on paper created by Anders Zorn in 1907. This work falls within the Realism art movement and is considered a genre painting, meaning it depicts scenes of everyday life.
Examining the artwork itself, we see a woman depicted in a close-up view, with her face taking up much of the frame. She appears to be gazing intently to the side as she smokes, lips pursed around what appears to be a cigarette. Her hair is styled in a fashion indicative of the early 20th century, adding a sense of time to the piece. Zorn’s use of etching techniques lends a textured, somewhat hazy quality to the image, with lines used to create shading and detail within the woman’s features and attire. The smoke from the cigarette has been rendered with loose, curving lines, contributing to the ephemeral and fleeting quality of the scene. Overall, Zorn’s work captures a moment in the life of this woman, rendered with a skilled hand that reflects the Realist aim to depict subjects truthfully without idealization.
