A Lady Seen in Profile, Holding a Fan

This profile study of a Venetian lady holding a fan, drawn around 1700-1710, belongs to Carlevarijs's series of female figure studies that documented Venetian feminine costume and social behavior for use in his vedute. The profile view — unusual in a costume study context — may reflect a particular social context or pose that Carlevarijs observed in the street or at a social gathering. The fan was an essential accessory of elegant Venetian female dress, its manipulation a language of social communication as precise as verbal speech. Carlevarijs's female figure studies are rarer than his male ones, reflecting the greater difficulty of observing and documenting women in the public spaces where he conducted his urban research.

The profile view captures the lady's silhouette with elegant economy, the fan providing a decorative extension of the figure. The costume is rendered with attention to its feminine cut and ornamentation, distinguishing this from the male studies.