1785
watercolor
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
Dominant colour
December is a 1785 watercolor by Robert Dighton, a Rococo painting work, held at Victoria and Albert Museum.
A woman in an ornate 18th-century dress sits at a small table, holding playing cards. Her big white wig has ribbons, and she’s wearing a light-colored shawl. A candle stands beside her, casting soft light on the table where more cards and a book lie scattered. A cat curls up near her feet, and outside the window, a pale moon glows over dark water. The room feels cozy but slightly mysterious—dark walls contrast with the bright white of her dress and the glow of the candle. The artist paid close attention to the textures, like the lace on her sleeve or the patterned rug underfoot. Look up chiaroscuro next to see how artists use light and shadow like this.
A fashionably dressed woman sits at a table beside a fireplace, positioned in front of a window with a partially drawn curtain revealing a full moon outside. A sleeping cat rests at her feet, while the table holds two candles in candlesticks, playing cards, and a book beneath her arm. On the mantelpiece stands a vase containing evergreens, likely holly, adorned with red berries. The woman holds a pair of wick scissors in one hand and a tasselled bell-pull in the other, suggesting she may be about to summon a servant.
Read the full account in the museum source.
Robert Dighton (c.1752 – 1814) was an English portrait painter, printmaker, and caricaturist. He was the founder of a dynasty of artists who followed in his footsteps.
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