![Félix Vallotton - La Femme aux roses [1919]](http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7742/26360241734_1be1b4bc9d_b.jpg)
The impressive painting La femme aux roses unites two genres typical for the artist - the portrait and the interior. Self-confident, the resting protagonist sits slightly turned away from the viewer, assigning him the role of the silent observer. With her right hand, the young woman holds two blooming roses to her chest. Her right shoulder is bare, giving her graceful shape a modesty erotic touch. With her left hand, she holds a book in her lap. Her face looks graceful and dreamy at the same time. The strictly purist background is coloured in cool green. In the upper left field hangs a small "nature morte" - a picture within a picture. According to the catalogue raisonné of Félix Vallotton's work, this small picture is not part of the painter’s oeuvre and could not be identified.
[Sotheby’s, Zurich - Oil on canvas, 92 x 73.5 cm]