This turn-of-the-century watercolour by British artist Edgar Bundy RA (1862-1922) depicts a shy young lady on the fringes of merriment.

Her friends are enveloped in the revelry of dance while she sits nervously in contemplation. Her eyes heavy, a mixture of fear and detachment. She’s dwelt upon this moment for many weeks - worked herself up into an internal frenzy. Her left hand clutches a turquoise necklace, her right firmly placed on the seat.

Is this the moment just prior to her departure? Did she tear off her jewellery and head abruptly for the door while others looked on in astonishment - her dress rustling across the boards? Has she committed her heart to a true love without family approval? Or is she simply caught under the oppressive weight of debilitating introversion?

Edgar Bundy was a proficient painter of genre scenes and this is a particularly good example of his incisive attention to societal narratives.

Signed, inscribed and framed.

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Medium: Watercolour on paper
Overall size: 22” x 21” / 56cm x 53cm
Year of creation: c. 1900
Condition: Artwork presents well.
Artist’s auction highlight: £27,000 achieved for an oil painting in 2000.