Sir James Jebusa Shannon

Portrait of the Duchess of Rutland

Jules Breton

Returning from the Fields (detail)

Gaston La Touche

A Maiden in Contemplation, 1898

Peter Nicolai Arbo

Nott riding Hrimfaxi.
Arbo was a Norwegian painter known for his images of figures from Scandinavian mythology,

Antonin Hudeček

Evening Silence, 1900

Ramón Casas i Carbó

Retrato de las señoritas N.N. (1890) 220 x 160 cm.

Frederick Arthur Bridgman

The Moroccan Girl

Apres la fete; port d’alger

On the Terrace

Sleep

Alfonso Savini
George William Joy, An Eastern Girl
Pietro Antonio Rotari, Sleeping Girl
Frederic Leighton, Cymon & Iphigenia,
Flaming June

19th century painters have often been criticised for depicting women as prone, passive objects. (the Rotari looks like it's from the 18th century). There is some truth to this charge, but the energetic reds and oranges in these works provide an antidote to the subject matter.

In Hinduism, the Goddess is invoked in many different aspects, one of which is Shri Nidra (Sleep). Sleep is often devalued in the West, despite the fact that it is essential for life and creativity.

James Sant

Astronomy


Courage, Anxiety and Despair


The Communicant 

Grandmother and Child

Gaetano Bellei (Italian, 1857-1922)
Grandmother and Child
25¾ x 17½ in. (65.4 x 44.4 cm.)

Louis Janmot

Contemplation

John William Godward
Contemplation
oil on canvas 21 in. diameter
Reposted from the blog: underpaintings

Albert Moore

Dreamers

Attention on Sahasrara

Emile-Auguste Hublin,  Le chemin du marché, finistère,  59½  x  37¾  inches.

Though the woman is walking along a path, watching the view, and probably distracted by the child accompanying her, her attention must remain on the pot she is carrying on her head. 

Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi has likened this to the way our attention should always be on the Sahasrara (crown of the head), where we are connected to the Divine, even while fulfilling our daily duties, and though our attention may be assailed by distractions.

Leighton Museum

Frederic Lord Leighton crops up a fair bit in this blog, so here's a link to a post on the blog underpaintings about the restoration of his home, now a museum. 

Holman Hunt

William Holman Hunt (1827-1910), English - Bianca, Worthing Museum and Art Gallery, Sussex

Holman Hunt was one of the founders of the Pre-Raphaelite movement in English painting. 

Isabella and the Pot of Basil, 187 cm × 116 cm
Indian basil (tulsi) is considered a sacred plant by Hindus.

Jules Breton

Jeune Moissonneuse endormie sur des gerbes de ble, 1866, 14.25 x 18.25 inches.

Joan of Arc

Eugene Thirion, 1876
Jeanne d' Arc (detail)

St Joan was an incarnation of the dynamic feminine divine power (called Shakti, in India) which fearlessly combats evil.

Attilio Baccani - Italian 19th Century

Lady Reading a Book, 53.3 x 42.5 cm