One of Brunias's most quietly compelling compositions. Three women stand in easy conversation against a luminous Caribbean sky, a small child hovering at the edge of the scene behind them. Two face us — or nearly so — while the third turns her back entirely, a confident compositional choice that draws the eye and gives the group a natural, unposed feeling.

The color is beautifully handled. A bold crimson tignon and matching shawl on the central figure pop against the white muslin of her companions, while a blue-striped skirt on the figure at right adds a third note to the palette. Gold earrings and a pearl necklace complete the picture — these are women who take their appearance seriously, and Brunias clearly did too.

What distinguishes Brunias's work, and this painting in particular, is the sense that he's recording something real. The women aren't performing for the viewer. They're mid-conversation, absorbed in each other, the child quietly present in the background. For a painting made in the 1770s, that kind of social intimacy is remarkably modern in feeling.