Throughout time, artists have drawn, painted, sculpted their subject while sitting, leaning, and reclining. I will share my findings.

In ancient Egypt, many pharaohs, gods, and goddesses were represented in informal settings. Some statues were designed to guard the entrance to temples.
One Egyptian example is "Seated Statue of Hatshepsut" (1479-1458 BCE).

From ancient Greece we see the Elgin Marbles from the Parthenon in Athens.
Residing at the British Museum, there are three (3) female sculptures. Left to right: Hestia, Dione, and her daughter Aphrodite. The last two are resting against Earth (Gaia).

Perhaps the most famous Italian sculpture is Michelangelo's "Pieta" (1498-1499) depicting the Blessed Virgin Mary seated, holding her son Jesus Christ after his descent from the cross.

Italian Renaissance artist Giorgione painted "Sleeping Venus" (1510), a reclining unclothed woman. This was the first of its kind, and many of a similar theme about to follow for centuries.

Another artist from the same time period is Titian, who was influenced by Giorgione's work and painted his version, "Venus of Urbino" (1538) from the Uffizi Gallery and "Venus with a Mirror" (1555) from the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC. (The former reclining, the latter seated.)

Dutch artist Johannes Vermeer painted many women (possibly his daughters) in a seated, informal environment.

Some examples include:
"Girl with a Flute" (1664-1667)
"Young Woman Seated at a Virginal" (1670-1672)
"The Guitar Player" (1670-1672)
"Girl Interrupted at her Music” (1659-1661)
"Young Woman with a Lute" (1662-1664)
"A Lady Writing" (1664-1667)
"A Maid Asleep" (1656-1657)
"The Lacemaker" (1666-1668)

In 19th century France, we see Francois Gerard's painting of Emperor Napoleon I's first wife, "Josephine Bonaparte" (1801) seen in a sitting position. From the State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, Russia.

In the French Neoclassical style is Jacques Louis David's "Madame Juliette Recamier" (1800) where the Parisian socialite reclines on an elegant "fainting couch". This painting can be seen at the Louvre, Paris.

Another French artist from the 19th c is Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres who famously painted "La Grande Odalisque" (1814), an unclothed, seated concubine. It can be found at the Louvre, Paris.

This traditional theme of an unclothed woman was reintroduced by Edouard Manet and his painting "Olympia" (1863), as seen at Musee d’Orsay, Paris.

American artist John Singer Sargent controversial painting "Madame X" (1883-1884) is of a full length portrait of French socialite Madame Gautreau leaning on a table.

Spanish surrealist artist Salvador Dali's painting "Figure at the Window" (1925) is that of his sister Ana Maria leaning against the windowsill of an open window, looking outward.

American realist artist James McNeill Whistler painted what is probably one of the most recognized works of art, "Arrangement in Grey and Black, No. 1" or “Whistler's Mother” (1971). It can be seen at the Musee d’Orsay, Paris.