Jean François Millet (1814-1875), - The peasant women

1. TECHNICAL DATA

Author / attribution: After Jean-François Millet (1814-1875)

School: European School

Chronology: 20th Century

Genre / subject: Rural scene. Peasants during harvest

Technique: Oil on canvas

Support: Canvas

Dimensions of the work: 47 × 61 cm

Dimensions with frame: 67 × 81 cm

Orientation: Horizontal

Signature / inscription: Contains an inscription or writing in the lower right corner, not identified with certainty

Iconographic reference: Composition based on the celebrated work by Jean-François Millet “Des glaneuses” (The Gleaners), 1857

Framing: Ornate gilded frame of substantial presence, with inner moldings in light and gold tones

Condition: Good overall condition, with signs of age and use appropriate to its chronology. See the photographs closely, which form an integral part of the description.


2. DESCRIPTION

Oil on canvas made from the famous composition by Jean-François Millet, “The Gleaners,” one of the most emblematic images of 19th-century French rural painting.

The scene depicts three peasants bent over the field gathering the ears of grain left after the harvest. The figures occupy the foreground and hold the visual weight of the composition, while in the background an expansive agricultural plain extends with sheaves of wheat, carts, workers, and rural buildings.

The work preserves the essential compositional structure of Millet’s model, reinterpreted through a painting technique of its own, with visible brushwork and warm tonalities.

A notable contrast is the blues and whites of the figures’ garments against the extensive range of ochers, earth tones, yellows, and golds that dominates the landscape.


3. STYLISTIC AND COMPOSitional ANALYSIS

The composition centers around the three female figures in the foreground. Their inclined bodies create a rhythmic procession of curves that leads the eye from left to right and gives the scene a strong sense of stability.

The horizon is set relatively high, allowing a large area of cultivated land to develop and reinforcing the monumentality of the figures.

The painting employs a looser brushwork than Millet’s original, with visible strokes and a certain simplification in the secondary figures and the distant landscape.

The palette is built on earthy and golden tones, enriched with blues, whites, muted pinks, and browns. This combination provides luminosity to the scene while maintaining the warm character inherent in a day’s work in the countryside.


4. PSYCHOLOGICAL DIMENSION

The image conveys a sense of concentration, effort, and serenity.

The three women appear fully absorbed in their task, with no direct interaction among them or with the viewer. Their tilted, repetitive stance makes the act of work the true protagonist of the scene.

As in Millet’s original composition, there is a pronounced contrast between the monumentality of the foreground workers and the agricultural activity unfolding in the distance.

Thus, the painting preserves the strong human and social component historically associated with this peasant iconography.


5. AUTHORSHIP AND REFERENCE TO JEAN-FRANÇOIS MILLET

This work should be cataloged as “After Jean-François Millet.”

The composition derives directly from “Des glaneuses” (The Gleaners), painted by Jean-François Millet in 1857 and kept at the Musée d’Orsay in Paris.

The term “After” indicates that the work was created by a later artist following or reinterpreting a Millet composition and does not imply authorship, intervention, or workshop affiliation with the French master.

The execution, materials, and general characteristics correspond to a later production.


6. OTHER INTERESTING DATA

Millet’s “The Gleaners” became, since the 19th century, one of Millet’s most recognizable images and one of the great icons of European realist painting.

This version preserves its main iconographic elements and is particularly decorative thanks to its luminous palette and the prominent gilded frame accompanying the work.

It is presented fully framed and prepared for exhibition.

The photographs are an integral part of the description and allow assessment of technique, texture, frame, and overall condition.


7. SHIPMENT AND CONDITIONS

The work will be professionally packed by Barcelona Art Gallery.

To ensure proper protection during transport, a custom-made box, specific protective materials, and foam reinforcements will be used.

We ship worldwide via a professional transport company.

Packaging is prepared individually based on the characteristics and dimensions of each artwork.

Please carefully review all photographs, as they form an integral part of the description and show the artwork’s real state of conservation.