A Woman Churning

"A Woman Churning" is a significant print created in 1855 by the celebrated French artist Jean François Millet, executed in collaboration with the master printer Auguste Delâtre. This detailed work, classified as a print, utilizes the expressive graphic techniques of etching and drypoint on off-white wove China paper, a material choice that emphasizes the subtle tonal shifts of the composition.

Millet, a crucial figure in the development of 19th-century French Realism and associated with the Barbizon School, dedicated much of his career to portraying the daily labor and inherent dignity of the peasant class. This focus on agrarian life differentiated his work from the idealized subjects favored by the French Academy. Here, the subject is shown engaged in the essential domestic task of churning, rendered with an immediacy and weight that underscore the artist’s commitment to truth in representation. The heavy use of drypoint creates a rich, velvety texture in the shadows, lending the rural interior an atmospheric depth.

The quality of the impression reflects the skill of Delâtre, who was instrumental in the revival of etching as an art form in France during this period. This powerful depiction of agricultural work is held in the permanent collection of the Art Institute of Chicago. The piece remains a crucial example of Millet’s graphic output and its historical significance ensures that, as a work now in the public domain, it continues to serve as an important reference for the study of French prints and Realist traditions.