Peasant Pushing a Wheelbarrow

"Peasant Pushing a Wheelbarrow," created by Jean-François Millet in 1855, is a significant example of his graphic work focusing on the daily challenges of rural life. Classified as a print, this etching was executed in brown/black ink and represents the second state of four known variations. This meticulous rendering of everyday labor aligns with the artist's foundational commitment to the Realist movement, which sought to portray the unvarnished existence of the working class with dignity and truth.

Millet often chose subjects depicting manual labor, elevating the common worker beyond mere genre studies. The composition features a robust figure, one of several men dedicated to working the land, positioned centrally as he strains against the weight of a laden wheelbarrow. The faint outlines of houses and ancillary structures in the background anchor the scene firmly within a specific rural setting, emphasizing the integrated nature of the peasant’s domestic and professional life. This intimate scene, captured through the delicate lines inherent in etching, carries the same emotional and social weight as Millet’s better-known paintings.

The medium of printmaking allowed Millet to disseminate his powerful imagery more widely than traditional painting. As a major work in his print oeuvre, this piece demonstrates the artist’s skill in using cross-hatching to define volume and shadow, giving the working figure a monumental quality. This original impression of Peasant Pushing a Wheelbarrow is held within the esteemed collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Because of their historical significance, reproductions and fine art prints of Millet's profound studies of labor are widely accessible today, often through public domain archives.