Sketches, Fragment: Peasant Seated at the Foot of a Tree

Sketches, Fragment: Peasant Seated at the Foot of a Tree by Jean François Millet French, 1814-1875, is a compelling example of the artist’s dedication to the print medium during his later career. Classified as a woodcut fragment, this unique print reveals much about Millet's working process. The image itself is produced from a partially inked block, creating a raw, sketch-like quality on the tan wove China paper. This experimental technique highlights the immediacy of the seated peasant figure, focusing the viewer’s attention sharply on posture and form. Further emphasizing its fragmentary nature, the verso contains a distinct fragment of a second woodcut, executed in dark brown ink.

Millet, a key figure in 19th-century French Realism, devoted his oeuvre to depicting the dignity and toil of agricultural life. Created between 1863 and 1875, this work captures a solitary figure at rest, embodying the simple, powerful iconography of laboring men and women that defined Millet’s style. Though he is best known for his paintings, the classification of Sketches, Fragment: Peasant Seated at the Foot of a Tree demonstrates the crucial role graphic arts played in 1814-1875’s artistic output, allowing him to explore subjects and composition studies rapidly.

This particular print study serves as an important document of the artist’s preparatory techniques, revealing how he refined the powerful imagery that captured the essence of rural life in France. While many of the great works by this master have now entered the public domain, this detailed woodcut fragment remains a vital piece for understanding Millet’s rigorous approach to figure study. This unique print is held in the permanent collection of the Art Institute of Chicago.