The Gleaners

The Gleaners is a significant print created by the renowned French artist Jean François Millet (French, 1814-1875), executed in collaboration with printer Auguste Delâtre (French, 1822-1907) between 1855 and 1856. This print translates Millet’s iconic oil painting into a graphic medium, utilizing the precise techniques of etching and drypoint on tan laid China paper. The use of varied needle pressure and scratching during the drypoint process gives the resulting lines a uniquely rich, burred texture, distinguishing this impression within the print classification.

Millet was a defining figure of the Barbizon School and the rising Realist movement, frequently dedicated to depicting the stark realities of rural labor in 19th-century France. The composition centers on three peasant women meticulously gathering overlooked wheat stalks after the primary harvest, a practice known as gleaning. This subject matter, which foregrounded the grueling physical toll and economic vulnerability of the lowest agricultural classes, generated considerable controversy when the oil version was first exhibited, challenging the conventions of academic art.

The creation of these reproductive prints allowed Millet’s powerful social commentary to reach a broader audience, solidifying the work's status as a masterpiece of Realism. This particular impression, demonstrating the collaboration between the artist and Delâtre, is held in the permanent collection of the Art Institute of Chicago. The widespread circulation of such influential prints helped ensure Millet’s legacy. Today, many studies and reproductions of the artist’s work are available in the public domain, continuing the global dialogue around his powerful depictions of labor.