The Vagabonds

The Vagabonds is a powerful lithograph created in 1896 by Impressionist master Camille Pissarro (French, 1830-1903) and published in collaboration with Anarchist activist Jean Grave. Executed skillfully in black ink on buff laid paper, this print demonstrates Pissarro’s committed use of the graphic medium for social commentary and political engagement. While Pissarro is primarily celebrated for his Impressionist paintings of Parisian street scenes and rural landscapes, he utilized printmaking, specifically lithography, as an accessible tool to address issues of social inequality and the marginalization of the working poor in fin-de-siècle France.

The collaboration with Grave, who published the influential journal Les Temps Nouveaux, positioned this piece within a radical political discourse. The theme implied by The Vagabonds aligns with Pissarro’s known sympathy for Anarchist ideals, often depicting figures outside mainstream bourgeois society, thus highlighting themes of poverty and displacement. The ease of production inherent in lithography meant that prints like this one were affordable and intended for wide dissemination, serving as important political commentary throughout France during this volatile period.

This significant example of Pissarro's late-career graphic output resides in the esteemed collection of the Art Institute of Chicago, offering crucial insight into the artist’s commitment to radical politics. As a work dating from the 1890s, this image of societal outsiders is frequently studied for its relationship between aesthetic technique and revolutionary politics. Today, high-resolution reproductions of such important historical prints are often made available through public domain initiatives, ensuring continued access to this era of socially conscious French art.