Hubbry Logo
Jean-François MilletJean-François MilletMain
Open search
Jean-François Millet
Community hub
Jean-François Millet
logo
8 pages, 0 posts
0 subscribers
Be the first to start a discussion here.
Be the first to start a discussion here.
Contribute something
Jean-François Millet
Jean-François Millet
Jean-François Millet
View on Wikipedia
from Wikipedia

Jean-François Millet (French pronunciation: [ʒɑ̃ fʁɑ̃swa milɛ]; 4 October 1814 – 20 January 1875) was a French artist and one of the founders of the Barbizon school in rural France. Millet is noted for his paintings of peasant farmers and can be categorized as part of the Realism art movement. Toward the end of his career, he became increasingly interested in painting pure landscapes. He is known best for his oil paintings but is also noted for his pastels, Conté crayon drawings, and etchings.

Key Information

Life and work

[edit]

Youth

[edit]
The Sheepfold. In this painting by Millet, the waning Moon throws a mysterious light across the plain between the villages of Barbizon and Chailly.[1] The Walters Art Museum.

Millet was the first child of Jean-Louis-Nicolas and Aimée-Henriette-Adélaïde Henry Millet, members of the farming community in the village of Gruchy, in Gréville-Hague, Normandy, close to the coast.[2] Under the guidance of two village priests—one of them was vicar Jean Lebrisseux—Millet acquired a knowledge of Latin and modern authors. But soon he had to help his father with the farm work,[3] because Millet was the eldest of the sons. So all the farmer's work was familiar to him: to mow, make hay, bind the sheaves, thresh, winnow, spread manure, plow, sow, etc. All these motifs returned in his later art.

In 1833, his father sent him to Cherbourg to study with a portrait painter named Bon Du Mouchel.[4] By 1835 he was studying with Théophile Langlois de Chèvreville,[4] a pupil of Baron Gros, in Cherbourg. A stipend provided by Langlois and others enabled Millet to move to Paris in 1837, where he studied at the École des Beaux-Arts with Paul Delaroche.[5] In 1839, his scholarship was terminated, and his first submission to the Salon, Saint Anne Instructing the Virgin, was rejected by the jury.[6]

Paris

[edit]
Woman Baking Bread, 1854. Kröller-Müller Museum, Otterlo.

After his first painting, a portrait, was accepted at the Salon of 1840, Millet returned to Cherbourg to begin a career as a portrait painter.[6] The following year he married Pauline-Virginie Ono, and they moved to Paris. After rejections at the Salon of 1843 and Pauline's death by consumption in April 1844, Millet returned again to Cherbourg.[6] In 1845, Millet moved to Le Havre with Catherine Lemaire, whom he married in a civil ceremony in 1853; they had nine children and remained together for the rest of Millet's life.[7] In Le Havre he painted portraits and small genre pieces for several months, before moving back to Paris.

It was in Paris in the middle 1840s that Millet befriended Constant Troyon, Narcisse Diaz, Charles Jacque, and Théodore Rousseau, artists who, like Millet, became associated with the Barbizon school; Honoré Daumier, whose figure draftsmanship influenced Millet's subsequent rendering of peasant subjects; and fr:Alfred Sensier, a government bureaucrat who became a lifelong supporter and eventually the artist's biographer.[8] In 1847, his first Salon success came with the exhibition of a painting Oedipus Taken down from the Tree, and in 1848, his Winnower was bought by the government.[9]

The Captivity of the Jews in Babylon, Millet's most ambitious work at the time, was unveiled at the Salon of 1848, but was scorned by art critics and the public alike. The painting eventually disappeared shortly thereafter, leading historians to believe that Millet destroyed it. In 1984, scientists at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston x-rayed Millet's 1870 painting The Young Shepherdess looking for minor changes, and discovered that it was painted over Captivity. It is now believed that Millet reused the canvas when materials were in short supply during the Franco-Prussian War.

Barbizon

[edit]

In 1849, Millet painted Harvesters, a commission for the state. In the Salon of that year, he exhibited Shepherdess Sitting at the Edge of the Forest, a very small oil painting which marked a turning away from previous idealized pastoral subjects, in favor of a more realistic and personal approach.[10] In June of that year, he settled in Barbizon with Catherine and their children.

Harvesters Resting (Ruth and Boaz), Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (1850–1853)

In 1850, Millet entered into an arrangement with Sensier, who provided the artist with materials and money in return for drawings and paintings, while Millet simultaneously was free to continue selling work to other buyers as well.[11] At that year's Salon, he exhibited Haymakers and The Sower, his first major masterpiece and the earliest of the iconic trio of paintings that included The Gleaners and The Angelus.[12]

From 1850 to 1853, Millet worked on Harvesters Resting (Ruth and Boaz),[13] a painting he considered his most important, and on which he worked the longest. Conceived to rival his heroes Michelangelo and Poussin, it was also the painting that marked his transition from the depiction of symbolic imagery of peasant life to that of contemporary social conditions. It was the only painting he ever dated, and was the first work to garner him official recognition, a second-class medal at the 1853 salon.[14]

In the mid-1850s, Millet produced a small number of etchings of peasant subjects, such as Man with a Wheelbarrow (1855) and Woman Carding Wool (1855–1857).[15]

The Gleaners

[edit]
Main article: The Gleaners
The Gleaners, 1857. Musée d'Orsay, Paris.

This is one of the most well known of Millet's paintings, The Gleaners (1857). While Millet was walking the fields around Barbizon, one theme returned to his pencil and brush for seven years—gleaning—the centuries-old right of poor women and children to remove the bits of grain left in the fields following the harvest. He found the theme an eternal one, linked to stories from the Old Testament. In 1857, he submitted the painting The Gleaners to the Salon to an unenthusiastic, even hostile, public.

(Earlier versions include a vertical composition painted in 1854, an etching of 1855–56 which directly presaged the horizontal format of the painting now in the Musée d'Orsay.[16])

A warm golden light suggests something sacred and eternal in this daily scene where the struggle to survive takes place. During his years of preparatory studies, Millet contemplated how best to convey the sense of repetition and fatigue in the peasants' daily lives. Lines traced over each woman's back lead to the ground and then back up in a repetitive motion identical to their unending, backbreaking labor. Along the horizon, the setting sun silhouettes the farm with its abundant stacks of grain, in contrast to the large shadowy figures in the foreground. The dark homespun dresses of the gleaners cut robust forms against the golden field, giving each woman a noble, monumental strength.

The Angelus

[edit]
Main article: The Angelus (painting)
The Angelus, 1857–1859, Musée d'Orsay, Paris.

The painting was commissioned by Thomas Gold Appleton, an American art collector based in Boston, Massachusetts. Appleton previously studied with Millet's friend, the Barbizon painter Constant Troyon. It was completed during the summer of 1857. Millet added a steeple and changed the initial title of the work, Prayer for the Potato Crop to The Angelus when the purchaser failed to take possession of it in 1859. Displayed to the public for the first time in 1865, the painting changed hands several times, increasing only modestly in value, since some considered the artist's political sympathies suspect. Upon Millet's death a decade later, a bidding war between the US and France ensued, ending some years later with a price tag of 800,000 gold francs.

The disparity between the apparent value of the painting and the poor estate of Millet's surviving family was a major impetus in the invention of the droit de suite, intended to compensate artists or their heirs when works are resold.[17]

Later years

[edit]
Hunting Birds at Night, 1874, Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Calling Home the Cows, c. 1866, National Gallery of Art.

Despite mixed reviews of the paintings he exhibited at the Salon, Millet's reputation and success grew throughout the 1860s. At the beginning of the decade, he contracted to paint 25 works in return for a monthly stipend for the next three years and in 1865, another patron, Emile Gavet, began commissioning pastels for a collection that eventually included 90 works.[18] In 1867, the Exposition Universelle hosted a major showing of his work, with the Gleaners, Angelus, and Potato Planters among the paintings exhibited. The following year, Frédéric Hartmann commissioned Four Seasons for 25,000 francs, and Millet was named Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur.[18]

In 1870, Millet was elected to the Salon jury. Later that year, he and his family fled the Franco-Prussian War, moving to Cherbourg and Gréville, and did not return to Barbizon until late in 1871. His last years were marked by financial success and increased official recognition, but he was unable to fulfill government commissions due to failing health. On 3 January 1875, he married Catherine in a religious ceremony. Millet died on 20 January 1875.[18]

Legacy

[edit]
The Potato Harvest (1855).[19] The Walters Art Museum.

Millet was an important source of inspiration for Vincent van Gogh, particularly during his early period. Millet and his work are mentioned many times in Vincent's letters to his brother Theo. Millet's late landscapes served as influential points of reference to Claude Monet's paintings of the coast of Normandy; his structural and symbolic content influenced Georges Seurat as well.[20]

Millet is the main protagonist of Mark Twain's play Is He Dead? (1898), in which he is depicted as a struggling young artist who fakes his death to score fame and fortune. Most of the details about Millet in the play are fictional.

Millet's painting L'homme à la houe inspired the famous poem "The Man With the Hoe" (1898) by Edwin Markham. His paintings also served as the inspiration for American poet David Middleton's collection The Habitual Peacefulness of Gruchy: Poems After Pictures by Jean-François Millet (2005).[21]

The Angelus was reproduced frequently in the 19th and 20th centuries. Salvador Dalí was fascinated by this work, and wrote an analysis of it, The Tragic Myth of The Angelus of Millet. Rather than seeing it as a work of spiritual peace, Dalí believed it held messages of repressed sexual aggression. Dalí was also of the opinion that the two figures were praying over their buried child, rather than to the Angelus. Dalí was so insistent on this fact that eventually an X-ray was done of the canvas, confirming his suspicions: the painting contains a painted-over geometric shape strikingly similar to a coffin.[22] However, it is unclear whether Millet changed his mind on the meaning of the painting, or even if the shape actually is a coffin.

On the 150th anniversary of Millet's death, the National Gallery, London exhibited Millet: Life on the Land; the exhibit organized by Sarah Herring is drawn from loans from around the United Kingdom.[23][24]

[edit]

Notes

[edit]

References

[edit]
[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

Jean-François Millet

View on Grokipedia
from Grokipedia
Jean-François Millet (4 October 1814 – 20 January 1875) was a French painter renowned for his realistic portrayals of farmers and rural laborers, establishing him as a foundational figure in the Realism movement and the . Born into a modest farming family in the Norman village of Gruchy, Millet demonstrated early artistic talent and began formal studies in at age eighteen, later receiving sponsorship to train in at the École des Beaux-Arts in 1837. Discontent with the idealized subjects of , he relocated to the artist colony of Barbizon around 1849, immersing himself in the surrounding landscapes to depict the daily hardships and dignity of agricultural life with unvarnished directness, often incorporating subtle religious undertones reflective of his Catholic upbringing. Millet's most celebrated works, such as (1857), The Angelus (1857–1859), and The Sower (1850), elevated commonplace rural scenes to monumental status, emphasizing the physical toil and moral steadfastness of the peasantry amid France's social upheavals. These paintings, initially met with suspicion for their somber realism—sometimes misinterpreted as political advocacy—gained widespread acclaim posthumously and profoundly influenced later artists, including , who meticulously copied Millet's compositions to absorb their empathetic observation of human labor.

Biography

Early Life and Family Background

Jean-François Millet was born on 4 October 1814 in Gruchy, a rural hamlet in the commune of Gréville-Hague, Manche department, Normandy, France. He came from a family of peasant farmers, with his father, Jean Louis Nicolas Millet, and mother, Aimée Henriette Adélaïde Henry, managing modest agricultural holdings in the region's harsh coastal terrain. As the eldest child among several siblings, Millet grew up immersed in the daily rigors of farming life, including tasks such as tending crops and livestock, which shaped his lifelong empathy for rural laborers. The Millet household was marked by and resilience, reflecting the devout Catholic traditions prevalent in Norman peasant communities during the post-Napoleonic era. Economic constraints limited formal opportunities, yet the family recognized Millet's precocious talent for from an early age; he sketched local scenes and figures using rudimentary materials, often inspired by the surrounding fields and seascapes. This innate ability, combined with the practical demands of farm work, fostered a grounded perspective on human toil that would define his later artistic focus, unadorned by romantic idealization. By his teenage years, Millet's artistic inclinations prompted family support for basic instruction, though resources remained scarce; his grandmother, who helped raise him after early parental hardships, played a key role in encouraging persistence amid familial duties. The clan's collective labor on their small plot underscored the cyclical hardships of agrarian existence, including vulnerability to weather and market fluctuations, embedding in Millet a realism rooted in direct observation rather than abstracted sentiment.

Education and Initial Artistic Training

Jean-François Millet, born on October 4, 1814, in the rural village of Gruchy in , demonstrated an early aptitude for drawing despite his family's peasant background, initially practicing without formal instruction or models. Local village priests provided him with a , including Latin and exposure to classical , which cultivated his intellectual interests alongside his artistic inclinations. By 1833, at age 19, Millet's family recognized his talent and arranged for him to relocate to , approximately 50 kilometers from Gruchy, to pursue under local artists. There, he apprenticed initially with Bon Dumouchel, a painter influenced by Dutch masters, who emphasized copying old works and provided foundational training in technique. Over the next two years, Millet honed his skills by producing portraits of local figures, including naval officers and bourgeois subjects, which helped him gain practical experience and financial support through commissions. In , Millet also benefited from the patronage of artists like , whose encouragement and a from local benefactors enabled his transition to advanced study in in 1837. This period marked his shift from rudimentary self-practice to structured , focusing on realistic depiction and portraiture, though he later critiqued the limitations of academic portrait work in favor of broader subjects. His training laid the groundwork for a realist approach, prioritizing of over idealized forms.

Arrival in Paris and Formative Years

In 1837, Millet relocated to Paris, supported by a stipend of 600 francs annually from the Cherbourg municipal council, facilitated by local patrons including the painter Langlois. There, he enrolled at the École des Beaux-Arts and studied under the history painter Paul Delaroche, whose studio emphasized classical techniques and narrative subjects, remaining until approximately 1839. This formal training exposed him to academic ideals of composition and draftsmanship, though Millet supplemented it by copying Old Masters in the Louvre, developing a layered impasto technique derived from artists like Rembrandt. Upon termination of his stipend in 1839, Millet's initial submission to the Salon—a work reflecting Delaroche's influence—was rejected, prompting financial hardship and a brief return to for portrait commissions. A gained acceptance at the Salon of 1840, marking his entry into professional exhibition circuits, yet subsequent submissions in 1842 faced rejection, and he abstained in 1843 amid personal losses, including the death of his first wife, Pauline-Virginie Ono, from in 1844. During this period, he produced commissioned portraits, such as that of Louis-Alexandre Marolles in 1841, adhering to neoclassical conventions while experimenting with more robust forms. Millet's formative output in , spanning history paintings and nudes intended for commercial appeal, drew from Spanish masters like Velázquez and Ribera, encountered via the Galerie Espagnole, infusing his figures with dramatic and earthy realism diverging from pure academic . Works like The Abduction of the Sabine Women (c. 1844–1847) exemplify this phase, blending mythological narrative with heightened physicality and , signaling a shift toward subjects rooted in human labor and rural vigor, though still framed academically. Persistent Salon rejections and economic pressures honed his resilience, fostering independence from institutional favor and laying groundwork for his later focus on peasant life, as initial rural sketches emerged by the late .

Establishment in Barbizon

In 1849, following years of financial hardship and limited success in , Jean-François Millet relocated permanently to the village of Barbizon in the , seeking a rural environment conducive to his focus on subjects. He settled there in June with his second wife, Catherine Lemaire, a woman he had married in 1840, and their growing family. The move allowed Millet to immerse himself in the daily labors of agricultural life, which became central to his artistic output during this period. Millet and his family resided in a modest cottage on the edge of the , where they raised nine children amid persistent . Despite these constraints, the setting provided direct access to the motifs of fieldwork and rural existence that defined his realism, influencing works such as Going to Work (1851–1853). In 1850, Millet formalized financial support through an arrangement with his friend Alfred Sensier, a civil servant who advanced funds in exchange for paintings, enabling sustained production without reliance on urban . This establishment in Barbizon positioned Millet as a key figure in the emerging , alongside artists like , emphasizing direct observation of nature over studio idealization. His commitment to depicting unvarnished toil, drawn from lived proximity, marked a departure from Parisian academic norms and laid the groundwork for his mature style.

Later Years and Death

In the 1860s, Millet remained committed to his life and work in Barbizon, producing landscapes and peasant subjects that reflected his deepening focus on rural labor and nature's cycles, though his output slowed due to persistent health challenges including migraines and . His international reputation grew, culminating in a medal awarded at the 1867 Exposition Universelle in , where he exhibited nine paintings, and the Legion of Honor bestowed upon him in 1868, marking official acknowledgment after decades of relative obscurity. Financial stability improved in these years through sales and commissions, yet Millet's failing health prevented him from completing several government orders, limiting his productivity as he contended with chronic ailments exacerbated by the death of his close friend in 1867. On January 3, 1875, shortly before his death, Millet arranged a religious ceremony with his longtime companion Catherine Lemaire, formalized by the local parish priest. Millet died on January 20, 1875, at his home in Barbizon at the age of 60, succumbing to complications from his prolonged illnesses. Four months later, the contents of his studio were auctioned, dispersing many works and drawings that later contributed to his posthumous acclaim.

Artistic Style and Techniques

Key Influences and Evolution

Millet's early artistic training began in in 1833, where he studied under local artists Paul Dumouchel and Lucien-Théophile Langlois, following recognition of his drawing talent by his family. In 1837, he moved to to attend the École des Beaux-Arts, training under , whose neoclassical approach emphasized historical and mythological subjects. During this period, Millet's works reflected influences from 18th-century French painters and the stark of Spanish artists encountered in the Louvre's Galerie Espagnole, as seen in his 1841 of Pauline Ono employing dramatic light and shadow contrasts. Early pieces, such as The Abduction of the Sabine Women (c. 1844–1847), adhered to Romantic and neoclassical conventions with mythological themes and idealized figures. By the late 1840s, Millet diverged from academic norms, submitting The Winnower to the 1848 Salon, which marked his initial foray into subjects drawn from direct observation of rural labor, influenced by 17th-century Dutch genre painting and Jean-Siméon Chardin's humble domestic scenes. His relocation to Barbizon in 1849 aligned him with the , where associations with and reinforced a commitment to plein-air naturalism over studio idealization, prioritizing empirical depiction of the countryside and agrarian toil rooted in his own farming upbringing. This shift embodied realism, eschewing romantic embellishment for causal fidelity to physical toil and environmental conditions, as evidenced in works like Going to Work (1851–1853). Millet's style evolved further in the 1860s and 1870s toward simplified forms and looser brushwork, reducing unnecessary detail to emphasize tonal harmony and the monumental dignity of peasants, prefiguring impressionist techniques while retaining realist substance; for instance, The Sower (c. 1850) transitioned from precise contours to broader, gestural application by the time of later landscapes like Haystacks: Autumn (c. 1874). Influences from socially attuned underscored his focus on labor's hardships without didactic moralizing, grounded instead in firsthand rural causality rather than ideological imposition. This progression reflected not mere stylistic whim but a principled rejection of artifice, yielding enduring portrayals of unvarnished human endeavor.

Commitment to Realism and Peasant Subjects

Jean-François Millet, born on October 4, 1814, in Gruchy, Normandy, to a peasant farming family, drew upon his personal experiences to focus his artistic output on the unidealized lives of rural laborers. This commitment emerged prominently in the 1840s after his relocation to the Barbizon village, where he co-founded a school emphasizing direct observation of nature over academic conventions. Rejecting Romantic tendencies toward sentimental or heroic portrayals, Millet adopted a realist approach that captured the physical demands and quiet endurance of peasant toil, as seen in works like The Sower (1850) and Harvesters Resting (1850–53). Millet articulated his philosophy through a belief in the fundamental dignity of manual labor, viewing s not as objects of pity but as embodiments of moral virtue and harmony with the land. He famously declared, "A I was born, a I will die," underscoring his intrinsic connection to these subjects rather than a contrived artistic pose. In depictions such as (1857), he rendered figures in subdued earth tones and monumental forms, emphasizing their laborious postures without embellishment, thereby prioritizing empirical fidelity to observed rural existence over narrative invention. Although contemporary critics sometimes misinterpreted his focus on peasants as politically subversive or socialist propaganda amid France's social upheavals, Millet maintained that his intent was apolitical, rooted in and a quest for truthful representation of human endeavor. He rejected such labels, insisting that peasant subjects aligned with his innate sympathies for the "human side" of existence, free from ideological agendas. This stance reinforced his realist ethos, which privileged causal observations of daily struggle—such as planting, harvesting, and herding—over abstracted ideals, influencing later artists like Van Gogh who admired the elemental nobility in Millet's unflinching portrayals.

Technical Methods in Painting and Drawing

Millet primarily employed oil on canvas for his paintings, building compositions through layered applications that emphasized tonal masses and simplified forms to convey the solidity of peasant figures and rural landscapes. His early works featured tight brushwork with stark contrasts of light and shadow to model forms realistically, as seen in portraits like that of his wife Pauline Ono in 1841. Over time, his technique evolved toward bolder, thicker impasto strokes—described by contemporaries as resembling "trowel scrapings"—which added texture and expressiveness, particularly in later pieces like Birds' Nesters (1874), where gestural marks captured dynamic movement. In terms of color, Millet favored earthy palettes dominated by muted browns, ochres, and greens, applied with restraint to prioritize value contrasts over chromatic vibrancy, thereby enhancing the somber realism of laboring subjects under . This approach reflected his commitment to observing rural scenes directly, grouping elements into broad masses to eliminate superfluous details and focus on essential forms, a method that prefigured aspects of Impressionist simplification while rooted in academic training. His handling of was empirical, derived from plein-air studies in Barbizon, where diffused atmospheric effects softened edges and unified compositions without artificial idealization. For drawing, Millet extensively used preparatory sketches as foundational studies, often executed in Conté crayon—a medium of graphite mixed with clay that allowed for precise tonal modeling and subtle gradations suitable for capturing the anatomy of workers and animals from life. He combined black chalk with colored pastels for more finished works, layering pigments to achieve depth and texture, as in landscape studies where quick, directional strokes rendered foliage or terrain. Between 1865 and 1869, he produced over 100 pastels almost exclusively, innovating with the medium by applying it in zigzagging lines for grass or broad sweeps for shadows, exploiting its dry, powdery quality on specialized papers to blend realism with emotive immediacy. Occasionally, he incorporated watercolor and pencil for fluid outdoor notations, prioritizing direct observation over studio elaboration to maintain authenticity in form and proportion.

Major Works

The Sower

represents a central motif in Jean-François Millet's exploration of peasant labor, first executed as an oil painting in 1850 and subsequently revisited in pastel and other media. The 1850 oil version, measuring 101.6 by 82.6 centimeters and housed at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, portrays a solitary figure striding forward on a steep Normandy hillside at dusk, scattering seeds from his apron with a dynamic, heroic gesture that casts his shadow across the furrowed earth. This composition emphasizes the physical strain and isolation of agricultural toil, with the sower's muscular form silhouetted against a twilight sky, evoking both the biblical parable of sowing and the unromanticized reality of rural subsistence. By the mid-1860s, after years in Barbizon, Millet produced a version (Le Semeur), circa 1865, using and crayon on beige mounted on wood-pulp board, measuring 47.1 by 37.5 centimeters, now in the collection of the . In this iteration, the landscape flattens to reflect the gentler contours of the forest region, integrating the sower more seamlessly into his environment rather than dominating a dramatic incline, demonstrating Millet's evolving sensitivity to local topography and atmospheric effects. The technique employs layered earth tones and subtle gradations to convey texture in the soil and the figure's worn clothing, with crayon providing sharp contours that heighten the sense of motion and depth. These works underscore Millet's commitment to realism, portraying the sower not as a mythic but as an ordinary whose repetitive actions sustain amid harsh conditions, free from sentimental idealization. The motif's significance lies in its distillation of cyclical agrarian existence, influencing subsequent artists; , for instance, produced over 30 variations inspired by Millet's sower, interpreting the figure as a symbol of renewal and cosmic energy against vibrant skies. Despite initial critiques viewing the 1850 exhibition piece as politically subversive for elevating manual work, Millet intended a truthful chronicle of rural hardship drawn from his own origins, eschewing ideological overlay.

The Gleaners

The Gleaners (Des glaneuses), completed by Jean-François Millet in 1857, portrays three peasant women stooped in a vast field, gathering leftover grain after the harvest. The oil-on-canvas work emphasizes the laborious humility of rural life, with the figures' coarse clothing and bent postures contrasting the distant golden sheaves stacked by wealthier harvesters. Measuring 55.5 by 83.8 centimeters, it exemplifies Millet's realist approach, derived from direct observation of Normandy peasants during his Barbizon period. Millet developed the theme over a decade, producing studies and earlier versions before this definitive canvas, which he refined to convey quiet dignity rather than sentimentality. His technique involved layered earth tones and subtle modeling of forms under diffused light, capturing the textures of soil and fabric without idealization, influenced by his commitment to existence. The composition directs attention from the intimate foreground figures to the expansive, productive landscape, underscoring class divisions inherent in agricultural labor. Exhibited at the 1857 Paris Salon, the painting elicited polarized responses; conservatives decried it as socialist propaganda glorifying indigence, while progressives lauded its truthful depiction of the underclass. Millet rejected such political readings, insisting his intent was empathetic portrayal of eternal human toil, not agitation. Despite initial controversy, solidified Millet's reputation for elevating commonplace subjects, influencing later realists by prioritizing empirical observation over neoclassical grandeur. Today, it resides in the , , symbolizing 19th-century rural realism.

The Angelus

L'Angélus is an on by Jean-François Millet, executed between 1857 and 1859, with dimensions of 55.5 by 66 centimeters. The work portrays a couple in a barren field at dusk, standing with hands clasped in recitation of the prayer, commemorating the , as evoked by the tolling of a distant signaling the end of the workday. Between them lies a of harvested potatoes and farming tools, underscoring their humble agrarian , while a and recede toward a glowing sunset horizon. Millet conceived the composition from personal recollection, stating in 1865 that the idea stemmed from memories of his grandmother halting fieldwork upon hearing the Angelus bell during his youth in Gruchy, . This reflects his broader commitment to depicting the unvarnished routines and piety of rural laborers, eschewing romantic idealization for a dignified realism that captures the physical toll of labor evident in the figures' weary postures and shadowed forms. The painting employs Millet's characteristic earthy palette and textured brushwork to evoke the subdued atmosphere of evening light filtering through gathering clouds. Initially withheld from Salon exhibition due to Millet's reluctance amid fears of misinterpretation as social propaganda, L'Angélus achieved posthumous acclaim following its display at the 1867 Exposition Universelle, where it drew crowds and became one of the 19th century's most widely reproduced images through engravings and popular prints. Acquired by French industrialist Alfred Chauchard for 800,000 francs in 1886 after competitive bidding, it entered the via his 1909 bequest before transfer to the . While Millet intended a sincere portrayal of devout peasant life, later critics like projected esoteric Freudian readings, such as interpreting the potato basket as a symbolizing repressed anxiety, though such views diverge from the artist's documented intent and empirical rural .

Other Notable Paintings

Millet created several additional paintings that captured the daily labors and quiet dignity of rural peasants, extending his realist focus beyond his most renowned compositions. Potato Planters (c. 1861), an measuring 82.5 x 101.3 cm held at the , depicts two figures inserting potato sets into furrowed soil under a vast sky, highlighting the repetitive physical demands of subsistence farming in . This work underscores Millet's commitment to portraying agricultural routines without romanticization, drawing from observations of local fieldwork. Man with a Hoe (1860–62), also in and housed at the , presents a solitary leaning on his tool amid a barren field, his posture conveying profound fatigue after years of unrelenting toil. The symbolizes the endurance of the , evoking a sense of stoic resilience rather than overt social protest, as Millet sought to elevate existence through truthful depiction. Domestic interiors also featured in Millet's oeuvre, as seen in The Knitting Lesson (1869), an oil on canvas at the , where an elderly woman instructs a young girl in by a window, illuminated by soft natural light filtering through threadbare curtains. This intimate scene reflects the intergenerational transmission of skills essential to rural self-sufficiency, rendered with meticulous attention to texture and gesture. Pastoral motifs appear in works like Calling Home the Cows (c. 1866), located at the , which illustrates a herder summoning along a winding path at , capturing the rhythmic close of the day's duties. Similarly, Shepherdess with Her Flock (c. 1863–64) portrays a young woman tending sheep in open countryside, emphasizing solitude and harmony with the landscape in line with Barbizon principles. These paintings collectively demonstrate Millet's breadth in chronicling peasant life across seasons and tasks, grounded in direct study of his Gruchy origins.

Contemporary Reception

Salon Exhibitions and Initial Critiques

Millet's debut at the Salon occurred in 1840, where a was accepted for exhibition, marking his initial entry into the official art establishment despite a prior rejection in 1839. This early acceptance provided modest recognition but did not yield significant commissions, prompting him to continue portrait work in . Subsequent participations in the 1840s shifted toward historical and genre subjects; for instance, in 1847, his Oedipus Taken Down from the Tree garnered his first notable acclaim, praised for its dramatic composition and alignment with academic ideals. The following year, 1848, saw The Winnower exhibited and subsequently purchased by the French government, signaling growing institutional interest in his evolving style. By the 1850 Salon, Millet introduced The Sower, a monumental depiction of a peasant laborer scattering seeds, which propelled him to prominence yet elicited divided responses. Critics like Théophile Gautier commended its vigorous execution, likening the figure to one "painted with the ploughshare," appreciating the raw energy and biblical undertones evoking human toil. However, others decried the work's emphasis on rustic subjects as coarse and unrefined, viewing the laborer's stooped posture and earth-toned palette as elevating manual drudgery over elevated historical themes favored by the Salon jury. This reception highlighted a tension between Millet's commitment to direct observation of rural life and the prevailing academic preference for idealized narratives. The 1857 Salon presentation of intensified scrutiny, with conservative reviewers condemning the painting's portrayal of impoverished women scavenging fields as aesthetically repellent and socially provocative. One critic dismissed the figures as "homely scarecrows," reflecting discomfort among urban audiences with the unvarnished depiction of agrarian hardship amid France's post-revolutionary class anxieties. Such critiques often imputed socialist sympathies to Millet, interpreting his focus on peasants as rather than a truthful rendering of observed , though he consistently rejected political motivations in favor of humanistic dignity. Later entries, including Man with a Hoe in , provoked similar outrage, with caricatures mocking the laborer's weary form as , underscoring persistent resistance to realism's challenge to neoclassical norms. These initial responses, dominated by establishment voices, frequently overlooked Millet's technical precision in capturing light and texture, prioritizing subjective offense over empirical assessment of his subjects' veracity.

Political and Social Misinterpretations

Millet's realistic portrayals of rural laborers, particularly in works like The Gleaners exhibited at the 1857 Salon, were frequently misinterpreted as endorsements of socialist or revolutionary ideologies amid the political tensions following the 1848 French Revolution. Critics, wary of depictions that highlighted peasant poverty and labor, viewed the painting as a provocative commentary on class disparity, with one reviewer dismissing the figures as "homely scarecrows" unfit for artistic elevation. This perception persisted despite Millet's own conservative, monarchist leanings and his explicit rejection of political agitation, as he emphasized sympathy for the peasantry rooted in his upbringing rather than calls for upheaval. Such misreadings reflected broader societal anxieties under Napoleon III's Second Empire, where imagery of downtrodden workers evoked fears of renewed unrest, leading to accusations that Millet incited class antagonism. In a letter dated 1854, Millet himself acknowledged the risk, stating, "I must confess, at the risk of being taken for a socialist," underscoring his frustration with interpretations that conflated empathetic realism with radicalism. Similar scrutiny applied to pieces like Man with a Hoe, later echoed in American contexts but originating from French critiques that framed rural toil as a symbol of exploitation rather than dignified endurance. These social misinterpretations overlooked Millet's intent to affirm the moral and spiritual virtue in peasant life, influenced by his Catholic , positioning his as a counter to urban industrialization rather than a for reform. Contemporary accounts reveal a divide: while some radicals praised the works for highlighting inequality, conservative viewers condemned them as subversive, amplifying distortions that persisted into later ideological appropriations. Millet's reluctance to engage politically further highlighted the disconnect between his apolitical and the era's polarized lens.

Controversies and Scholarly Debates

Ideological Attributions and Misconceptions

Millet's depictions of rural laborers, such as in The Gleaners (1857) and Man with a Hoe (1860–1872), prompted contemporary critics to attribute socialist or revolutionary ideologies to him, particularly in the politically charged aftermath of the 1848 French Revolution and amid fears of peasant uprisings. Works like Man with a Hoe were interpreted as social protests against exploitation, fueling suspicions of leftist propaganda despite Millet's explicit denials of political intent. He maintained that his paintings captured direct impressions from nature and the inherent dignity of toil, not agitprop, stating that such figures would "get me into hot water with a number of people who don’t like to be asked to contemplate a different world." This misconception persisted partly because liberal and left-wing critics, opposed to the Second Empire's policies, championed Millet as an ally in highlighting , while conservative reviewers decried his subjects as incendiary. In reality, Millet's biographer Alfred Sensier emphasized that he was "neither a socialist nor an idealist," reflecting his apolitical focus on human experience and avoidance of radical ideologies. His sympathy for the rural poor stemmed from personal upbringing rather than doctrinal affiliation, as evidenced by his prosperous family background owning land and livestock amid broader agrarian hardship. Underlying these attributions was a neglect of Millet's devout Catholicism, which infused his work with religious symbolism—such as evocations of Genesis 3:19 in labor scenes and biblical motifs like Harvesters Resting (Ruth and Boaz) (1857)—elevating peasants to embodiments of and redemption rather than class warriors. Posthumously, his style influenced and even movements, yet this overlooked his intent to glorify "infinite glories" in ordinary rural life without ideological prescription. Millet himself refused socialist labeling, prioritizing truthful observation over partisan messaging.

Interpretations of Religious and Symbolic Elements

![The Angelus, 1857-1859](./assets/JEAN-FRAN%C3%87OIS_MILLET_-El%C3%81ngelus_MuseodeOrsayMuseo_de_Orsay%252C_1857-1859._%C3%93leo_sobre_lienzo%252C_55.5_x_66_cm
Jean-François Millet's paintings subtly incorporate religious symbolism drawn from his Catholic upbringing and familiarity with biblical narratives, portraying peasants not as mere laborers but as figures embodying eternal human dignity and divine order. Raised in a pious family near Cherbourg, France, Millet received early education in the Bible from a parish priest, which infused his work with themes of toil as a sacred duty, echoing Genesis 3:19: "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread." His depictions emphasize the nobility of rural life, aligning peasant activities with cosmic and spiritual rhythms rather than overt dogma. In The Angelus (1857–1859), Millet illustrates two peasants pausing their fieldwork to recite the Catholic at the sound of a distant , symbolizing the seamless integration of into everyday existence and the redemptive power of humble devotion. Originally titled Prayer over the Potato Crop and possibly evoking , the painting was revised to include a visible , explicitly linking earthly labor to heavenly grace. This work, one of the most reproduced religious images of the , underscores Millet's view of peasants as inherently spiritual beings, their bowed heads and folded hands conveying profound piety amid the harvest's abundance. Other paintings draw direct parallels to biblical stories, enhancing their symbolic depth. (1857) evokes the , where fields represents themes of charity, , and providential redemption, portraying the poorest as participants in a divine economy of provision. Similarly, Harvesters Resting (Ruth and ) (c. 1850–1853) explicitly reinterprets the Ruth narrative, blending rural realism with scriptural typology to highlight moral virtue in agrarian bonds. The Sower (c. 1850), meanwhile, recalls the from the Gospels, symbolizing faith's precarious yet hopeful act of scattering seeds against uncertainty, with the figure's dynamic pose embodying resolute trust in natural and spiritual cycles. These elements collectively position Millet as a painter who, without professing religious subjects, achieved a uniquely devotional art through symbolic resonance with scripture. Scholarly interpretations affirm that Millet's religious intent permeates his oeuvre, as seen in works like Return to the Farm, which subtly suggests the Holy Family's , or Washerwomen, hinting at ' cradle on the —transforming mundane scenes into veiled typologies of salvation history. Despite occasional secular readings, the 's correspondence and biographical details reveal a consistent biblical , prioritizing causal realism in labor's redemptive role over ideological overlays. This approach elevates peasants as archetypes of human endurance under , fostering a symbolic unity between the temporal and eternal.

Legacy and Influence

Posthumous Recognition

Following Millet's death on January 20, 1875, his artistic reputation, which had been uneven during his lifetime despite some late honors, rapidly ascended to widespread acclaim. Two posthumous auctions of his studio contents and an exhibition of his drawings underscored this shift, drawing attention to the breadth of his oeuvre and elevating market interest in his depictions of rural labor. These events highlighted the pent-up demand for works that had previously sold modestly, with prices beginning to reflect his growing status as a chronicler of peasant life. A pivotal moment came in 1887 with a comprehensive at the École des Beaux-Arts in , held from May to June to fund a monument in his honor. The exhibition displayed 70 oil paintings, 50 pastels, and 100 drawings, spanning his career and attracting large crowds in the initial weeks, signaling broad public fascination. While critics noted moral and thematic strengths, some faulted technical execution—such as in The Angelus (1857–1859), which disappointed certain viewers up close— the show solidified Millet's legacy, with works like that painting commanding offers up to half a million francs. Further reinforcement occurred at the 1889 , where selections from his body of work were featured alongside the 1887 retrospective's momentum, spurring a boom in the market for his paintings as collectors recognized their enduring appeal. This period marked the transition of Millet from a niche realist to a canonical figure, with his images of agricultural toil gaining valuation and institutional validation that persisted into subsequent decades.

Impact on Modern Artists and Movements

Millet's depictions of rural labor and peasant life profoundly shaped subsequent artistic developments, particularly in emphasizing dignity in everyday toil and naturalistic rendering, which resonated beyond Realism into and beyond. His unidealized subjects provided a template for exploring social themes without romanticization, influencing artists who sought authenticity in representation. Vincent van Gogh held Millet in high regard, referring to him as "Father Millet" and producing over twenty painted copies of his works between 1889 and 1890, often from black-and-white reproductions during his hospitalization. Van Gogh created more than thirty variations on Millet's The Sower motif starting in 1888, adapting the composition with vibrant colors, expressive brushwork, and influences from Japanese prints and Paul Gauguin, as seen in works like The Sower (1888). This engagement extended to van Gogh's early painting The Potato Eaters (1885), which echoed Millet's focus on the simplicity and hardship of peasant existence. Millet's impact also reached Impressionists such as Claude Monet, whose landscapes adopted high horizons and atmospheric perspectives akin to Millet's, as in The Gorge at Varengeville (1882), and Camille Pissarro, who drew on his rural motifs. In the realm of , Millet's portrayal of rural poverty and labor's inherent virtue inspired twentieth-century artists addressing class and agrarian life, including in pieces like Old Peasant Woman (c. 1905) and . incorporated Millet's simplified forms and crayon techniques into his pointillist drawings, such as Peasants (1881–1884), bridging Realism toward . Even figures like fixated on Millet's The Angelus (1857–1859), producing reinterpretations infused with Surrealist of repression, death, and sexuality, including The Tragic Myth of the Angelus of Millet (1938) and Meditation on the Harp (c. 1933). These appropriations underscore Millet's enduring role in prompting diverse modern explorations of form, symbolism, and .

References

  1. https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/midwestqtrly/33/
  2. https://spencerart.ku.edu/art/collections-online/artist/18645
  3. https://www.vangoghmuseum.nl/en/about/news-and-press/press-releases/jean-francois-millet-sowing-the-seeds-of-modern-art
  4. https://www.bates.edu/museum/exhibitions/jean-francois-millet-biography/
  5. https://www.getty.edu/art/collection/person/103JZS
  6. https://www.nationalgalleries.org/art-and-artists/artists/jean-francois-millet
  7. https://www.nga.gov/artists/1720-jean-francois-millet
  8. https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/artists/jean-francois-millet
  9. https://www.vangoghmuseum.nl/en/stories/van-gogh-and-millet
  10. https://americanart.si.edu/artist/jean-francois-millet-3340
  11. https://www.getty.edu/art/exhibitions/millet_pastels/downloads/pastels_gallery_text.pdf
  12. http://www.thefamousartists.com/jean-francois-millet
  13. https://openpublishing.psu.edu/ahd/content/artistic-origins-french-peasant-painter-jean-francois-millet-between-normandy-and-barbizon
  14. https://catholiceducation.org/en/culture/jean-francois-millet.html
  15. https://www.segmation.com/blog/jean-francois-millet-the-peasant-painter
  16. https://www.theartstory.org/artist/millet-jean-francois/
  17. https://jhna.org/articles/incapable-of-that-sort-of-thing-millets-dutch-sources/
  18. https://jeanmillet.org/
  19. https://jeanmillet.org/biography.html
  20. https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1887/10/jean-francois-millet-the-millet-exhibition-in-paris/634145/
  21. https://eclecticlight.co/2017/04/18/jean-francois-millet-ploughing-a-lonely-furrow-1837-1852/
  22. https://rauantiques.com/blogs/canvases-carats-and-curiosities/a-deep-dive-into-the-art-of-jean-francois-millet
  23. https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/10310b.htm
  24. https://www.metmuseum.org/essays/the-barbizon-school-french-painters-of-nature
  25. https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/going-to-work-jean-fran%25C3%25A7ois-millet-french-b-1814-d-1875/NQESb0dylOt5aw?hl=en
  26. http://spokenvision.com/jean-francois-millet-french-realist-painter-barbizon-school-founder/
  27. https://www.artrenewal.org/artists/jean-francois-millet/745
  28. https://www.stephenongpin.com/artist/236678/jean-francois-millet
  29. https://www.dailyartmagazine.com/jean-francois-millet/
  30. https://www.pototschnik.com/jean-francois-millet-landscape-oil-painting-naturalism-impressionism/
  31. https://www2.arpel.org/index.jsp/u5FF7C/246497/JeanFeancoisMillet.pdf
  32. https://www.slam.org/explore-the-collection/millet-and-modern-art/
  33. https://publications.risd.edu/drawing-closer-four-hundred-years-drawing-risd-museum/cat-67-jean-francois-millet
  34. https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1962.407
  35. https://www.slam.org/accessibility/large-print-labels-millet-and-modern-art/
  36. https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O517512/meadow-with-trees-watercolour-millet-jean-francois/
  37. https://www.facebook.com/paintingandfineart/posts/jean-francois-millet-the-sower-circa-1865/965973268992366/
  38. https://www.19thcenturyart-facos.com/artwork/sower
  39. https://media.clarkart.edu/1982.8_EuroCat.pdf
  40. https://eclecticlight.co/2017/05/05/jean-francois-millet-ploughing-a-lonely-furrow-1861-1868/
  41. https://www.art-theoria.com/painting-of-the-month/the-sower/
  42. https://www.19thc-artworldwide.org/spring21/hunt-reviews-millet-and-modern-art-and-jean-francois-millet
  43. https://eclecticlight.co/2024/08/29/the-real-country-2-the-sower/
  44. https://smarthistory.org/millet-the-gleaners/
  45. https://www.musee-orsay.fr/en/artworks/des-glaneuses-342
  46. https://www.arthistoryproject.com/artists/jean-francois-millet/the-gleaners/
  47. http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/paintings-analysis/gleaners-millet.htm
  48. https://mydailyartdisplay.uk/2011/02/23/the-gleaners-by-jean-francois-millet/
  49. https://www.kellybagdanov.com/2025/05/30/millets-the-gleaners/
  50. https://www.musee-orsay.fr/en/artworks/langelus-345
  51. https://www.napoleon.org/en/history-of-the-two-empires/paintings/the-angelus/
  52. https://smarthistory.org/jean-francois-millet-langelus/
  53. https://www.artinsociety.com/millet-and-the-angelus.html
  54. https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/the-angelus/CgHjAgexUzNOOw?hl=en
  55. https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2025/jul/17/angelus-millet-life-on-the-land-national-gallery-london-modern-art
  56. https://collections.mfa.org/objects/31621
  57. https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/potato-planters/-AFCoNLerL0HbA?hl=en
  58. https://www.getty.edu/art/collection/object/103RGZ
  59. https://www.slam.org/collection/objects/34166/
  60. https://www.nga.gov/artworks/168820-calling-home-cows
  61. https://www.artchive.com/artwork/shepherdess-with-her-flock-jean-francois-millet-1864/
  62. https://www.christies.com/en/lot/lot-343907
  63. https://collections.mfa.org/objects/31601
  64. https://apollo-magazine.com/jean-francois-millet-modern-artists/
  65. https://www.mutualart.com/Article/France-Embraces-Millet--The-Intertwined-/65DB908A334354D8
  66. http://artmarinagallery.blogspot.com/2013/03/millet-gleaners-1875-analysis.html
  67. https://www.getty.edu/art/exhibitions/man_with_hoe/downloads/MIL_Web_PDF_FA.pdf
  68. https://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/collection/works/368.2007/
  69. https://artuk.org/discover/artists/millet-jean-francois-18141875
  70. https://www.encyclopedia.com/history/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/millet-jean-francois
  71. https://www.plough.com/en/topics/culture/art/to-plow-his-furrow-in-peace
  72. https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/museums/its-easy-to-see-millets-influence-on-other-painters-its-harder-to-see-his-genius/2020/02/26/7c563130-573d-11ea-9b35-def5a027d470_story.html
  73. https://www.newstatesman.com/culture/art-design/2025/08/jean-francois-millet-and-the-drudgery-of-rural-life
  74. https://www.catholicculture.org/commentary/angelus-jean-franois-millet-1857-59/
  75. https://artuk.org/discover/artworks/the-sower-160292
  76. https://www.19thc-artworldwide.org/spring24/ambrosini-reviews-reckoning-with-millets-man-with-a-hoe-1863-1900
Add your contribution
Related Hubs
Contribute something
User Avatar
No comments yet.