Description
Although often associated with the Barbizon school, Breton favored a more idealized treatment of his subjects and a more polished style of painting. In this rural scene, probably set in the artist's native Pas-de-Calais, north of Paris, three young women return from the fields at dusk. Their idealized forms contrast markedly with the harshness of Millet's depictions of peasant life.



Returning from the Fields
Conservation
Date | Description | Narrative |
---|---|---|
6/14/1968 | Treatment | other |
6/27/1977 | Treatment | mounted; coated |
6/14/1983 | Treatment | loss compensation |
7/03/1986 | Treatment | loss compensation |
8/11/1993 | Examination | examined for condition |
7/21/1995 | Treatment | cleaned; loss compensation |
7/01/1996 | Examination | examined for condition |
3/12/1999 | Treatment | re-housed |
3/19/1999 | Examination | examined for condition |
Exhibitions
- Jules Breton and the French Rural Tradition. Joslyn Art Museum, Omaha; The Dixon Gallery and Gardens, Memphis; The Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, Williamstown. 1982-1983.
- Redefining Genre: French and American Painting 1850-1900. The Dixon Gallery and Gardens, Memphis; Society of the Four Arts, Palm Beach; Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Santa Barbara; Meridian International Center, Washington. 1995-1996.
- Botanical Delights: Floral Motifs in 19th-Century Art. Government House, Annapolis; Strathmore Hall Art Center, North Bethesda; Academy Art Museum, Easton. 1998-1999.
- A Discerning Eye: Nineteenth-century Drawings and Watercolors. Academy Art Museum, Easton. 1998-1999.
- Triumph of French Painting: Masterpieces from Ingres to Matisse. Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore; Philbrook Museum of Art, Tulsa; Norton Museum of Art, West Palm Beach; Dayton Art Institute, Dayton; Royal Academy of Arts, London; Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo. 2000-2002.
- A Magnificent Age: Masterpieces from the Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore; The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City; Mint Museum of Art, Charlotte. 2002-2004.
- The Road to Impressionism: Landscapes from Corot to Manet. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. 2004-2005.
- The Road to Impressionism: Barbizon Landscapes from the Walters Art Museum. The Dixon Gallery and Gardens, Memphis; The Frick Art & Historical Center, Pittsburgh. 2008-2009.
- 19th Century Masterpieces from the Walters Art Museum. Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Santa Barbara; Jack S. Blanton Museum of Art, Austin. 2010-2011.
Provenance
Mrs. Mary J. Morgan, New York [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Mrs. Mary J. Morgan Sale, American Art Galleries, New York, 1886, no. 158 [p. 67]; William T. Walters, Baltimore, 1886, by purchase; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1894, by inheritance; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Inscriptions
[Signature] Lower right: Jules Breton; [Date] Lower right: 1871
Credit
Acquired by William T. Walters, 1886
Creator
Period
1871Accession Number
37.58Measurements
H: 27 3/8 x W: 40 15/16 in. (69.5 x 104 cm); Framed H with build-up: 42 1/4 x W: 56 x D: 6 3/4 in. (107.32 x 142.24 x 17.15 cm)Geographies
- France (Place of Origin)