Return from the Fields
c. 1846–47
oil on fabric
46.2 × 37.8 cm (18.2 × 14.9 in)
SEE IT IN PERSON
Not currently on view
In the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland · as of July 2026
Discussion
FROM THE CLEVELAND MUSEUM OF ART’S CATALOG
This idealized vision of noble peasant life was painted during a period of intense industrialization in France, accompanied by economic depression and the abandonment of farms. Nostalgic peasant scenes were especially popular in the 1840s, a stark contrast to the disillusionment and tension that would violently surface in the Revolution of 1848. The vague shapes and faces of the family seen here make them symbols of the land, rather than individuals.
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