Camille Pissarro, 'The Pork Butcher', 1883
About the work
Overview
This painting is set in the main square of the town of Pontoise, a few kilometres to the north-west of Paris. Pissarro had moved to the nearby village of Osny the year before. He often visited the weekly market. At this time he was moving away from pure landscape painting, where figures were included to create a sense of scale and perspective. He became more concerned with capturing the people themselves, engrossed in their day-to-day lives.
Pissarro painted five oil paintings of similar market scenes during the 1880s. The figures in these pictures are nearly all women. He was interested in reflecting on the female role in rural society. These women were the suppliers, artisans and shoppers who formed the link between the production and consumption of food. The model for the butcher was his niece Eugénie Estruc, known as Nini. She is the subject of a number of other portraits by Pissarro.
Key facts
Details
- Full title
- The Pork Butcher
- Artist
- Camille Pissarro
- Artist dates
- 1830 - 1903
- Date made
- 1883
- Medium and support
- Oil on canvas
- Dimensions
- 65.1 × 54.3 cm
- Inscription summary
- Signed; Dated
- Acquisition credit
- On loan from Tate: Bequeathed by Lucien Pissarro, the artist's son 1944
- Inventory number
- L724
- Location
- Not on display
- Image copyright
- On loan from Tate: Bequeathed by Lucien Pissarro, the artist's son 1944, © 2000 Tate
- Collection
- Main Collection
About this record
If you know more about this work or have spotted an error, please contact us. Please note that exhibition histories are listed from 2009 onwards. Bibliographies may not be complete; more comprehensive information is available in the National Gallery Library.
