Italian Peasant Woman

Art Historical Context

This etching and aquatint by François-Philippe Charpentier reproduces a composition by Jean-Baptiste Greuze, one of the leading French genre painters of the mid-eighteenth century. Greuze specialized in scenes of everyday life that combined realistic detail with emotional expression, often celebrating the virtues of ordinary people. His depictions of peasants and family groups appealed to Enlightenment audiences who valued moral sentiment in art. Printed in warm brown ink on laid paper between 1762 and 1766, the work demonstrates the period’s growing interest in tonal printmaking. Aquatint al...