Artwork
Young Peasant Having Her Coffee
Young Peasant Having Her Coffee is an oil painting by the Impressionist artist Camille Pissarro. It dates from 1891 and is held in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The composition centers on the figure of a young peasant woman, with a teacup and coffee serving as the key attributes that identify the activity portrayed.
Young Peasant Having Her Coffee is a portrait by Camille Pissarro that depicts a woman seated indoors beside a window, engaged in the everyday act of drinking coffee. The composition centers on the figure of a young peasant woman, with a teacup and coffee serving as the key attributes that identify the activity portrayed. The presence of the window situates the scene within a domestic interior, lending the work the character of a genre scene as well as a portrait.
Classified in the tradition of genre art, the painting treats a humble rural subject with the dignity of formal portraiture, reflecting Pissarro's interest in the lives of working people. By pairing the everyday ritual of coffee drinking with the conventions of portraiture, the work elevates an ordinary moment into a study of rural character and quiet self-possession.
Technique & Style
The work is an oil painting executed on canvas, measuring 65.3 cm in height by 54.8 cm in width. Pissarro applied oil paint to the surface, employing brushwork that emphasizes delicate tonal transitions and a naturalistic rendering of light across the interior scene. The composition depicts a young woman partaking in coffee, with visible details such as a teacup and a window framing the figure, contributing to a quiet, genre-oriented portrait.
The handling of the medium reflects the Impressionist concern with atmospheric effects and everyday subjects, while the stylistic qualities align with Pissarro's mature approach to genre painting.
History & Provenance
Young Peasant Having Her Coffee was painted by Camille Pissarro in 1891. The work is an oil on canvas portrait that entered the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago, where it remains held. The canvas measures 65.3 cm in height by 54.8 cm in width.
No further details about the commission, intermediate ownership, or acquisition history are documented in the available sources. The work is part of the museum's permanent holdings, but the records do not list a specific inventory or accession number, nor do they detail any exhibition history for this piece.
Overview
Camille Pissarro painted Young Peasant Having Her Coffee in 1891, employing oil on canvas to capture a quiet domestic moment. The work shows a young rural woman seated by a window, cradling a cup of coffee, rendered with the soft, atmospheric touch typical of late‑19th‑century French painting. It belongs to the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago.
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