1874
ink
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
Old Woman Seated (La vieille femme assise) is a 1874 ink by Alphonse Legros, a Romanticism work, held at National Gallery of Art.
This sketch shows a hunched woman sitting in a chair, her hands resting on her lap. Her face is blurred, and her clothes look like heavy fabric with folds. The background is filled with a crisscrossed pattern, almost like a woven texture. The artist used lines to create a rough, textured look—no smooth shading here. This style makes the woman feel more real, like she’s struggling with something. Try looking up etching to see how artists like this one carve into metal plates to make prints.
Alphonse Legros (French pronunciation: ; 8 May 1837 – 8 December 1911) was a French, later British, painter, etcher, sculptor, and medallist.
See the richer artist page
