La morgue, Paris (The Mortuary)

About this work

This sketch shows a busy Paris street packed with tall, cramped buildings. People hang laundry from windows, and a few walk below on the narrow sidewalk. A boat glides along the river in the foreground, while a larger building with a flat roof sits near the water. The whole scene is drawn in fine, precise lines—no colors, just black and white. Notice the tiny details, like the person carrying a bundle or the clotheslines crisscrossing the street. This isn’t a fancy scene—it’s everyday life, drawn exactly as it looked. Want to see more like this? Try looking up etching.