Papier à Lettres
1857
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
1857
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
This drawing shows a man in old-fashioned clothes, holding a small book or paper. His coat is long and loose, and he wears a cap pulled low. The background looks like a city street with buildings and a puddle on the ground. The text at the bottom is in French and seems to joke about spelling mistakes. The title *Papier à Lettres* means "letter paper," and the whole image feels like a snapshot of everyday life. If you like this style, check out Romanticism next—it often focused on real people and stories like this one.
