1866
ink
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
The Little Potato Peeler (La petite peleuse de pommes de terre) is a 1866 ink by Félicien Rops, a Romanticism work, held at National Gallery of Art.
This sketch shows a woman squatting by water, peeling potatoes with a small knife. Her clothes are simple and worn, and she’s barefoot. Next to her sits a wooden bucket, half-full of potatoes. The lines are scratchy and dark, giving it a rough, hand-drawn feel. The artist used a technique called *etching*, where ink is scratched into a metal plate to create the image. This method lets you see every mark the tool made. If you like this style, look up etching to see how it works.
Félicien Victor Joseph Rops (French: ; 7 July 1833 – 23 August 1898) was a Belgian artist associated with Symbolism, Decadence, and the Parisian fin de siècle, and was a member of the Les XX group.
See the richer artist pageYour cart is empty
Explore artworks →
