| The Potato Harvest | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Artist | Jean-François Millet |
| Year | 1855 |
| Medium | Oil on canvas |
| Dimensions | 54 cm × 65.2 cm (21 in × 25.7 in) |
| Location | The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore |
The Potato Harvest is an oil-on-canvas painting by the French artist Jean-François Millet, created in 1855. It is held at The Walters Art Museum, in Baltimore.
Jean-François Millet was raised in the area of France known as the old province of Normandy. He was brought up with hard out-of-door labor. After studying to become a painter, he devoted his art to illustrating peasants farming the land. His subjects were often taken from his surroundings or from memories from his youth.[1]
During the 1850s, Millet began incorporating his subjects into landscapes. The Potato Harvest is one of nine works which drew international acclaim at the Exposition Universelle in 1867.[2]
The Potato Harvest depicts peasants working in the plains between Barbizon and Chailly. It presents a theme representative of the peasants' struggle for survival. Millet's technique for this work incorporated paste-like pigments thickly applied over a coarsely textured canvas.[2]