Christ et Sainte Femme
1936
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
aquatint in black (trial proof)
Classification
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Rosenwald Collection
Accession Number
1950.17.258
Art Historical Context
Georges Rouault's *Christ et Sainte Femme*1936), an aquatint in black and a rare trial proof, captures the artist's profound devotion to religious themes. Rouault, a key figure in early 20th-century Expression with roots in Fauvism, portrayed Christ with raw emotional intensity, using heavy black outlines and textured surfaces to evoke spiritual depth. This print depicts Christ and a holy woman—likely evoking biblical encounters like the woman at the well or Mary Magdalene—rendered in stark, monochromatic tones that heighten the drama and introspection. Aquatint, Rouault's favored print mediu...
About the Artist
Georges Rouault
Georges-Henri Rouault was born on May 27, 1871, in a Paris cellar during the violent "Bloody Week" of the Paris Commune, when a stray shell destroyed his family's home in the working-class Belleville district. Raised by a carpenter father who worked at the Pleyel piano factory and a grandfather who collected prints by Honoré Daumier, Rembrandt, Courbet, and Manet, Rouault showed early artistic pro...