The Artist's Wife Fishing
Medium
oil on canvas
Dimensions
overall: 95.5 x 101 cm (37 5/8 x 39 3/4 in.) framed: 121 x 126.1 x 7 cm (47 5/8 x 49 5/8 x 2 3/4 in.)
Classification
Painting
Department
CF
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon
Accession Number
1985.64.19
Art Historical Context
Jean-Louis Forain’s *The Artist’s Wife Fishing* (1896) offers a quiet, personal glimpse into late-nineteenth-century domestic life. Painted in oil on canvas, the nearly square composition—measuring roughly 95 by 101 centimeters—places the viewer beside Forain’s wife as she pursues the simple pastime of fishing. The medium’s rich layering allows subtle shifts of light on water and fabric, lending the scene both immediacy and intimacy. Created at a moment when many French artists turned toward scenes of everyday leisure, the work reflects the period’s interest in modern subjects drawn from priv...
About the Artist
Jean-Louis Forain
Jean-Louis Forain was born Louis Henri Forain on October 23, 1852, in Reims, France, to a family of modest means; his father painted ornamental signs. The family relocated to Paris when he was eight, where young Forain developed a passion for drawing inspired by the sculptures of Reims Cathedral and the masters at the Louvre, which he began copying at age fourteen. He received drawing lessons from...