The mousetrap
Medium
Classification
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Gift of Edmond C. Bonaventure
Accession Number
1951-90-2
About this artwork
Research in Progress
Art Historical Context
**The Mousetrap** (1860) is an evocative print by French artist Charles Émile Jacque (181–1894), a of rural scenes and animal studies. Jacque, a key figure in the Barbizon School alongside artists like Millet and Corot, drew inspiration from the French countryside near Barbizon, capturing the simplicity and grit of peasant life during the mid-19th century. amid France's Second Empire, when industrialization was transforming rural traditions, this work reflects the era's fascination with authentic, unidealized depictions of everyday existence. As a print—likely an etching, Jacque's favored tec...